U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Merton McCartney
EDGAR -- Merton P. McCartney, 92, of Edgar died Sunday, Jan. 10, 1999, at Integrated Health Services in Edgar.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Williams Funeral Home in Edgar. The Rev. Rick Cepris and Pastor Harold Fox will officiate. Burial will be in the Edgar Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to the Shriners' Crippled Children's Hospital.
Mr. McCartney was born on Jan. 2, 1907, near Moorefield to Marshall A. and Neoka (Earhart) McCartney. As an infant, he moved with his family to Geneva, where he graduated from high school in 1924.
He married
Beulah Skinner on June 2, 1931, in Mankato, Kan. The couple celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary last year.
Mr. McCartney was a member of the Church of the Plains in Edgar, past master of Blue Lodge, Masonic Lodge, Royal Arch, Knights Templar-Shrine, past president of the Lions Club, past patron of Eastern Star and mayor of Edgar from 1978 to 1982. He served on the Leisure Village Board for 15 years and served as chairman for six years. He was a volunteer at the nursing home.
Survivors include his wife; one daughter, Phyllis Baker of Littleton, Colo; three sons, Connie of Grand Island, Kent of Edgar and Alvin of Odell; 12 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by one granddaughter, one great-granddaughter, four sisters and three brothers.
Eloise Seeger
BRULE -- Eloise Seeger, 85, of Brule, formerly of Merna, died Monday, Jan. 11, 1999, at a nursing home in Grant.
Services are pending with Govier Brothers Mortuary of Broken Bow.
Richard Blackburn
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Richard "Dick" E. Blackburn Sr., 72, of Des Moines, Iowa, died of cancer Sunday, Jan. 10, 1999, at Hospice Kavanagh House.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Altoona Christian Church in Altoona, Iowa. Burial of cremains will be at a later date in Keokuk National cemetery in Keokuk, Iowa.
Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Brooks Funeral Care.
Memorials are suggested to Hospice of Central Iowa.
Mr. Blackburn was born at Missouri Valley, Iowa, to Earl and Ellen (Porter) Blackburn.
He served in the U.S. Navy. He had spent time in Omaha, the Council Bluffs area and Fremont. He worked for Rob-See-Co. until he retired in 1983.
He married
Alta "Dot" Blackburn on Aug. 17, 1948, at Des Moines, Iowa.
Survivors include his wife; one son, Richard Blackburn Jr. of Grand Island; three daughters, Judith Luehrs of Lincoln, Janice Rise of Des Moines, Iowa, and Jayne Haith of Altoona, Iowa; seven grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; two step grandchildren; three sisters, Lillian Sedlak of Omaha, Vicki Sievertsen of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Phyllis Berganza of Omaha; and one brother, Earl Edward Blackburn of Sandy, Utah.
He was preceded in death by two brothers, Robert Keith Blackburn and William Leon Blackburn.
Roland Hamar
ALLERTON, Iowa -- Roland H. "Smokey" Hamar, 62, of Allerton, Iowa, died Saturday, Jan. 9, 1999, at his home on his 62nd birthday.
Services will be at 3 p.m. Wednesday at the Corydon United Methodist Church. The Rev. Leroy Perkins will officiate. Burial will be in the Allerton cemetery with military honors by McCloughan-Halfhill American Legion Post 379 of Allerton.
Randolph Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Hamar was born on Jan. 9, 1937, north of Valentine to Harold Franklin and Anna Albertina Henrietta (Bauman) Hamar.
He graduated from Valentine High School in 1954 and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving from November 1955 to November 1961. He was stationed during active service on the USS Calvert, a carrier in the Pacific Ocean. After his discharge, he returned to Nebraska.
He married
Nancy Jo Galloway on May 26, 1958, in Fort Pierre, S.D. He worked at a gas station and painted houses and then bought a farm and moved to Wayne County, Iowa, in 1961. He farmed south of Clio until his health forced him to quit late in 1998.
He was involved in his children's activities, including the Wayne County 4-H program, serving on the Wayne County Fair Board for many years. He also was a bus drive for Wayne Community Schools for 14 years. He was a member of the Allerton United Methodist Church and McCloughan-Halfhill American Legion Post 379 of Allerton.
Among his hobbies were farming, raising cattle, country music, dancing and traveling.
Two of his honors were serving with his wife as the grand marshals of the 1997 Wayne Community Homecoming Parade and being named as the Wrestling Fans of the Year for 1997.
Survivors include his wife; a daughter, Becky (Mrs. Lewis) Nickols of Pleasant Hill, Mo.; three sons, Bob of Grand Island, Marty of Kirksville, Mo., and David of Chariton, Iowa; nine grandchildren; and his mother, Ann Hamar of Allerton
He was preceded in death by his father and a son, Eddie Hamar.
Rod Huebner
Rod Huebner, 65, of Grand Island died Friday, Feb. 5, 1999, at Bryan-LGH Medical Center East in Lincoln.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Livingston-Sondermann Funeral Home. The Rev. Scott Jones will officiate. Burial will be in the Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 4 to 9 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
Memorials are suggested to the family's choice.
Mr. Huebner was born Oct. 1, 1933, to Donald and Clara (Sorgenfrei) Huebner at Alda. He grew up and attended school in Alda, graduating in 1951.
He married
Mary Tarnick on Feb. 14, 1953, at Grand Island. He served in the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957. He worked for O.P. Skags and then as a salesman for Great Plains Container. He then became an independent businessman in the restaurant and lounge business. He retired in 1995. Following his retirement, he worked part-time at the Skagway South store.
He was a member of the Platt Duetsche and the American Legion.
He enjoyed sports, horse racing and polka music.
Survivors include his wife; two sons, Gary Huebner and John Huebner, both of Grand Island; one daughter, Gayle Woods of Grand Island; three grandchildren; one great-grandson and one brother, Jim Huebner of Forsythe, Mo.
He was preceded in death by one grandson.
'Bud' Kearns
Elmer L. "Bud" Kearns, 78, of Grand Island, formerly of the North Loup area, died Friday, Feb. 5, 1999, at the Veterans Home in Grand Island.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Monday at the Ord Memorial Chapel. The Rev. Murry Johnston will officiate. Burial will be in the Mt. Hope cemetery at Scotia with military rites conducted by the Ralph R. Rich Post No. 285 American Legion of North Loup.
Visitation will be from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at the Ord Memorial Chapel.
Memorials are suggested to the family.
Ord Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Kearns was born May 13, 1920, to Ray and Cordelia (Carr) Kearns at Silver Creek. He was raised in the Scotia area where he attended country school. He then worked at various farm jobs.
He married
Luella McDonald in 1939. She died in 1943.
In 1943, he entered the U.S. Army serving in World War II until his discharge in 1946. He married
Doris Morrow in 1946 and they lived in the North Loup area. She died in 1947.
In 1948, he married
Virginia Ketchner. While living in North Loup, he worked on farms, service stations, drove a milk truck and was the night watchman and police officer in North Loup. He later became a policeman at Ord. In 1965, he was appointed Valley County Sheriff until becoming disabled. He then retired in North Loup in 1965 until he became a resident of the Nebraska Veterans Home in Grand Island in 1993.
He was a member of the Ralph R. Rich Post No. 285 American Legion of North Loup and the Disabled American Veterans. He enjoyed fishing.
Survivors include his wife, Virginia of the Nebraska Veterans Home; one son, Monte Kearns of Burwell; two granddaughters; two sisters, Pauline Burson of Grand Island and Cecilia Kimball of Galt, Calif., and one brother, Edward Kearns of Juanita.
Other than his first two wives, he was preceded in death by an infant daughter, Grace Marie and a sister, Donna Pahl.
