U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Dean Russell
Dean Russell was born on Aug. 20, 1929 at the Russell family farm north of Elsie, Neb. He was one of seven children born to Delbert and Viola Hultquist Russell.
Dean attended grade school at District #70 before attending high school in Paxton where he graduated in 1946.
Dean was married to Eleanor Gengenbach on May 25, 1950 at the Lutheran Church in Grant.
Dean served in the United States Marine Corp from 1952-54. During part of this time, he was stationed in Japan. After his discharge the family lived on their farm home north of Grainton.
Dean suffered a severe stroke in 1986 but with Eleanor’s help he was able to stay on the farm until 2002 when they moved into Wallace.
Dean broke his ankle in July and had been recovering at the Golden Ours Convalescent Home in Grant. He was prepared to return to Wallace this week but suffered an apparent heart attack late Monday night. He was moved over to the Perkins County Community Hospital where he died early Tuesday morning, Sept. 16, 2003. He had reached the age of 74.
Dean enjoyed dancing, bowling, playing cards, and following his children in their sporting events. He was a member of the Elsie American Legion Post, the V.F.W. and the Grant Zion Lutheran Church.
He was preceded in death by his father, one sister Joyce Jablonski and one brother LeRoy Russell.
Dean is survived by his wife, Eleanor; three daughters Cindy (Larry) Christensen of Wallace, Diane (Ron) Hagan of Madrid, and Kendra (Jeff) Aylward of Dickens; two sons Darin (Angie) Russell of Castle Rock, Colo. and Dan (Theresa) Russell of Imperial; 16 grandchildren; his mother Viola of Imperial; two sisters Patricia Ostrom of Kearney and Idonna (Jesse) Deaver of Grant; two brothers Bob Russell of Ogallala and Roger (Renna) Russell of Hixson, Tenn.; and many other relatives and friends.
Funeral services Friday, Sept. 19, 2003 at 10 a.m. at the Grant Zion Lutheran Church with Pastor Ron Krause, officiating.
Music by Judy Kurkowski and Bob Cummings.
Casketbearers were Dean’s grandsons.
Burial was in the Wallace Cemetery with a military tribute by the Elsie American Legion.
Bullock-Long Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Dean Russell
Dean Russell, age 74, of Wallace, Neb., father of Danny Russell of Imperial, died early Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2003 at the Perkins County Community Hospital in Grant, Neb.
Funeral services will be Friday, Sept. 19, 10 a.m. at the Grant Zion Lutheran Church in Grant, Neb. with burial at Wallace.
Judy Miller
Judy Miller, wife of Delvis Miller of Norton, Kan., passed away, Sept. 14, 2003, at the age of 53.
Services were held Sept. 17, 2003, at the Trinity Episcopal Church in Norton.
She was the daughter-in-law of Wilfred and Helen Miller of Imperial.
Norval Norman
Norval Donivan Norman was born May 10th, 1914, in the Kearney County Township of Logan, to Ray Charles and Luella (Jensen) Norman.
Norval was the eldest of three children. His family lived in Chappell, Nebraska until 1918 when they purchased a farm west of the community of Lamar, Nebraska. He attended school through the eighth grade in Lamar and graduated from Chase County High School in 1934.
On January 5th, 1938 he married Allene Mae Eckerd in Holyoke, Colorado. To this union three children were born: daughters Jan and Roma, and son Don. They celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in January.
Norval and Allene’s primary home was Imperial, Nebraska, though, after retirement, Norval and Allene spent nearly every winter in Harlingen, Texas in their motorhome. There he spent his days playing pool, card games, square dancing, and going to Old Mexico.
Norval’s first job was working as a service attendant for the Co-op. In the early 1940s he worked for Luhrs & Reynolds as an electrician and did extensive wiring in rural communities for the REA.
In 1946 the appliance store business of Luhrs & Reynolds was purchased to form Norman & Peterson. In 1966, Norval started Norman Appliance, retiring in 1976, at the age of 62.
Norval was involved in many service activities including the Lions Club, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Imperial Volunteer Fire Department, and Scoutmaster. He was a member of Purity Lodge #198 for nearly half a century and served as Worshipful Master in 1964, Order of the Eastern Star serving as Worthy Patron in 1961, a member of the Scottish Rite and for a number of years was a Shriner. He also served on the board of the Imperial Manor for fourteen years.
Norval enjoyed golf, tinkering on his motorhome, playing "pitch" with his coffee buddies, gardening, and handcraft projects for his children and grandchildren. He loved life and lived it to the fullest and was a warm, friendly man with a gentle spirit.
Norval was preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Gwendolyn.
He is survived by his wife Allene, daughters Jan and husband Gene of Fairview, Texas; Roma and husband Len of Fort Collins, Colorado; son Don and wife Cynthia of Imperial, Nebraska; grandchildren Jammie and Mike May, Jerry and Lori Wood, Joni and Albert Smith, Matt and Melany Jones, Kimberly and Scott Gorny, Mark and Erin Jones, Micah and Becky Jones, Donivan Norman, and Michaela and Andy Feagler; five great-grandchildren, and sister Willa Houser of Scottsbluff, Nebraska.
Norval passed away on September 8th, 2003 at Chase County Community Hospital. Funeral services were held at Imperial on Friday, September 12th, 2003 at the United Methodist Church, of which he was a lifetime member, with Pastor Murray Schmechel officiating. Music was provided by J. Gordon Christensen.
Casketbearers were grandsons Jerry Wood, Matt Jones, Mark Jones, Micah Jones, Donivan Norman, and Andy Feagler. Honorary casketbearers were Brothers of Purity Lodge No. 198 of Imperial, Nebraska.
Interment was at Mount Hope Cemetery, Imperial, Nebraska, with Masonic services conducted by Brethren of Purity Lodge #198.
A memorial has been established in Norval’s name.
Liewer Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.
Bill Winscot
William George Winscot was born Aug. 14, 1935 at David City, NE to Estella (Crocker) and Leroy Winscot.
He attended school at David City Public Schools and graduated in 1953. He graduated from Nebraska State Trade School in Milford in 1955.
Bill married Donna Wadkins on April 3, 1955 in David City. To this union four children were born, Stephen, Patricia, Brenda and William (Gene).
They resided in Wauneta until 1981. Bill worked for International Harvester, Crossroads and was in partnership at B & D Service. He was active in Jaycees, volunteer fire department and Boy Scouts while he resided in Wauneta. He also coached the girls softball team for several years.
He was employed at Midwest Sales and Service in Imperial. They moved to Imperial in 1981. Bill and Donna owned and operated the Imperial Lanes bowling center for 16 years.
In 1995 he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, he sold the bowling center and retired. During his retirement he enjoyed gardening, lawn care and attending his grandchildren’ activities.
Bill passed away in Lincoln, NE on Sept. 11. He was 68 years of age.
He is survived by his wife, Donna; four children Stephen and wife, Katherine of Oxford; Patricia Seidler and husband, Roger of Merriman; Brenda Anderson and husband, Cleve of Wauneta; Gene and wife, Jennifer of Sturgis, S.D.; one sister, Betty Braithwaite of San Bernadino, Calif.; 10 grandchildren: Angela Clark and husband, Jordan of Minden; Shane Anderson of Lincoln; Dustin Seidler of Merriman; Shelby Anderson of Crete; Amberly Winscot of Fremont; Trisha Seidler of Chadron; Andrew Winscot of Oxford; Kyle, Alex and Tyler Winscot of Sturgis.
Funeral services were held Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2003, at 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Imperial, Neb. with Pastor Murray Schmechel officiating.
Organist was Mrs. Marcia Bauerle and soloist Mrs. Melanie Miller.
Escorts were his grandchildren.
Inurnment will be a private service at a later date.
Liewer Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
Norval Norman
Norval Norman, age 89, passed away Monday morning, Sept. 8, 2003 at the Chase County Community Hospital, Imperial.
Survivors include wife Allene of Imperial; daughter Jan Anderson and husband Gene of Fairview, Texas; daughter Roma Jones and husband Len of Ft. Collins, Colo.; son Don Norman and wife Cindy of Imperial, Neb.; nine grandchildren; five great grandchildren; and sister Willa Houser of Scottsbluff, Neb.
Funeral services for Norval will be Friday morning, Sept. 12, 2003, 10:30 a.m. at the United Methodist Church of Imperial with Pastor Murray Schmechel officiating.
Interment will follow at Mount Hope Cemetery, Imperial.
Visitation will be today (Thursday afternoon), 2-6 p.m. at the funeral home in Imperial.
A memorial has been established in Norval’s memory.
Liewer Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
John Power
Johnnie Forrest Power was born Aug. 19, 1920 at Cozad, Neb. to William and Olive "Ollie" (Miller) Power.
He was the third of four children.
Johnnie attended school in Cozad, graduating from Cozad High School in 1939.
Johnnie met the love of his life as she was waiting tables at the Davis Cafe in Cozad.
He married Lillian Lorena Bryant on June 22, 1941, at Phillipsburg, Kan. and had been married for 62 years. To this union five children were born: Gary, Marcia, Jon, Alexis and Joel.
In August of 1942, Johnnie was inducted into the U.S. Army. He served during WWII, in Normandy, France and Central Europe. He was Honorably Discharged on Sept. 29, 1945. He was very proud of being able to serve his country.
Johnnie was a baker by trade and had bakeries in Pender, Parkston, S.D., Gothenburg, McCook and Sterling, Colo.
He loved to watch and talk football and was looking forward to the fall season.
Johnnie loved to tell stories, talk about war experiences and since retirement looked forward to "Coffee Times" with the guys. He loved having his family around and so enjoyed following his grandson, Steven Shalla’s basketball career.
Since October of 2002 he has spent more time at home isolated with his illness and his favorite nurse Lillian. He still kept his witty personality and positive outlook on life.
Johnnie passed away early Monday morning, Sept. 8, 2002 at the Chase County Community Hospital, Imperial. He was 83 years of age.
Johnnie was a member of the VFW and was a 50-year member of the McCook Lodge AF and AM.
Survivors include: wife, friend and nurse Lillian of Imperial; son Gary Power and wife Lory of McCook, Neb.; daughter Marcia Shalla and husband Wendell of Grant, Neb.; son Jon Power and wife Martha Jane of Aliso Viejo, Calif.; daughter Alexis Gillen and husband Clarence of McCook, Neb.; son Joel Power and wife Gena of Blue Springs, Mo.; 12 grandchildren; 10 great grandchildren; and sister Elva Williams of Cozad, Neb.
Johnnie was preceded in death by his parents, sister Maxine Ackerman and brother Donald Power.
Funeral services will be today (Thursday), Sept. 11, 2003, at 10 a.m. at the United Methodist Church of Imperial with Murray Schmechel officiating.
Interment will follow at 1:30 p.m. (MDT) at Ft. McPherson National Cemetery, Maxwell, Neb.
Visitation will be held Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 10, 2003, 2-6 p.m. at the funeral home in Imperial.
A memorial has been established in John’s memory.
Liewer Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
John Benge
John Benge was born on June 8, 1913 at Paris, Iowa. He was the third of five children born to Jay and Alice Strunk Benge.
John lived in several different communities in Iowa while growing up and graduated from Curtis High School in 1934 after the family moved to Nebraska.
John attended barber school in Omaha after high school and later moved to Grant where he helped his uncle in the barber shop. He then started his trucking career, driving for the Grant Co-op, Claude Clendenny and the McCook Co-op.
John was married to Helen Cook on Aug. 17, 1939 in Arthur. They moved to McCook and later to Denver where John was a driver for the Denver-Chicago line, making most of his runs to Phoenix and back to Denver.
They eventually moved back to Grant and John bought the pool hall. In 1948 John established "Johnny’s Propane" business and delivered propane until he sold the business in 1961. During this period, John and Helen became active in training and racing thorough-bred horses at many race tracks in the midwest. Several of his horses had very good track records. He stayed active with the horses until 1985.
He continued trucking through this period, hauling mostly beans, corn and wheat and drove until he was 88 years old-being one of the oldest active truck drivers in the state of Nebraska.
Helen died in August of 2001 but John continued to stay active and maintained his home just west of Grant. He entered the Perkins County Community Hospital last Thursday and died peacefully in his sleep on Saturday afternoon, Aug. 30, 2003. He had reached the age of 90.
In addition to his parents and wife, John was preceded in death by his two sisters, Sybil Gossard and Wilma Nelson and his two brothers, Forrest and Bill Benge.
He is survived by one son Jerry (Kharon) of Grant; two granddaughters Kandi (John) Franklin of Ogallala and Kami (Jeremy) Durr of Lincoln; one great grandson, Carter Franklin; many other relatives and friends.
Music was provided by organist Lynn Schumacher and soloist Lori McCloskey.
Casketbearers were Dennis Barkley, Gary Cook, Dale Burge, Don Benge, Bill Hobelman, George Morris and Leon Pankonin.
Honorary escorts were Bob Yeager, Gary Benge and Clair Bell.
Interment was in the Grant Cemetery with Bullock-Long Service in charge of arrangements.
Jesse Benish
Jesse Robert Benish, 101, longtime resident of Akron, Colo. passed away Saturday, Aug. 30, 2003 at the Washington County Nursing Home in Akron.
Jesse Robert Benish was born July 2, 1902 to Joseph and Mary Elizabeth Morris Benish, nine miles north of Yuma, Colo.
He attended the Hyde school until the 9th grade after which time he was needed at home to help with the family finances.
As a youth, Jesse had many jobs. While in Yuma he delivered groceries by bike cart, later moving to Illinois where he blew glass at a factory in Aton, Ill. Early adulthood found him working as a laborer pulling beans, a sugar beet factory worker, a ranch hand at the Miller ranch where he met Ruby M. Parrish, who became his bride on April 11, 1921. To this union three children were born: Robert, Ralph and Delbert.
Jesse and his family made their home in many places, from California to a short stay in Arkansas. However, he made his home mostly in the Washington County area where he made his livelihood through farming and ranching.
Jesse was an inventor and entrepreneur. He thrashed wheat and corn for 20 years in the Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma area. During this time period he employed over 100 people on his thrashing crew. In the early thirties he built one of the first quonset buildings in Washington County, and during the mid-sixties he built one of the first bomb shelters.
His late adulthood found him still busy with old cars and working on the family farm. Jesse was active all his life and even into his nineties he would still walk to town from his home on the south side of Akron. He could be seen riding his three wheeled bicycle throughout town on many days.
He was preceded in death by his wife Ruby, three sons Robert, Ralph and Delbert, one granddaughter Charlene and one great grandson Kevin.
Memorial contributions in Jesse’s name may be made to the charity to the donor’s choice.
Jesse leaves to mourn his passing a daughter-in-law Patricia Benish of Akron; four grandchildren Alicia Price and husband Michael of Fort Morgan, Randy Benish and wife Nancy of Bowie, Texas, Rick Benish and wife Cheryl of Otis and Deaun Carpenter and husband Larry of Imperial, Neb.; 16 great grandchildren, numerous great, great grandchildren, nieces and nephews and a host of many friends.
Funeral services were conducted Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2003 at 2 p.m. from the Akron Foursquare Church with Rev. Mike Kinney officiating. Colleen Johnson, pianist, accompanied Donne Spicknall as he sang "Whispering Hope" and "On the Wings of a Dove." Casketbearers were Daniel Dannar, Jr., Erick Benish, Jerome Benish, Randy Benish, Jr., Steve Carpenter and Michael Price.
Interment followed in the Akron Cemetery with Brenner Funeral Home of Akron in charge of arrangements.
