Alabama School Yearbooks by State and County
Gordon Peters, 81, Keokuk
Devoted husband, father, coach and retired teacher, Gordon Peters, 81, of Keokuk, passed away on April 20, 2017, at River Hills Village in Keokuk after a two-year battle with leukemia.
Gordie was born May 6, 1935, in Waterloo, the son of Clarence William and Alethea Eveline Richards Peters.
He was united in marriage to Rose Marie Dalton on July 7, 1961, at Grace Lutheran Church in Waterloo. She survives.
Gordie and Rose moved to the Keokuk area in 1970. He was a school teacher and coach for Coulterville School District in Coulterville, Ill., Pinckneyville School District in Pinckneyville, Ill., and Keokuk School District. He retired in 1998 after 37 years of teaching.
He also served in the U.S. Army. He was a member of Deer Run Golf Course in Hamilton, Ill. He loved watching the area school sports, coffee with friends, golf, teaching, coaching and watching his kids and grandkids play sports, even if it meant getting hit by some line drives at times. His pride and joy were his grandchildren.
Gordie is survived by his wife of 55 years of marriage, Rose Peters of Keokuk; his son, Jay Peters (girlfriend Brenda Hall) of Keokuk; his daughter, Julie (Dan) Fisher of Quincy, Ill.; four grandchildren, Michael (Trista) Peters of Keokuk, Amy Peters (fiancé Christopher Muller) of Keokuk, Kennedi Fisher of Quincy and Christopher (Ashley) Marshall of Norfolk, Va.; an uncle, Lloyd Loonan of Cedar Falls; two brothers-in-law, Robert (Carolyn) Dalton of Chatham, Ill., and Gary (Vickey) Dalton of Oak Tree, Texas; and cousins, LeeAnn (Norm) Armstrong of Round Lake, Minn., and Carol (Jeff) Dick of Cedar Falls.
Gordie was preceded in death by his parents, Clarence and Alethea Peters; grandparents, George and Cecil Stevens; and aunt, Margaret Loonan.
Visitation will be after 4 p.m. Tuesday, with family meeting friends from 5 to 8 p.m.
A celebration of his life will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at DeJong-Greaves Celebration of Life Centers, 917 Blondeau St., Keokuk, with Pastor Rodney Underwood officiating.
Burial with full military rites will follow in Keokuk National Cemetery. Memorials may be made to American Legion or Deer Run Golf Course.
James 'Jamie' Ames, 59, Keokuk
James G. “Jamie” Ames, 59, of Keokuk, died Sunday morning in his home.
Funeral arrangements are pending at DeJong-Greaves Celebration of Life Centers, Keokuk.
Ronald Morrison, 56, Kahoka, Mo.
KAHOKA, Mo. – Ronald R. Morrison, 56, of Kahoka, Mo., passed away Monday, April 24, 2017, in LaBelle Manor, LaBelle, Mo., where he had been a patient since Thursday.
Ronnie was born July 17, 1960, in Quincy, Ill., one of nine children born to Raymond Cecil and Helen M. Felker Morrison.
Memorial services will be at 11 a.m. Thursday at Wilson Funeral Home in Kahoka.
Family will receive friends from 10 a.m. Thursday until time of services.
Ronald Summers, 75, Keokuk
Ronald O. Summers, 75, Keokuk, died Sunday, April 23, 2017, as a result of a work related accident.
Funeral arrangements are pending at Vigen Memorial Home in Keokuk.
Rochelle 'Shelly' Johnson, 56, Hamilton, Ill.
HAMILTON, Ill. – After a courageous battle with cancer, Rochelle Lynn “Shelly” Hall Johnson, 56, peacefully passed away surrounded by family on Jan. 18, 2017.
A lifelong resident of Hamilton, Ill., Shelly was born on July 27, 1960, in Springfield, Ill., the daughter of Janet Barr Holtman and the late Roger Hall.
She is survived by two daughters, Erica Jo Johnson Higgins (Keith) of Huntington Beach, Calif., and Alisha Lynn Johnson Mason (Ryan) of Crawfordville, Fla.; six grandchildren, Max, Blake and Bryce Higgins, and Zane, Emilee and Hayden Mason; her mother, Janet (Lloyd) Holtman; two brothers, Richard Hall and Randy Hall (Sherry); and a sister, Lee Ann Korst (Bladon). Shelly also is survived by the father of her children, Keith Johnson.
She was predeceased by her maternal grandparents, Ernie and Leita Barr, formerly of Virden; paternal grandparents, Lynn and Mildred Hall, formerly of Nilwood; and her father, Roger L. Hall, formerly of Hamilton.
She was a member of Keokuk First Christian Church. She enjoyed cooking, needlepoint, crafts, shopping and spending time with her grandchildren.
Shelly worked at both banks in Hamilton – the former Security State Bank and First State Bank. Most recently, she worked at KOKX radio station, where you may have heard her voice on the radio advertising for her favorite clients.
A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at First Christian Church in Keokuk, with Pastor David Turner officiating.
Memorials may be directed to Memorial Hospital in Carthage or the American Cancer Society.
Edythe Barnes, 93, Keokuk
Edythe May Slater was born at home on Saturday, April 28, 1923, to Iva Margaretha (Ball) and Walter Albert Slater in New Boston. She was the fourth of 10 children and grew up on the farm which had been in the Slater family for more than a century. Edythe attended a one-room country school in New Boston for eight years and graduated from Donnellson High School in 1941.
Her first job was at the Donnellson Farm Bureau. In 1943, she left home and moved to Keokuk, where she worked in the office at Electro Metals Company for four years. She shared so many stories of her days during World War II with her family. Edythe was a very social person who loved to dance and spend time with friends. Her co-workers and friends affectionately nicknamed her Etta Kett, a “cutie” comic strip character created by Paul Robinson.
At a dance on April 27, 1946, the night before her 23rd birthday, Edythe met the love of her life, Delbert Francis Barnes. They were married
five months later and enjoyed a lifelong love story that lasted 70 years.
Edythe retired from Thomas Truck and Caster Company to become a stay at home mother in 1950. Motherhood brought her great joy and her devotion to her daughters was her biggest priority.
Great tragedy came to her life on Nov. 25, 1965. Six of her family members were attending a Thanksgiving Eve square dance at the Keokuk National Guard Armory when an explosion occurred. Twenty-one people died within a month. Three of those victims were a part of her family: her sister, Violet and husband, Raymond Beckett, and her sister Ruth Ina Anderson. Her sister, Ruby and husband, John Foley, and brother-in-law, Robert Anderson, were badly injured and recovered after long convalescences. On Thanksgiving Day, Pam and Jill Anderson were welcomed into her heart and home until their father returned from the San Antonio, Texas, burn center the following spring. Edythe also extended her love and care to every one of her nieces and nephews whose parents were in the armory explosion. That Christmas, she made sure that each one had presents delivered on Christmas Eve. Edythe was truly a remarkable woman.
Becoming a grandparent was one of her greatest joys. She was 57 when her first grandchild was born and 67 when the last one arrived, but age did not stop her. She was fun! They loved to spend the night with their Grandma. She always gave them her undivided attention. She played games, read books, cooked their favorite foods, and shared her life stories with them. She loved her four grandchildren dearly and had a special relationship with each one of them.
Edythe and Delbert enjoyed their nearly 30 years of retirement together and traveled throughout the United States in their motorhome. To celebrate their 25th anniversary, she and Delbert spent three weeks in Hawaii, and on their 50th anniversary, they cruised through the Panama Canal and the Caribbean. In February 2008, 35 years after their last family vacation, Delbert, Edythe and their daughters embarked on their final family vacation spending three weeks in Australia and New Zealand.
Edythe will be remembered for the unconditional love that she shared with everyone she met. Her infectious laughter or “giggle” will be a part of us forever. Her life was a beautiful example of kindness, selflessness and love.
Edythe passed away on Delbert’s birthday, Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017, in her daughter’s home at age 93. She survived seven months and three days after Delbert’s death, all the while missing him terribly.
She will be deeply mourned and lovingly remembered by her daughters, Debbie (Tom) Marion of Keokuk and Bonnie (Tom) Odegaard of Issaquah, Wash.; and her four grandchildren, Jennifer Marion of Keokuk, John (Jenna) Marion of Urbandale, Megan Odegaard of Grand Rapids, Mich., and Mackenzie Odegaard of Issaquah. She will be greatly missed by her two surviving sisters, Garnett (Harold) Swanson of Burlington and Rosalee Coghlan of Cedar Rapids; her brother, Marvin (Betty Lou) Slater of Keokuk; along with many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her husband; parents; sisters, Violet Beckett, Elberta Lang, Ruby Foley and Ruth Ina Anderson; and brothers, Vinton and Walter Slater.
A celebration of life service will be at 11 a.m. Friday at DeJong-Greaves Celebration of Life Centers, 917 Blondeau St., Keokuk, with her niece, the Rev. Sherri Swanson, presiding.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Keokuk Area Community Foundation Delbert and Edythe Barnes Scholarship to Southeastern Community College’s Industrial Technologies Training Center, or the Keokuk Union Depot Foundation.
Jason Paul Knudtson
June 2, 1986 - April 11, 2008
IOWA CITY - Jason Paul Knudtson, 21, of Belmond, more recently of Iowa City, died Friday, April 11, 2008, in Iowa City.
He was born on June 2, 1986, in Mason City, the son of Philip and Peggy Worster Knudtson.
He was baptized and confirmed in the United Methodist Church in Belmond where he was a member.
He grew up in Belmond and graduated from Belmond-Klemme High School in 2004.
He was very active in high school. He was involved in Thespians, football, wrestling, the Blueprint and Student Council. Not only did he represent his junior class on the homecoming court, he was voted homecoming king his senior year.
In his free time, Jason could be found skateboarding or snowboarding or playing Frisbee golf.
Those hobbies led Jason to realize there was a need for a place to do that type of activity. He was instrumental in establishing the Extreme Sports Park for skate boarders, roller bladers and BMX bikers. He was a large part of the group who won the 2002 Youth Leadership Award as part of the Community Betterment Award presented by former Iowa Gov. Thomas Vilsack.
He will be remembered as a very special person, very kind, with an infectious smile and a wonderful sense of humor.
He was employed by Proctor and Gamble Company in Iowa City.
Survivors include: his parents, Philip and Peggy; two brothers, Erik of Ames and Alex at home; maternal grandparents, Don and Gwen Worster of Keokuk; paternal grandmother, Phyllis Knudtson of Rake; and numerous other aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.
He was preceded in death by his paternal grandfather, Carl Knudtson.
Services for will be at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in the United Methodist Church in Belmond, with Pastor Mike Druhl officiating.
Burial will be in the Belmond Cemetery.
Visitation is from 4 to 8 p.m. today at Dugger Funeral Home, 111 Luick's Lane South, Belmond, and will continue one hour prior to services at the church.
In lieu of flowers, the family wishes memorials be given in Jason Knudtson's name.
Carol Austin, 65, Keokuk
Carol A. Austin, 65, of Keokuk, passed away on Monday, April 24, 2017, at Great River Medical Center in Burlington.
Carol was born on June 16, 1951, in Rock Island, Ill., to Roberta Bauman, and was later adopted by Raymond and Jesse Sheets.
On Aug. 29, 1980, she was united in marriage to Jim Austin in Fort Madison. He survives.
Carol attended God’s Way Christian Center when her health would permit. Her front room was filled with the plants and flowers that she loved, some of them over 20 years old. Some of her hobbies included crocheting and crafting. She loved her cat Baby Doll and teaching Sunday school.
Carol is survived by her husband, Jim Austin of Keokuk; three sons, Bradley Austin of Keokuk, Bruce (Pam) Turner of Burlington and Buren Turner of Montrose; two daughters, JoAnn (Barry) Olson of Keokuk and Kathy of the Quad Cities; three brothers, Chris Cortez of Kansas, Terry Cortez of Iowa City and Danny Barr of Arkansas; her sister, Lisa of Illinois; eight grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; her aunt, Madeline; and several nieces, nephews and cousins.
Carol is preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Ricky.
A celebration of her life will be at 4 p.m. Friday at DeJong-Greaves Celebration of Life Centers, 917 Blondeau St., Keokuk, with Pastor Sylvia Tillman officiating.
Visitation will be from 3 to 4 p.m. directly before the service. Burial will be Saturday in Cain Cemetery near Cainsville, Mo.
Memorials may be directed to God’s Way Christian Center.
Becky Sale, 56, Keokuk
Becky Sue Sale, 56, of Keokuk, died Tuesday, April 25, 2017, at her home in Keokuk.
She was born Jan. 24, 1961, the daughter of Jack and Thelma Alloween Wade.
She was united in marriage to James Sale on Oct. 3, 1987, in Burlington. He preceded her in death on Aug. 7, 2016.
Becky graduated from Fort Madison High School.
She loved to crochet and made many tablecloths, afghans and potholders, which her family will always cherish. She enjoyed cooking and baking for family dinners. She collected dolphins and whales, and also loved watching classic and horror movies.
She is survived by a son, Charles Sale, a daughter, Jill (James) Sparrow, and an adopted daughter, Tiffany (Justin) Lovell, all of Keokuk; three grandchildren, Shyan Eastman, Brendon Eastman and Kayson Sparrow; two adopted grandchildren, Amanda Saunders and Addison Lovell; a brother, Jack Wade of Coralville; and two nieces, Heather Bell and Emily Wade.
Besides her husband, she also was preceded in death by her parents; sister, Donna Wade; and brother, Steven Wade.
A graveside service will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Keokuk National Cemetery, with Pastor John Heath officiating.
