Author: RumseyYost

Harriet Stephens Wilson

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Harriet Stephens Wilson, 97, Lawrence, died at Brandon Woods on March 31, 2015, and at her request there will be no services.

She was born on May 6, 1917, in Topeka, Kansas, the first daughter of Harry and Senah Stephens. Her early education was in their Topeka neighborhood, and she graduated from Topeka High School. At the University of Kansas she earned an undergraduate degree and membership in Phi Beta Kappa, developed a love for Lawrence, and met her future husband, Paul E. Wilson. She later took graduate courses and was a teaching assistant in the English Department.

She and Paul married in Topeka in June of 1941, and subsequently moved to Ashland, Kansas, but their time in that community was cut short when he enlisted in the army in 1942. After the war they lived in Lyndon and Topeka, and moved to Lawrence in September 1957, when he accepted a professorship position in the KU Law School.

Later they spent a year in New York City, several months in Tucson, AZ, and five years in Taos, NM, where they co-owned the Taos Bookshop, surrounded with books, a dream life for them.
In 1982 the Wilsons returned to Lawrence, but she continued an out-of-print/rare book search service for over a decade. Her love of books defined many times in her life, and she volunteered for and chaired the Lawrence Library Sale for several years, always roping in any visiting family members.

Her death was preceded by those of her parents and her siblings, Paul, who died in the service of his country in 1945, Bonnie Jean Mix and Lois Sayler. Her husband Paul died in April 2001. Surviving are their four children, Betsy Marvin (Charles) of Atlanta, GA, Polly Orbin (Ron) of Prescott Valley, AZ, Eileen Unruh (Steve) of Lawrence, and David (Carol Ward) of Springville, US, as well as her eight grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

Her family and friends will miss her dearly. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in her name to the Lawrence Public Library.

Online condolences may be sent at rumsey-yost.com.

Carrol Lee (Sneegas) Freed

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Memorial services for Carrol Lee Sneegas Freed, 70, Lecompton, will be at 7 pm Monday, March 30, 2015, at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home.

Carrol passed away Wednesday, March 25, 2015, surrounded by her loved ones.

She was born October 25, 1944, in San Diego, California, the daughter of Betty Lou and Robert Sneegas. She graduated from Lawrence High School in 1962.

Carrol had various jobs through the years including Montgomery Ward, Slip Joint Ceramics Shop, where she was co-owner with her parents, Wal-Mart and retired from the Lawrence Paper Company.

She enjoyed many activities including crocheting, ceramics and collecting Precious Moments. She also enjoyed her many pets.

Carrol married Richard Folks Jr. July 26, 1964. Together they had three sons Bill, Bob and Chuck. They divorced in 1985. She married Charles “Dennis” Freed on August 30, 1986. He survives of the home.

Other survivors include her three sons Bill Folks and Fiancee, Shelley, Garnett, Bob Folks and wife Jennifer, Lecompton, Chuck Folks and wife Diane, Lawrence; ten grandchildren Beth Folks, Evan Folks, Abbi Folks, Graci Folks, Jaxson Folks, Maelee Folks, Lydia Folks, Jese Murphy, Kylie Murphy, JP Murphy; one great granddaughter Jerilynn Folks; two brothers James Sneegas and Skip Sneegas both of Lawrence; sister Barbara Renowden, Silvertown, CO. sister Revlee Sneegas, Lawrence; many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents.

The family will receive friends at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home on Monday, March 30, 2015, at 6 pm, with a celebration of life to follow at 7 pm. Private inurnment will follow at a later date.

Memorial contributions in memory of Carrol Lee Freed may be made to the Lawrence Humane Society, sent in care of the funeral home.

Kenneth F. Lahm

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Memorial services for Kenneth F. Lahm, 86, Lawrence, will be held at 2:00pm Friday April 10, 2015 at Immanuel Lutheran Church. He passed away Wednesday, March 25, 2015 at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

Ken was born March 25, 1929 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of Jacob Frederick and Rose Marie Bachmann Lahm. He graduated from Clinton High School, Clinton, Iowa. While in High School, Ken earned All American Honors as a swimmer. He married Marilyn Louise Happs on February 15, 1949 in Clinton Iowa. She survives of the home. They moved from Clinton, Iowa to Lawrence, Kansas in 1958.

Other survivors include three sons: Captain (USN Ret) Raymond Lahm and wife Roberta, Kailua Kona, Hawaii; David Lahm and wife Nancy, Lawrence; Frederick Lahm and wife Christine, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; a daughter Sandra Gilliland and husband Keith, Lawrence; ten grandchildren – Jennifer Pfeifer (Paul), Courtney Lahm (Rick Stiles), Jacob Lahm (Lisa), Candice Lahm, Charles Lahm, Emily Lahm, Terry Gilliland (Mendy), Shelly Gilliland (Matt Johnson), Kasee Blake, and ten great-grandchildren.

Ken worked for E.I. DuPont De Nemours and Co. for 39 years, followed by three years with Flexel, Inc. as Human Resource Superintendent.

Ken was an avid golfer and charter member at Alvamar Country Club. For many years he had an 8:00 am tee time. He also was an avid outdoorsman – his passion for hunting and fishing was passed down to his three sons, his grandson Jacob and great-grandson Ethan. Ken was a long time member of Trinity Lutheran Church and recently returned to Immanuel Lutheran Church. Ken was a founding member of Immanuel Lutheran Church where his name was placed in the Church Cornerstone. Ken taught Sunday school for 16 years. He was also a member of the Sertoma Club where he received “Man of the Year Award” for outstanding service in 1999-2000.

Ken was a kind, loving, gentle man. An extremely religious and humble man who loved his family very much. A loving husband, father, grandfather and father-in-law. Ken was respected by everyone who knew him.

He is preceded in death by his parents, sister Louise Struck and sister Madelyn Lahm.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions made to Immanuel Lutheran Church, Douglas County Visiting Nurses or Douglas County Hospice, sent in care of Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home.

Max B. Moore

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Max B. Moore, 96, passed away on March 24, 2015 at the Baldwin Health Care and Rehab Center in Baldwin City, KS. Max was born on August 21, 1918 in Smithville, MO to Estel B. and Ada F. Moore. He was raised in the Vinland Valley area and attended several schools in the Vinland area. Max was educated through the 8th grade at which time he started working to support his mother and younger siblings. He held various jobs in his lifetime including working at a gas station. He also worked for Green Brothers John Deere dealership and for the CO-OP fertilizer plant in Lawrence, KS. Max and his wife Doris purchased a farm that was later known as Plainview Farms. Max continued to run the farm well into his 90s. Max was very active in the communities of Vinland and Baldwin. He served on the Vinland Fair Board for many years. He also was a member of the Vinland Grange. Max served as trustee for the Palmyra Township and took an active role in establishing the volunteer fire department for the township. He served many years as the organizer of the music tent for the Maple Leaf Festival. He and his wife Doris entertained the community for years through their love of music. Their “band” played various venues in the area over the years. Max was an accomplished guitarist.
Max married Doris M. Winters on August 7, 1940. They celebrated 70 years of marriage before she preceded him in death. He is survived by his daughter Donna (Louis) Slusser, son Danny (Rhonda), Baldwin, three grandchildren, Michael (Lori) Slusser, Christina (Dave) Rexroad, and Mandy (Dave) Kelly, three great-grandchildren, Ashley Slusser, Chance Barritt, and Lauren Slusser, a sister June (Don) Allis, sister-in-law Jean and numerous nieces and nephews and his faithful dog Toby. He was preceded in death by two sisters, Madalyn Collins and Hazel Puckett and a brother Gerald Moore.
Please join the family to share your memories of Max at the visitation which will be on Friday, March 27 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. Graveside services will be on Saturday, March 28 at 10 a.m. at the Deay Cemetary, 700-798 East 2300 Road, Eudora, KS 66025 (six miles south and one mile east of Eudora on the southwest corner). The Family suggests contributions be made to Gentiva Hospice, 8735 Rosehill Rd, Suite 200, Lenexa, KS 66215.

C. Leon Comstock

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Graveside inurnment services for C. Leon Comstock, 87, of Springfield, MO and, most recently, Lawrence, KS, will be held at 1 pm, Wednesday, at Oak Hill Cemetery. He passed away Saturday at Pioneer Ridge Retirement Community.

Leon was born November 22, 1927, in Redfield, KS, the son of Clyde Henry and Mabel D. Guneaulles Comstock. He had one brother and three sisters. Leon was married to Patricia Jo Anderson for 67 years. He worked for many years as a tool designer for the Boeing Company in Wichita, KS.

Memorial contributions may be made to Pioneer Ridge Activity Fund, sent in care of Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home.

Carol Marie Buhler Francis

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Memorial services for Carol Marie Buhler Francis, 87, Lawrence, will be 11 am, Wednesday, March 25, 2015, at Trinity Episcopal Church. Visitation will be 6-7 pm Tuesday, at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. Private inurnment at a later time.

Carol Marie Buhler Francis died on Saturday March 21, 2015, in Lawrence, Kansas.

She was born February 9, 1928 in Pretty Prairie, Kansas. She was the youngest of seven children born to Dr. David and Helen Hansmann Buhler. Both of her parents passed away by the time she was seven. In 1936 the family moved to Lawrence, KS for college education opportunities. The oldest sister Esther assumed the role of raising the family.

Carol and George Francis married on June 10, 1950 and enjoyed 64 years together. They had 4 children: April (Mike) Dwyer, Wendy (Scott) Clay, Jay (Doreen Seely) Francis, and Jon (Julie) Francis. Grandchildren include Madison and Morgan Clay, Anikka, Kyle, and Elaina Francis. She is preceded in death by her sisters Esther Paxton, Irene Miller and Helen Ossmann, and brothers, Victor and Everett. She is survived by a sister Geraldine Smith of Lawrence.

She was best known for her devotion to historical preservation efforts and was an active member of the Lawrence Preservation Alliance for many years. August 1, 1978 she purchased the House Building in downtown Lawrence. Her research revealed it as the only building in downtown Lawrence that survived Quantrill’s Raid on August 21, 1863. Through the years, she worked tirelessly to maintain its historical significance and was successful in having it listed on the local, state, and national historic registers. She wrote two books based on her building research: The House Building, A Search for its Foundations and Local Happenings in Lawrence, Kansas 1921-1946. She also put together the book Douglas County, Kansas, Family Histories 1991-1992 Vol. 1.

Carol attended KU studying advertising and journalism. While in school she was a member of Modern Choir, the A Cappella Choir and the women’s Glee Club. She played first violin in the orchestra and oboe in the band. She was elected to Theta Sigma Phi and Gamma Alpha Chi, honorary journalism fraternities for women. She edited the K-Union, Student Union activities publication; was publicity chairman for the Student Union Activities and was secretary of the Kansas Board, governing body of the University Daily Kansan. She graduated in 1950 with a degree in advertising and received a Master of Science in Journalism in 1971. She started her career as advertising manager at Weaver’s Department Store. A free lance spirit led her to a second career in writing. She wrote newsletters for the Douglas County Historical Society, was past President and Treasurer for the Kansas Press Women and won numerous awards for her advertising, interviewing and writing skills including the Clarion Award in 2008 from the Association of Women in Communications for her I-Pod version of “Walking Downtown Lawrence”.

She joined the Girls Scouts in 1938 and served in many capacities including the 1st Executive Director of the Lawrence Girl Scout Council. She was also very active in the Lawrence Aquahawks swim team and was 1st meet director. She was deeply committed to Trinity Episcopal Church and served on many committees, in the choir, as a lectern and Sunday school teacher. She was instrumental in the major remodel of the church. Carol was also a member of Delta Gamma Sorority and won the Cable award for her outstanding loyalty. She enjoyed needlework, camping, canoeing, hunting, and swimming. She logged over 1400 miles in a canoe with the Ozark Wilderness Waterways club and won numerous medals swimming in the Senior Olympics at the national level until her early eighties.

In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to the Lawrence Preservation Alliance or Trinity Episcopal Church.

Online condolences at Rumsey-yost.com

David Lee Milleret

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David Lee Milleret, 33, of Lawrence, Kansas died in his home on Thursday evening, March 19, 2015. Visitation will occur Wednesday, March 25 from 7:00-8:00 pm at the Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. A memorial service for David will be held at 10 am, Thursday, March 26, 2015, at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. Inurnment will follow at Memorial Park Cemetery.

He was born January 5, 1982, in Lawrence, KS, the son of Mark and Melinda Cain Milleret. He graduated from Tonganoxie High School in 2000. Shortly after graduation, David and his partner Kendra Mosier moved to Park Hills, MO, where he worked for many years as a craftsman for Ken Mosier Construction Inc.

David and Kendra moved back to Kansas where he worked for Hawks Pointe Apartments in their maintenance department. He did this until symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis overcame his physical abilities.

Mr. Milleret loved to spend time with Kendra and their daughter Kaitlyn. David was also an art aficionado with a vast knowledge and love for music, film, and literature. In the last few years of his life, the affliction limited his mobility but could not erode the love he held for his friends and family nor did it impact his wonderful sense of humor, which he held on to until the end.

David’s partner and care-giver Kendra Mosier, a trained LPN, provided around the clock care, ensuring that Dave was as happy and comfortable as possible as he struggled with Multiple Sclerosis.

Survivors include his partner Kendra Mosier and their daughter Kaitlyn of the home; parents Mark and Melinda Milleret, Linwood; sister Nancy Hultgren and her husband Brice, Commerce City, CO; grandmothers Martha Milleret and Roberta Cain, both of Lawrence.

He is preceded in death by his two grandfathers, L. J. Milleret and Donald Cain.

Memorial contributions may be made to Douglas County Visiting Nurses, sent in care of the funeral home.

Marilyn Kay Noble

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A Celebration of Life service for Marilyn Kay Noble, 68, Oskaloosa, will be held at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 23, 2015 at the Oskaloosa United Methodist Church with the Rev. Melinda Harwood officiating. Burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Perry, Kansas. Marilyn went to heaven on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 at Lawrence Memorial Hospital with her family by her side.

She was born March 27, 1946 in Baldwin Kansas, the daughter of Charles Sr. and Melva Agnes Chenoweth Winchell. Marilyn worked at the Hampton-Barrett Funeral Home prior to owning and operating the Oskaloosa Flower Shop for 15 years, retiring in 2007.

Marilyn was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother to her family. She married Archie Lee Noble on August 10, 1963 in Lawrence, KS. He survives of the home. Other survivors include four children, Cindy Noble (Rusty), Kansas City, Debra Noble, Lawrence, Laura Claxton (Cory), Oskaloosa , Michael Noble (Carmen), Winchester; and six grandchildren, Carter Claxton, Hunter Claxton, Lexi Noble, Simone Friedrich, Chris Holmes and Taylor Holmes. Two sisters Carol Hale and Rose Bagby along with many nieces and nephews. She will be dearly missed by her dog Teeter.

She was proceeded in death by her parents, her brothers Walt and James, sisters Mona, Ruth, Thelma and Helen.

Marilyn was a member of the Oskaloosa United Methodist Church and an active member in the community. She lived life to the fullest and loved music, bird watching, spending time with her family and was devoted to her grandchildren.

Friends may call from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home, where the family will receive them from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Memorial contributions are suggested to Douglas County Visiting Nurses in care of the funeral home, 601 Indiana Street, Lawrence, KS 66044.

Virginia ‘Ginny’ Erickson

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Virginia “Ginny” Erickson was born January 28, 1929, on the family farm in Inwood, Iowa. At the age of 3, she contracted spinal meningitis and polio resulting in her deafness. Her family moved from Inwood to Sioux Falls, South Dakota where she attended the South Dakota School for the Deaf until graduation. She then moved to Minneapolis to attend business school and it is there that she met the love of her life, Delbert “Erik” Erickson, a teacher at the Minnesota School for the Deaf at a homecoming football game. They were married the next fall. Virginia worked most of her life as a keypunch operator until moving back to South Dakota where she became a houseparent at her alma mater, a job she loved very much.

Virginia and Delbert spent their married life in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Rochester, New York; Lanham, Maryland; Omaha, Nebraska before returning to Sioux Falls, South Dakota for much of their retirement living just across the street from her parents. They spent their final time together at Columbus Colony in Ohio. After Delbert passed away in 2001, Virginia spent the next fourteen years at Columbus Colony living near her oldest daughter, Cheryl and her family. She moved to Lawrence, Kansas last November, where she spent her last months in the loving care of her granddaughter, Zoe and her family, spending each day with her greatest delight – her great granddaughters.

Delbert and Virginia raised four children and were the very proud grandparents of nine grandchildren and three great-granddaughters. Virginia had the joy of loving and being loved by so many of her extended family, including her 13 nieces and nephews. The incredible thing about her is that she could take in all of that love, focus and attention and return it in abundance to her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, family and friends. In that she was indisputably, the very best. We miss her already.

Virginia is survived and sadly missed by her family; Cheryl (John) Balk of Columbus, Ohio, Dawn (Peter) Sliskovich of Rancho Palos Verdes, California, Kristen (Bruce) Barlow of Lawrence, Kansas and Edward Erickson of Del Mar, California. By her eight grandchildren; Austin Barlow, Elizabeth (Mara) Balk, Erik Sliskovich, Andrew Balk, Zoe (Casey) Smith, Aimee Erickson, Rachel Erickson and Paul Sliskovich. A by her greatest joys – her great granddaughters, Ebben Marie Smith, Ardis Luella Smith and Lilah Maye Balk.

Virginia was preceded in death by her beloved husband Delbert L. Erickson, her parents Emil and Marie Farstead, her siblings, Curtis Farstead, Nona Bechtold, Dennis Farstead and one grandson, John Sliskovich.

Shirley J. Myer

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Funeral services for Shirley J. Myer will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. Burial will follow in Oak Hill Cemetery.

Shirley J. Myer has left this world and has gone to a better world called Heaven, Tuesday, March 10, 2015, from Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

She was born December 16, 1939 in Verona, MO, the daughter of Franklin and Margaret Linden. She graduated from Bonner Springs High School in 1958. She married Gary Myer June 9, 1963, in Bonner Springs, KS. Together they were in the Gospel Ministry for 50 years. Rev. Gary L. Myer and Shirley served side by side in churches in Kansas, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Shirley was always a very loving and giving person.

She is survived by her husband, Rev. Gary L. Myer, her daughter Joy Chiasson and her husband, Eddie of Lawrence, and one grandson Paul Chiasson and his wife, Lacy of Lawrence.

The family will receive friends from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

The family suggests memorials to Lawrence Baptist Temple, sent in care of the funeral home.

“God intends for you and me to grow daily in spiritual maturity.”
Dr David Jeremiah