Tracey Beth Luhr, nee Rubemeyer, 43, of Waterloo, died May 23, 2009, in Red Bud. She was born June 22, 1965 in Red Bud, the daughter of Delores Rubemeyer (nee Dehne) and the late Ronald Rubemeyer. In addition to her mother, Mrs. Luhr is survived by her husband, Brian Luhr; a daughter, LeAnne Luhr; sisters Laura Mehard and Christy Langhorst; a brother, Mitchell (Dawn) Rubemeyer; brother-in-law Steve (Tina) Luhr; sister-in-law Nancy (Jay) Wolfmeier; and mother-in-law, Marilyn Luhr (nee Hoffmann); along with aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins. Besides her father, she was preceded in death by her father-in-law, Glen Luhr. After she graduated from college, Tracey taught classes at SS. Peter and Paul Grade School in Waterloo and Immaculate Conception School in Columbia. She then joined her husband Brian in the operation of their business, Green Tree Enterprises Inc., for the next fifteen years. After earning her master's degree, she spent the past three years as a second grade teacher at Parkview Elementary School in Columbia where she loved all her "children." Tracey had a great zest for life and will be missed immensely by her family and friends. Mrs. Luhr was a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Waterloo. Visitation was at Quernheim Funeral Home. Funeral service was at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Waterloo with Pastor Tony Troup and Pastor Matt Clark officiating. Mrs. Luhr was buried at Kolmer Memorial Cemetery in Waterloo. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society or Camp Wartburg.
James Wienhoff, 67, of Waterloo, died May 23, 2009, in Red Bud. He was born Sept. 5, 1941, in Waterloo, the son of the late Alonzo and Georgiana (nee Durrer) Wienhoff. Mr. Wienhoff is survived by his wife, Judith (nee Janson) Wienhoff; children Janell (Jeffery) Johanning of Red Bud and Jeffery Wienhoff of Green River, Wyo.; a brother, Charles (Nancy) Wienhoff of Albany, Ga.; and sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law Larry (Car-olyn) Janson of Waterloo, Linda Janson of Waterloo, Gerald Janson of Waterloo, Donald Janson of Wichita, Kan., Mark Janson of Indianapolis, Ind., Darrell (Winnie) Janson of Park Hill, Mo., Deborah (Glen) Janson Mollet of Waterloo, Joel Janson of Prairie du Rocher, Steven Janson of Indianapolis, Ind., and Patricia (Gils) Janson Mollet of Clay City, Ind.; along with nieces, nephews and cousins. Mr. Wienhoff was veteran of the U.S. Navy, was a member of SS. Peter and Paul Church in Waterloo, the Knights of Columbus of Waterloo and a long time committee member of Boy Scout Troop 323 in Waterloo. He enjoyed travel, gardening, family, aircraft and camping. Visitation was at Quernheim Funeral Home. Funeral was at SS. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Waterloo with Monsignor Thomas Flach officiating. Mr. Wienhoff was buried at the church's cemetery. Memorials may be made to SS. Peter and Paul Church, SPPS Grade School or Gibault Catholic High School.
Linda Luhr, nee Markus, 55, of Waterloo, died May 24, 2009, in Waterloo. She was born Sept. 26, 1953 in Breese, the daughter of Dolores Markus (nee Kapp) and the late Camillus "Cam" Markus. In addition to her mother, Mrs. Luhr is survived by her children, Jason Luhr and Kacie (Eric Sutton) Luhr; a step-grandson, Mason Sutton; a sister, Darlene (Bob) Niebruegge; and a brother, Michael (Dawn) Markus; along with aunts, uncles, nephews, a niece and cousins. A memorial mass was at SS. Peter and Paul Church in Waterloo with Monsignor Thomas Flach officiating. The family received guests. at the church prior to the funeral. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.
Robert Milton Schmidt, 81, of Waterloo, died May 28, 2009, in Belleville. He was born June 16, 1927, in Waterloo, the son of the late William and Hulda (nee Taake) Schmidt. Mr. Schmidt is survived by his wife, Mary Ann Schmidt, nee Bufka; children Catherine (Alan) Brandt, George (Nancy) Schmidt and Raymond (Pamela) Schmidt; grandchildren Ryan, Matthew and Laura Brandt, Angela, Michael and Eric Schmidt and Alexander, Lucas and Benjiman Schmidt; and a sister, Edna (Roy) Taake. Mr. Schmidt was a veteran of the Korean War, was a former commissioner and clerk for Road District 9 and a member of the Monroe County Farm Bureau and the Knights of Columbus. Visitation was at Quernheim Funeral Home. Funeral was at St. Mary Catholic Church in Valmeyer with Father Urban Osuji officiating. Mr. Schmidt was buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Mo. Memorials may be made to the St. Mary's Hall Building Fund.
Corey Buskirk, 20, of Fults, died May 17, 2009 in rural Millstadt as a result of an automobile accident. He was born April 15, 1989 in Farmington, Mo. Mr. Buskirk is survived by his mother, Kimberly Stauffer; father, Scott (Kelly) Buskirk; a sister, Vanessa Buskirk; a brother, Tyler Ballinger; paternal grandparents, Ron and Sharon Buskirk; maternal grandparents, Linda and Arland Barton; maternal great-grandparents, Harold and Gladys Wilkerson' paternal aunt and uncle, Rebecca (Greg) Phillips; maternal aunts and uncles Thomas and Michelle VanBuren and Jason and Tina Clemens; and a niece, Jaime Weaver; along with other cousins and friends. Mr. Buskirk was an employee with Buskirk Landscaping in Fults. Visitation and funeral were at at Quernheim Funeral Home. Memorials may be made to Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
Craig A. Jahr, 49, of Columbia, died June 1, 2009 at Columbia Convalescent Center. He was born Aug. 4, 1959, in Belleville, the son of the late Albert "Appy" and Alice (nee Taake) Jahr. He married Gloria (Ruebke) Jahr in 2005 in Columbia. In addition to his wife, Mr. Jahr is survived by his children, Brittney Jahr and Casey Jahr, both of Columbia; a sister, Robin (Michael) Greene of Smithton; in-laws, Vernon and Marion (Bert) Ruebke, of Steeleville; nieces and nephews Dustin Loeffler, Lindsay Bourn, Katelyn Mayer, Becky Ruebke, Nathan Ruebke and Natalie Ruebke; brother-in-law, Bruce Ruebke; sister-in-law, Judy Mayer; cousins Gene, Shirley, Charlie and Ben Bergmann, and Scott, Nicole, Brian, Chris, Chuck and Chad Bergmann; uncle, Ken (Audrey) Jahr; and special friends, Ben, Braden, Zane, Kebor, Chloe, Frosty, Mustard, Marshmellow and Zoey; along with many other relatives and friends. Mr. Jahr was a manager with Dickerson Petroleum of Belleville, a 25-year member of Columbia Volunteer Fire Department (named the 2008 Fireman of the Year), Columbia Gymnastic Association and had been an ICS soccer coach. Visitation was at Lawlor Funeral Home. Funeral was at St. Paul UCC of Columbia with Pastor Bob Goddard officiating. Mr. Jahr was buried at Evangelical St. Paul Cemetery in Columbia. Memorials may be made to the Craig "Appy" Jahr Fireman's Memorial Fund (to assist families in medical crisis), or Backstoppers.
Malinda Wienhoff, 93, of Millstadt died June 1, 2009 at Lincoln Home in Belleville. She was born March 12, 1916, the daughter of the late Henry and Laura (Dooley) Weilbacher. She married George Wienhoff in 1938. He died in 1991. Mrs. Wienhoff is survived by her children, Delphine Landgraf of Columbia, Vernon (Delores) Wienhoff of Millstadt, Mary Jane Kish (special friend Stephen Van Buren) of Columbia and Father Paul Wienhoff of Cahokia; grandchildren Janice (Bill) Attberry of Belleville, Richard (Hope) Wienhoff of Millstadt, Lori Ann (Joe) Carbone of Cedar Hill, Mo., Lisa (David) Gummersheimer of Dupo, Brian (Carol) Kish of Prairie du Rocher, Bruce Landgraf of Columbia and Stephen Landgraf of St. Louis, Mo.; great-grandchildren Richard Wienhoff, Andrew Wienhoff, Michael Wienhoff, Jonathan Kish, Joshua Carbone, Joseph Carbone, Thomas Carbone, Ross (Jessica) McDonald, Troy Schmittling and Laura Schmittling; and great-great-granddaughter, Taylor McDonald; along with nieces, nephews and friends. In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by a brother, Milton Weilbacher; a granddaughter, Dee Ann Wienhoff; and a son-in-law, Arthur "Whitey" Landgraf. Mrs. Wienhoff was a member of St. James Catholic Church in Millstadt's Altar Sodality and the Golden Age Club. Visitation was at Creason Funeral Home in Millstadt. Funeral was at St. James Catholic Church with Father Paul Wienhoff and Monsignor Marvin Volk officiating. Mrs. Wienhoff was buried at the church's cemetery. Memorials may be made to St. James School.
Matthew D.J. Ehret, 9, of Red Bud, died May 23, 2009, at St. John Mercy Hospital in St. Louis following an automobile accident. He was born Nov. 23, 1999 in Red Bud, the son of Bobby (Teresa) Ehret of Red Bud and Lisa (Terry) Warren of Baldwin. In addition to his parents, Matthew is survived by sisters Kendra Louise Ehret of Red Bud and Natasha Louise Warren of Baldwin; a brother due in August, Luke Warren; and grandparents Betty Louise Ehret of Red Bud and David and Hester Lou Qualls of Andalusia, Ala.; along with aunts, uncles and cousins. He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Robert Joseph Ehret. Matthew was active in the Red Bud Khoury League and was an active hunter and fisherman. He recently completed the third grade at Red Bud Elementary School. Visitation was at Welge-Pechacek Funeral Home in Red Bud. The funeral was at St. Peter's UCC in Red Bud with the Rev. William Graves officiated. Matthew was buried at St. Marcus Cemetery in Red Bud. Memorials may be made to the Red Bud Elementary School or the Red Bud Athletic Association.
Craig A. Jahr, 49, of Columbia, died June 1, 2009 at Columbia Convalescent Center following a long battle with cancer. He was born Aug. 4, 1959, in Belleville, the son of the late Albert "Appy" and Alice (nee Taake) Jahr. He married Gloria (Ruebke) Jahr in 2005 in Columbia. In addition to his wife, Mr. Jahr is survived by his children, Brittney Jahr and Casey Jahr, both of Columbia; a sister, Robin (Michael) Greene of Smithton; in-laws, Vernon and Marion (Bert) Ruebke, of Steeleville; nieces and nephews Dustin Loeffler, Lindsay Bourn, Katelyn Mayer, Becky Ruebke, Nathan Ruebke and Natalie Ruebke; brother-in-law, Bruce Ruebke; sister-in-law, Judy Mayer; cousins Gene, Shirley, Charlie and Ben Bergmann, and Scott, Nicole, Brian, Chris, Chuck and Chad Bergmann; uncle, Ken (Audrey) Jahr; and special friends, Ben, Braden, Zane, Kebor, Chloe, Frosty, Mustard, Marshmallow and Zoey; along with many other relatives and friends. Mr. Jahr was a manager with Dickerson Petroleum of Belleville, a 25-year member of Columbia Volunteer Fire Department (named the 2008 Fireman of the Year), Columbia Gymnastic Association and had been an ICS soccer coach. Visitation was at Lawlor Funeral Home. Funeral was at St. Paul UCC of Columbia with Pastor Bob Goddard officiating. Mr. Jahr was buried at the Evangelical St. Paul Cemetery in Columbia. Memorials may be made to the Craig "Appy" Jahr Fireman's Memorial Fund (to assist families in medical crisis) or Backstoppers.
Charles Baer, 73, of Cahokia, died June 5, 2009, at his home. He was born Feb. 22, 19933, in St. Louis, the son of the late Angeline (Kovac) and Charles Baer. Mr. Baer was preceded in death by his wife, Patricia (Black) Baer, who died in 2004. He is survived by his children, Charles (Donellen) Baer of Johnston City and Viki (Ron) Goodnick of Waterloo; grandchildren Emily and Ethan Baer of Mt. Vernon, Sarah Baer of Johnston City and Bailey, Logan and Thomas Goodnick of Waterloo; siblings Dot (John) Imo, Bob (Jo) Baer and Cookie (Rich) Mueth of St. Louis, Mo., and Sandy (Jim) Hurst of Columbia; and special friend, Charlotte Hamm of Cahokia. Mr. Baer was a graduate of Holy Trinity Catholic School and Hadley Technical High School in St. Louis. He served as a storekeeper in the United States Coast Guard for eight years. Mr. Baer was a founding member of the Southern Illinois Athletic Club where he was a noted catcher and pitcher in both baseball and fast pitch softball. He moved to Cahokia in 1959 where he was employed as a sales manager for Oliver J. Parks. He completed studies for the Graduate Real Estate Institute and founded Chuck Baer Realty in 1969. He opened the Cahokia R.V. Parque in 1990. Mr. Baer retired as a realty specialist for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and he continued to work part-time as a real estate broker and H.U.D. representative until his death. Mr. Baer was involved in many civic organizations, including the Bite Me Bass Club, the American Cancer Society and Holy Family School Board, and was a past-president of Arch-View East Board of Realtors. He enjoyed jazz music, fishing for trout and bass, traveling the United States and spending time on any beach or body of water. A memorial mass was at Holy Family Catholic Church in Cahokia. In his honor, Mr. Baer requested family and friends take a child fishing, plant a flower or tree or donate to the American Cancer Society.
