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JAMES L. ROOT
CUMBERLAND -- James Leonard Root, 81, of 11900 Knob Road NE, Cumberland, died Tuesday, March 6, 2001, at his home.
Born July 26, 1919, in Cumberland, he was the son of the late James E. Root and Edith (Bishop) Root.
Mr. Root was a retired engineer for the B & O Railroad and the Transportation Department for Chessie System. An Army veteran of World War II, he served with the Tenth Mountain Division, having been awarded the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. He was a member of Fort Cumberland Post #13 American Legion and the Henry Hart Post #1411 V.F.W.
He is survived by his wife, Hilda M. (Smith) Root; two sons, Dale Root and James Root and wife Lorra, both of Cumberland; one daughter, Marlene Bishop and husband Robert "Butch," Cumberland; and 10 grandchildren.
Friends will be received at the Merritt-Adams Funeral Home, P.A., 404 Decatur St., Cumberland, on Thursday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m.
Services will be conducted at the funeral home on Friday at 11 a.m. with the Rev. David G. Hattenfield officiating.
Interment will be in the Maryland Veterans cemetery at Rocky Gap.
Military honors will be accorded at the cemetery by the Combined Veterans Honor Guard.
CHARLES W. SMITH
SHORT GAP, W.Va. -- Charles William Smith, 85, of Short Gap, died March 8, 2001, at Memorial Hospital in Cumberland, Md.
Mr. Smith was born in Cumberland, and was the son of George Edward Smith and Valerie Lehman Smith.
He was retired from Allegany Ballistics Laboratory.
Survivors include his wife, Maxine Stambaugh Smith; daughters, Joanne Smith Torbet and husband William, Lakeland, Fla., and Janet Smith Crabtree and husband Gary, Oxon Hill, Md.; stepson, Frank Byer and wife Sandra, Sterling, Va. Mr. Smith also had six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. One granddaughter, Karen, preceded him death.
At his request, his body had been donated to the West Virginia University Medical Center, Morgantown.
A memorial service will be held at a later date.
RUFUS Z. OBENSHAIN JR.
RAWLINGS -- Rufus Z. Obenshain Jr., 89, of 23107 McMullen Highway, Rawlings, died Wednesday, March 7, 2001, at the Heartland of Keyser Nursing Home.
Born in Haden, Va., on Sept. 24, 1911, he was the son of the late Rufus Z. and Ethel (Noel) Obenshain. He was also preceded in death by his stepmother, Estelle (Haunts) Obenshain; his wife, Virginia (Reynolds) Obenshain; two brothers, James and Noel Obenshain; and two half sisters, Lela Dickerson and Phoebe Rookstool.
Mr. Obenshain was retired from Westvaco Corp., having been a machinist. He attended Dawson United Methodist Church, and was an avid gardener.
Surviving him are two sons, Larry Obenshain and Donald Obenshain, both of Keyser, W.Va.; one daughter, Nancy Messer of Manassas Park, Va.; two sisters, Ethel O. Ripley, his twin of Buchanan, Va., and Mary Jane Hallman of Aiken, S.C.; nine grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.
The family will receive friends at the Boal Funeral Home, Westernport, on Friday from 7 to 9 p.m.
Mr. Obenshain will be taken to the Botetourt Funeral Home, Buchanan, for a visitation on Saturday from 7 to 9 p.m., where services will be conducted at Botetourt Funeral Home, on Sunday at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Mike Woody officiating.
Interment will be in Fairview Cemetery, Buchanan.
The Boal Funeral Home, Westernport, is in charge of the local arrangements.
JEFFERY M. BEARD SR.
CUMBERLAND -- Jeffery Mark Beard Sr., 40, of Cumberland, died Tuesday, March 6, 2001, at his residence.
Born Nov. 9, 1960, in Washington, D.C., he was the son of Bernard Beard and Mary (Stegmaier) Beard and stepson of Joyce (Fox) Beard, all of Cumberland. He was preceded in death by special friends, Gary Ault and Bob "Clarkie" Clark.
Mr. Beard worked for the State of Maryland with the D.D.M.P. Parole and Probation.
He was an A.A. member and a Catholic by faith.
In addition to his parents, surviving are his former wife, Terrie Lynn (Porter) Beard, Cumberland; one daughter, Mandy Lynn Beard; one son, Jeffery Mark Beard Jr.; four sisters, Mary W. Owens, Lisa Marie Shields, all of Cumberland, Catherine Lynn Snellings, Waldorf, Md., and Christine Galloway, Sunnyside, Md.; six brothers, Joseph William Beard, Oldtown, Bernard Scott Beard, Goldvein, Va., Timothy Edward Beard, Waldorf, Michael Eugene Beard, William Beard, both of Springfield, Va., and Charles Beard, Lexington, Va.; and a very special aunt, Joanne, as well as other aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Friends were received at the Scarpelli Funeral Home, P.A., 108 Virginia Ave., on Thursday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m.
Funeral services will be conducted at the funeral home on Friday at 11 a.m.
At Mr. Beard's request, he will be cremated.
Memorial contributions may be made to Mandy and Mark Beard, 220 N. Lee St., Cumberland, MD 21502.
ROBERT R. WAGNER
CUMBERLAND -- Robert R. Wagner, 57, of Jacksonville, Fla., formerly of Cumberland, died Tuesday, March 6, 2001, at Beaches Baptist Hospital, Jax Beach, Fla.
Born Dec. 1, 1943, in Cumberland, he was the son of the late Frank R. Wagner and Atha Lee (Pennington) Wagner.
Surviving are his wife, JoAnn (Welch) Wagner; two sons, Robert Wagner, Jacksonville and Frank J. Wagner and wife Amy, San Antonio, Texas; a daughter, Lisa Wagner, Jacksonville; two sisters, Sue Ann Nies and husband Louis, Cumberland, and Sheila Norris, Apple Valley, Calif.; four grandchildren; two nephews and one niece.
Mr. Wagner served with the Army National Guard, Cumberland. He was retired from CSX, Jacksonville.
He was a former member of SS. Peter and Paul Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus.
Funeral services were conducted in Jacksonville.
ERIC M. PUFFENBARGER
FROSTBURG -- Eric Mitchell Puffenbarger, infant son of Joshua Eric Puffenbarger and Barletta Sneden, Frostburg, died shortly after birth at Ruby Memorial Hospital, Morgantown, W.Va., on Tuesday.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by his brother, Tyler Sneden; maternal grandparents, Elizabeth (Sneden) Iliff, Cumberland, and Clinton Sneden, Kansas City, Mo.; paternal grandparents, Linda (Walbert) Albright and husband Charles, LaVale; maternal great-grandparents, Sarah Sneden, Detroit, Mich., and the Rev. Jack Lancaster and wife Alida, Fort Ashby, W.Va.; paternal great-grandparents, Pete and Shirley Walbert, Cresaptown, and Frances Albright, LaVale; maternal great-great-grandparents, Letta Lancaster, Rawlings, and Ruth Fazenbaker, McCoole; and several loving, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Friends will be received at the Upchurch Funeral Home, P.A., 202 Greene St., Cumberland, on Saturday from 1 p.m. until 2 p.m.
The funeral service will follow at 2 p.m. in the funeral home with the Rev. Kay Barmoy officiating.
Interment will be in Sunset Memorial Park.
