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Date of these obituaries: 08-31-1998
CSX manager James A. Collins, devoted family man, aided poor
Every day, James A. Collins collected donations for Erlanger-Elsmere United Ministries and went to local grocery stores for over-stocked food that could be given to the needy.
He was one of a small group of people who helped get the agency a new building in Erlanger. He also was actively involved with Erlanger United Methodist Church.
Mr. Collins, a devoted husband, father and community member, believed in putting others first, said a son, Stephen A. Collins of Cincinnati.
He died at 11 p.m. Saturday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South in Edgewood. He was 75.
Born and raised in Huntington, W. Va., Mr. Collins did not settle in Northern Kentucky until 1979, when he moved to Erlanger after 37 years transfering from city to city as a worker for CSX Railroad.
He married
Marjorie Collins in 1941 and had four children. He moved with his family all over the Midwest, including Huntington, Chicago, Richmond, Va., and other cities.
In 1959, he transferred to Alexandria, where he lived just a couple of years before moving to Grand Rapids, Mich., to become supervisor of the Western Region. Later, he moved back to Huntington, where he became General Manager of the Northern Division.
Finally, he moved to Erlanger, retiring as general manager, Northern Division.
Despite having to uproot his family about every four years for a new position, Mr. Collins was a devoted husband and father, his son said. In the short time that he lived in various cities, he contributed as much as he could: In Virginia, he founded and was the first president of the Selma, Va., volunteer fire department.
"As a father, he was very loving, compassionate and extremely generous," Stephen Collins said.
"He did things like take us Christmas caroling, take a whole group of kids swimming, and organized things like that."
Other survivors include his wife; daughters, Sue Ellen Halbeisen and Sharon Yung, both of Cincinnati, and Margie A. Bauer of Lakeside Park; eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Thursday at Erlanger United Methodist Church. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the church. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Erlanger. Memorials are suggested to Erlanger-Elsmere United Ministries, 525 Graves Ave, Erlanger, Ky. 41018; or Erlanger United Methodist Church, 31 Commonwealth Ave., Erlanger, Ky. 41018.
Bernard Thomas Ashworth, 67, of Covington, died Aug. 24 at his home. He was a retired director of Head Start, a teacher and a health inspector.
Survivors include cousins, Jane Kellerman of Burlington, and Kathleen Wagner and Robert Ryan, both of Erlanger.
Memorial Mass will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Mother of God Church, Covington. Mr. Ashworth donated his body to the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Catchen and Son Funeral Home, Covington, is handling arrangements.
Britt Baker, 60, of Mableton, Ga., formerly of Pendleton County, died Saturday at a friend's home in Pendleton County. He was a self-employed painter.
Survivors include his wife, Donna Baker; his father, Ingram Red Baker of Demossville; half- brothers, John Baker of Falmouth and Donald Baker of Alexandria; and half-sisters, Lois Oldham of Demossville, Karen Poe of Lenoxburg, and Sandra James of Falmouth.
Services will be at 8 p.m. Tuesday at Peoples Funeral Home, Butler. Visitation will begin there at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Prysie Richardson Baker, 86, of Cincinnati, formerly of Erlanger, died Friday at at Eastgate Health Care Center, Cincinnati. She was a retired seamstress and member of Elsmere Baptist Church.
Survivors include a son, Darrell Baker of Erlanger; brothers, Orville Richardson and James Richardson, both of Irvine; and two grandchildren.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Linnemann Funeral Home, Erlanger. Visitation will begin there at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Erlanger.
Gertrude B. Ball, 93, of Cincinnati, formerly of Warsaw, died Friday at Wesley Hall Nursing Home in Cincinnati. She was a homemaker and a member of Warsaw Baptist Church. Her husband, Richard Ball, preceded her in death. Services will be at 8 tonight at Carlton-Lowder Funeral Home, Warsaw. Visitation will begin there at 7 p.m. Burial will be in Warsaw Cemetery.
Elizabeth Ann Blake, 1 month, the daughter of Thomas and Lisa Heckendorn Blake of Florence, died at 10:50 p.m. Friday at Children's Hospital, Cincinnati.
Other survivors include grandparents, Betty Blake of Union, and Thomas and Gloria Heckendorn of Ellwood City, Pa.
Mass of Christian burial will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Burlington. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 tonight at Middendorf-Bullock Funeral Home, Hebron. Burial will be in Petersburg Cemetery.
Wanetta L. Ryle Clause, 76, of Rabbit Hash, died at 5:25 p.m. Friday at her home. She was owner of Clause's Crossroads Market, and numerous other businesses. She was a member of Belleview Baptist Curch, a volunteer with the Boone County Republican Party, a former secretary with the Belleview Fire Department, and a trustee of East Bend Cemetery. A son, Randall Dean Woods, died in 1997.
Survivors include a daughter, Bonnie Woods of Rabbit Hash; five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Stith Funeral Home, Florence. Visitation will be from 5 to 9 tonight at the funeral home. Burial will be in East Bend Methodist Cemetery, Burlington. Memorials are suggested to the cemetery, in care of Dennis Stephens, 6481 Beaver Road, Union, Ky. 41091; or Hospice of Northern Kentucky, 1403 Alexandria Pike, Fort Thomas, Ky. 41075.
Earl B. Clayton, 78, of Elsmere, died at 7:35 p.m. Friday at St. Luke Hospital East, Fort Thomas. He was a retired clerk with the Internal Revenue Service, Florence, and a former employee of Union Terminal, Cincinnati. He was an usher for the Cincinnati Reds and Cincinnati Bengals, a member of St. John Congregational Church in Covington, and was an Army veteran of World War II. His wife, Virginia Clayton, died in 1994.
Survivors include sons, Tom Clayton of Bowling Green and Dan Clayton of Montgomery, Ala.; daughters, Bonnie Valladares and Pam Clayton, both of Covington; a sister, Hazel Kyle of Florence; a brother, Elmer Clayton of Mobile, Ala.; and five grandchildren.
Services will be at 7 tonight at St. John Congregational Church. Burial will be in Mount Vernon Cemetery, Falmouth. Memorials are suggested to St. John Congregational Church, 1235 Highway Ave., Covington, Ky. 41011. Swindler and Currin Funeral Home, Latonia, is handling arrangements.
James T. Dickson, 87, of Covington, died at 5:05 p.m. Sunday at St. Luke Hospital East, Fort Thomas.
Arrangements are pending at Connley Brothers Funeral Home, Latonia.
Ruby Grubbs, 87, of Covington, died Sunday at Rosedale Manor, Latonia.
Arrangements are pending at Allison and Rose Funeral Home, Covington.
Dalton Henneberg, 82, of Covington, died at 10:23 p.m. Sunday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood.
Arrangements are pending at Connley Brothers Funeral Home, Latonia.
William Nelson Johnson, 85, of Fort Thomas, died at 12:28 a.m. Saturday at Baptist Convalescent Center, Newport. He was a retired machinist with the American Tool Co., Cincinnati, and a charter member and deacon with Highland Hills Baptist Church, Fort Thomas.
Survivors include his wife, Mary Elizabeth Tate Johnson; a daughter, Jannette Johnson of Nokesville, Va.; sons, William C. Johnson of Rochester, N.Y., and Gordon Scott Johnson of Florence; a brother, Louis C. Johnson of Dayton; 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Highland Hills Baptist Church. Visitation will be from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the church. Burial will be in Evergreen Cemetery, Southgate. Memorials are suggested to Baptist Convalescent Center, 120 Main St., Newport, Ky. 41071; or the charity of the donor's choice. Dobbling Funeral Home, Fort Thomas, is handling arrangements.
Albert C. Kemper, 77, of Alexandria, died at 11:35 p.m. Saturday at St. Elizabeth Hospice Unit, Covington. He was a retired primary meter man with Cincinnati Gas & Electric, a member of Knights of Columbus DeJaco Council in Alexandria, and a member of St. Mary Church, Alexandria.
Survivors include a son, Steve Kemper of Alexandria; daughters, Diane Kemper and Cindy Ripberger, both of Alexandria; sisters, Marion Kemper of Edgewood, Bernice Utz of Florence and Ann Cahill of Petersburg; six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Mass of Christian burial will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Mary Church, Alexandria. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Muehlenkamp-Erschell Funeral Home, Fort Thomas. Burial will be in St. Stephen Cemetery, Fort Thomas. Memorials are suggested to Bishop Brossart High School, Grove and N. Jefferson, Alexandria, Ky. 41001; or American Cancer Society, 7730 U. S. 42, Suite C6, Florence, Ky. 41042.
Dean Line, 42, of Alexandria, died Saturday at St. Luke Hospital East, Fort Thomas. He was a gas service man for Cinergy, Cincinnati.
Survivors include his wife, Kim Line; daughters, Deena Line of Waxahachie, Texas, and Julia Line of Alexandria; his mother, Grace Line of Grants Lick; a brother, Danny Line of Logan, Ind.; and a sister, Shelly Fangman of California. Services will be at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Cooper Funeral Home, Grants Lick. Visitation will begin at 4 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home. Cremation will be at Hillside Chapel, Cincinnati. Memorials are suggested to Hospice of Northern Kentucky, 1403 Alexandria Pike, Fort Thomas, Ky. 41075.
Rosamond Mann, 80, of Williamstown, died at 4:40 a.m. today at St. Luke Hospital West, Florence.
Arrangements are pending at Woodhead Funeral Home, Falmouth.
Larry Mullins, 55, of Walton, died at 11:54 p.m. Saturday at University Hospital, Cincinnati, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident at 9:40 p.m Saturday on U.S. 25 and Frogtown Road in Boone County.
Arrangements are pending at Hamilton-Stanley Funeral Home, Verona.
Ronald Wayne Ravencraft, 59, of Erlanger, died Sunday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood. He was an employee of Frisch's Big Boy Restaurant, Erlanger, and a member of Florence First Church of God.
Survivors include brothers, James Earl Ravencraft of Erlanger, William Ravencraft of Douglasville, Ga., and Don Ravencraft of Cincinnati; and a sister, Mary Frances Pfeffer of Florence.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Chambers and Grubbs Funeral Home, Florence. Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Erlanger. Memorials are suggested to St. Elizabeth Hospice Unit, 401 E. 20th St., Covington, Ky. 41014.
Ben F. Richardson Sr., 68, of Park Hills, died Friday at his home.
Arrangements are pending at Middendorf-Bullock Funeral Home, Hebron.
Wilma Ryle, 63, of Burlington, died Saturday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood.
Arrangements are pending at Stith Funeral Home, Florence.
Stephen H. Spencer, 88, of Erlanger, died Saturday at St. Elizabeth Hospice Unit, Covington.
Arrangements are pending at Allison and Rose Funeral Home, Covington.
Rhoda Mae Collier Williams, 72, of Florence, died at 4:44 p.m. Saturday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood. She was a homemaker, a member of Florence Baptist Church and Rosebud Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. She was a member of Boone County PTA, a former den mother with the Dan Beard Council of the Boy Scouts of America and a cub scout commissioner. Mrs. Williams was awarded the Silver Beaver Award, the highest honor the Boy Scouts can bestow upon a person.
She was a member of Licking Valley Council of the Girl Scouts and a scout leader for more than 25 years, and was a Sunday school teacher.
Survivors include her husband, William E. Williams Jr.; daughters, Martha Wells of Walton, Nelda Klaserner of Orlando, Fla., Debbie Funk of Florence, Connie Woods of Hebron, Margaret Watkins of Union and Rhoda Williams of Louisville; a son, Billy Williams of Louisville; a sister, Verna Hall of Fleming-Neon; brothers, Clyde Collier, Billy E. Collier and Lloyd Collier, all of Fleming-Neon; and 11 grandchildren.
Services will be at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Stith Funeral Home, Florence. Visitation will be from 6 to 9 tonight at the funeral home. Burial will be in Floral Hills Cemetery, Taylor Mill. Memorials are suggested to Licking Valley Girl Scout Council, 607 Watson Road, Erlanger, Ky. 41018; Dan Beard Council Boy Scouts of America, 2331 Victory Parkway, Cincinnati, Ohio 45206; or American Heart Association, 1885 Dixie Highway, Suite 250, Fort Wright, Ky. 41011.
