U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Iva Rainforth
WOOD RIVER -- Iva P. Rainforth, 89, of Wood River died Monday, Nov. 29, 1999, at Edgewood Vista in Grand Island.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Friday at the First Presbyterian Church in Wood River with the Rev. John McKinley officiating. Burial will be in the Wood River Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Apfel Funeral Home in Wood River.
Memorials are suggested to the church or the donor's choice.
Mrs. Rainforth was born on Nov. 13, 1910, in the Rosedale community southwest of Doniphan to William and Nellie (Stafford) Price. She attended school in Rosedale before moving with her family south of Hershey in 1924. She was named healthiest girl in the state 4-H competition in 1927. She graduated from Star School near Hershey in 1930. She attended Denver Children's Hospital nurse's training for two years and then worked in retail in Hastings.
She married
Howard R. Rainforth on Aug. 1, 1934, at the Evangelical Church in Hastings. The couple lived in Cairo for one year before returning to Rosedale, where they farmed for three years. They moved in 1938 south of Wood River, where they farmed.
Mrs. Rainforth was a member of the Wood River First Presbyterian Church, was involved in the Presbyterian Woman's Association and taught Sunday school for many years. She was a member of the Hall County Extension Club. She enjoyed square dancing, pinochle, making ceramics and knitting.
She is survived by her husband; two daughters, Joan (Mrs. Gaylord) Apfel of Grand Island and Rosemary (Mrs. Lanny) McLey of Fairfield Bay, Ariz.; two sons, Jerry Rainforth of North Loup and Dean Rainforth of Grand Island; 11 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and one sister, Evelyn Stevens of San Diego.
She was preceded in death by one sister and two brothers.
Wilson Sheldon
TAYLOR -- Wilson E. Sheldon, 85, of Taylor died Sunday, Nov. 28, 1999, at Mission Hill Hospital in Shawnee, Okla.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Rhoad Funeral Chapel in Sargent. The Rev. Gordon Patterson will officiate. Burial will be in Madison Square cemetery west of Taylor.
Visitation will be from 1 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.
Memorials are suggested to the American Cancer Society.
Elaine Harvey
UTICA -- Elaine L. Harvey, 80, of Utica died Monday, Nov. 29, 1999, at Utica.
Services will be at 3 p.m. Thursday at the United Methodist Church in Utica. The Rev. Kay Alnor Moyer will officiate. Burial will be in the Utica Cemetery.
Visitation will be from noon to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday and from 9 to 11 a.m. Thursday at Wood-Zabka Funeral Home in Seward. Visitation will continue from 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday at the United Methodist Church in Utica.
Memorials are suggested to the donor's choice.
Wood-Zabka Funeral Home in Seward is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Harvey was born Jan. 23, 1919, to Burl and Laura (Cross) Hohnbaum. She graduated from Utica High School in 1935.
She was a member of the United Methodist Church in Utica, the United Methodist women and quilting group and the American Legion Auxiliary.
Survivors include her husband, Rufus "Rasty" Harvey of Utica; one son, Tex R. Harvey of Grand Island; one daughter, Pam (Mrs. Steve) Eikenhorst of Osceola; four grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and one sister, Eloise Stroman of Greenfield, Calif.
She was preceded in death by a grandson.
Emilia Schmidt
HOLDREGE -- Emilia C. Schmidt, 96, of Holdrege died Monday, Nov. 29, 1999, at Phelps Memorial Health Center in Holdrege.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Nelson-Harris Funeral Home in Holdrege with the Revs. Steve Billington and Dixon Powers officiating. Burial will be in the Hildreth Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.
A memorial has been established.
Mrs. Schmidt was born on Jan. 13, 1903, in Ohiowa to Gustav and Wilhelmina (Thole) Fries. She graduated from high school in 1921, attended Kearney State Normal College and then taught for several years in Franklin County.
She married
Eilert Schmidt on April 24, 1924. The couple lived in Hildreth, where they operated a repair shop and produce store.
Mrs. Schmidt moved in 1950 to the Christian Children's Home in Holdrege, where she was a boys matron. In 1955, she moved to the Bethphage Mission in Axtell, where she was a housemother until 1963, when she moved to Holdrege. In 1992, she moved into Christian Homes, where she lived until her death.
Survivors include one daughter, Dorothy Frerichs of Grand Island; and one grandson.
She was preceded in death by her husband, twin grandsons and a brother, Walter Fries.
Zetta Pratt
LOVELAND, Colo. -- Zetta M. Pratt, 91, of Loveland, Colo., formerly of Grand Island, died Nov. 9, 1999, at the Sierra Vista Living Center in Loveland.
Graveside services will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Westlawn Memorial Park cemetery in Grand Island. The Rev. Onamae Waddel will officiate.
Mrs. Pratt was born on April 15, 1908, at Bartlett to William H. and Iva Maude (Rummel) Brush.
She married
Robert R. Pratt on May 4, 1925, in Council Bluffs, Iowa. He died on Oct. 18, 1968. She worked for Woolworth's in Grand Island for 14 years.
She was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church, the women's auxiliary and Union Pacific Old-Timers Club 16.
Survivors include two great-grandchildren, three great-great-grandchildren and a niece, Donna Weaver of Grand Island.
In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by a daughter, Fern Baker; two grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and three brothers.
Laura Brady
Laura M. Brady, 90, of Shelton, died Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000, shortly after admittance to the Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Shelton United Methodist Church. The Rev. John Ewton will officiate. Burial will be in the Shelton Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday at the church.
Memorials are suggested to the Shelton fire and rescue unit.
Apfel-O'Brien-Straatmann of Wood River is in charge of arrangements.
Clarence Christensen BOELUS -- Clarence A. Christensen, 91, of Boelus, died Thursday, Dec. 19, 2000, at the Good Samaritan Center in Ravenna.
Services are pending with the Jacobsen-Greenway Funeral Home in St. Paul.
Esther Hoobler
SARGENT -- Esther M. Hoobler, 92, of Sargent, died Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2000, at the Jennie Melham Memorial Hospital in Broken Bow.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Church of Christ in Sargent. The Rev. Marty Robbins will officiate. Burial will be in Moulton Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 1 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Rhoad Funeral Chapel in Sargent.
Memorials are suggested to the Church of Christ.
Charlene Takahashi
Kailua, Hawaii -- Charlene Lucienne Koelling Takahashi, 58, of Kailua, Hawaii, died Nov. 16, 2000, at a Honolulu hospital.
Services were on Nov. 22 in Kailua.
She was born on March 23, 1942, in Valley County to the Rev. Melvin and Evelyn (Leonard) Koelling.
She graduated as valedictorian at Callaway High School and served as president of her class and yearbook editor. She also was active in band and played volleyball.
She graduated from the University of Nebraska with honors and a degree in home economics. She then earned her master's degree in fashion design.
After college, she worked in New York, taught briefly at Bakersfield, Calif., and then taught home economics at the University of Hawaii.
She married
Walter Takahashi in Hawaii. At age 43, she earned a second master's degree in social work at the University of Hawaii and taught human relations to students at the Kamehameha Schools.
She then helped to open and manage the Aloha Pregnancy Center at Kaneohe and worked as a counselor at the Joint Military Abuse Center.
Survivors include three daughters, Tess of Providence, R.I., Sara of San Diego and Amy of Alexandria, Va.; a son, Trevor of Kailua; one grandchild; and three brothers, Dennis and Gary, both of Milford, Iowa, and Rodney of Austin, Texas.
She was preceded in death by her parents, who worked and retired in Grand Island. Her father was a former pastor of Faith United Methodist Church.
