U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Velaura 'Vel' Frauen
Velaura M. Frauen, 83, of Grand Island died Sunday, March 14, 2004, at Bryan LGH East Medical Center in Lincoln.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Friday in Gollaher Chapel at Trinity United Methodist Church. The Rev. James Keyser will officiate. Burial will be in the Grand Island City Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Kleine Funeral Home, with the family receiving friends from 5 to 7.
'Vel' was born Nov. 24, 1920, on the family farm near Archer to Arthur and Sophie (Ashweige) Ueckert.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John, on Jan. 5, 1984.
She is survived by a son and daughter-in-law, Gary J. A. and Barbara Frauen of Grand Island, and a sister, Violet Wiegert of Grand Island.
Other survivors include three granddaughters, Michelle (Mrs. Kevyn) Niedfelt, Tammy Frauen (and fiancé Chad Augustyn), and Sandy (Mrs. Jeff) Coffey, all of Grand Island; six great-grandchildren, Joshua Wilsey, Emily Niedfelt, Dillon Niedfelt, Michael Coffey, Jamie Coffey, Amanda Coffey, all of Grand Island; a sister-in-law, Bernice Frauen of Grand Island; an aunt, Martha Meyer of Oregon; and a special friend, Lila Nunnenkamp of Grand Island.
When she was a child, her family moved to Grand Island, where she received her education. She worked for the Fairmont Creamery in Grand Island. On March 3, 1940, she married
John D. Frauen and they made their home on a farm in Merrick County. In 1963 they moved to rural Hall County. Mr. Frauen died January 5, 1984. When her great-grandson, Josh, needed special care while his mother worked, she cared for Josh from the age of six months to when he started school at the age of six years. Josh was "her boy."
"Vel" loved cats and had a special one named "Kitty," and she loved flowers. Over the years, she collected hundreds and hundreds of ornamental and stuffed owls.
Velaura was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church, the Naomi Circle, Platt-Duetsche Society, Fraternal Order Of Eagles, and was a part of a special four-some card club.
She was also preceded in death by her parents, a special great-granddaughter, Kayla, and a special infant great-grandchild.
Memorials are suggested to the Velaura M. Frauen Memorial Fund.
Earl Hubbard
Earl C. Hubbard, 60, of Grand Island died Tuesday, March 16, 2004, at St. Francis Medical Center in Grand Island.
Services are pending with Apfel-Butler-Geddes Funeral Home in Grand Island.
Helen Leibhart
BROKEN BOW -- Helen Louise Nelson Leibhart, 85, of Broken Bow died Sunday, March 14, 2004, at Kearney following a brief illness.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at the United Methodist Church in Callaway. The Rev. Jerry Schwarz will officiate. Burial will be in the Waldheim Cemetery.
Helen was born March 24, 1918, on a farm near Callaway to John and Elsie Nelson.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Fredrick Leibhart.
Survivors of the immediate family include a son and daughter-in-law, Freddie Dean and Sharon Leibhart of Broken Bow; two daughters and a son-in-law, Elsie Jean Cooper of Funk and Clara Sue and Greg Callahan of Oconto; and two brothers and a sister-in-law, Earl and Joyce Nelson of Kearney and Carl Nelson of Callaway.
Wanda Parnell
BROKEN BOW -- Wanda E. Parnell, 93, of Broken Bow died Friday, March 12, 2004, at Sandhills Manor Nursing Home in Broken Bow.
Memorial services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Sandhills Manor. Burial will be at a later date.
Govier Brothers Mortuary in Broken Bow is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Parnell was born June 12, 1910, at Dawson to James Henry and Flossie Emily (Richardson) Ballard.
Survivors of the immediate family include a daughter, Donna Avery of Barstow, Calif.; a sister, Darlene Janda of Broken Bow; and a sister-in-law, Louella Ballard of Broken Bow.
LeRoy Zikmund
ORD -- LeRoy W. Zikmund, 84, of Ord died Sunday, March 14, 2004, at Howard County Community Hospital in St. Paul.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Ord Memorial Chapel. The Rev. Mike Chase will officiate. Burial will be in the Ord City Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.
LeRoy William Zikmund was born April 2, 1919, to William J. and Lula (Albers) Zikmund in Valley County.
Survivors of the immediate family include a brother, Lores Lee "Bud" Zikmund of Ord, and a brother-in-law, Carol Williams of Ord.
Survivors also include a niece, Deb Fischer, and her husband, Trevor, of Ord; and two nephews, David Williams and his wife, Beverly, of St. Paul and Daris Williams of Ord.
LeRoy's mother passed away when he was two months old. He was raised by his father and stepmother, William and Katherine Zikmund.
LeRoy received his education at Ord and was a 1938 graduate of Ord High School. At the age of thirty he was diagnosed with polio. Despite his disability, LeRoy spent his entire life farming and ranching the Zikmund Family Farmstead northeast of Ord. He also drove a cattle truck.
For the past three years he has made his home at Grandview Assisted Living in Ord.
His hobbies included hunting, fishing and visiting.
He is preceded in death by his father, William J.; mother, Lula; stepmother, Katherine; and two sisters, Vivian Williams and Ardis McIntyre.
Memorials are suggested to the Valley County Hospital Foundation.
Maxine Graham
Maxine D. Graham, 80, of Grand Island, formerly of Columbus, died Monday, March 15, 2004, at the Grand Island Veterans Home, where she had lived for 10 years.
Services will be at 1 p.m. Thursday at McKown Funeral Home in Columbus. Chaplain Bill Forbes will officiate. Burial will be in the Columbus cemetery at Columbus.
Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday and from 10 a.m. until service time Thursday, all at the funeral home.
Mrs. Graham was born May 11, 1923, at Columbus to Harley and Johanna (Abts) Wood.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Forrest L. Graham.
Raymond 'Whitie' Pedersen
HELENA, Mont. -- Raymond James "Whitie" Pedersen, 85, of Helena, Mont., died Satuday, March 13, 2004, at home.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Friday at the Saint Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in east Helena. Burial will be at 3:15 p.m. in the Mount Olivet cemetery at Great Falls, Mont.
Visitation will be from 4 to 6 p.m. on Thursday at Retz Funeral Home. A vigil service will be at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the church.
Raymond was born July 14, 1918, in Howard County to Carl C. and Anna C. Pedersen.
Survivors of the immediate family include seven sons and five daughters-in-law, Roger Pedersen of Helena, Randy and Lisa Pedersen of Butte, Mont., Michael Pedersen of Cannon Falls, Minn., Ken and Barb Pedersen of Boise, Idaho, Mark and Rose Pedersen of Great Falls, Mont., Larry and Louann Pedersen of Lewistown, Mont., and Paul and Bernadette Pedersen of East Helena, Mont.; and two daughters and sons-in-law, Marilyn and Tim Taylor of Bremerton, Wash. and Kathleen and Robert Dartnell of Cherry Hill, N.J.; and a sister-in-law, Marguerite Pedersen of St. Paul.
Survivors also include many nieces and nephews, 20 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. All are saddened by his abrupt departure, but we believe that his reunion with the Lord and those that have preceded him is a cause for celebration.
The Good Shepherd has called one of His own to return to the Flock. Raymond James ("Whitie") Pedersen, son, brother, husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed on to be with the Lord on Saturday, March 13, 2004, at his home in Helena, Montana.
He and his older brother, Stanley C. Pedersen, grew up in the farming communities of Nystad and Dannebrog, Nebraska. In a time before electricity had been widely introduced into rural Nebraska, water was pumped by hand, fields were cultivated and harvested with teams of horses, cook stoves and heating stoves were fueled by wood or dried corn husks. Raymond and Stanley worked side by side with their parents in the fields and with the animals to sustain a modest living from their efforts on the farm.
Raymond attended grade school at District 74's one-room country school, west of Dannebrog. In the spring of 1931, at the age of 12, he graduated from the eighth grade. In the fall of that year, he attended Dannebrog High School, lettering in the music program and graduating in the spring of 1935. During this same period, the Great Depression and the "Dust Bowl Days" were a reality of life in Nebraska. Time was spent working on the farm or in school. As the Depression deepened and the drought persisted, Raymond was forced to seek employment off the farm. He was able to land a job as a sales clerk at the Carlson Drug Store in Dannebrog. It was during this period of his life that he met a young, beautiful Irish "lass" from Eddyville, Nebraska, by the name of Kathryn ("Kay") Ellen O'Meara. This young lady would forever change his life.
After attending the St. Paul Business College in St. Paul, Nebraska, Raymond accepted a job offer from the Social Security Board and left Nebraska for Baltimore, Maryland, in December of 1940. He was assigned to the regional field office in Omaha, Nebraska, in August of 1941 and he married
Kathryn ("Kay") Ellen O'Meara on September 24, 1941, in Eddyville, Nebraska.
Raymond answered the call to defend our great nation as the hostilities of World War II enveloped the globe. He was sworn into the U.S. Navy in December of 1942 and served in active duty from January 1943 through January 1946. He was assigned to the U.S.S Fleming, D-E 32, a destroyer escort in the Pacific Theatre, and served as a Petty Officer and a 20 MM gunner. He was honorably discharged and returned to Nebraska, where his family had been blessed with the addition of two children.
From February 1946 until his retirement in September 1981, Raymond returned to work or the Social Security Administration (SSA). From a clerk/typist in Baltimore, Maryland, to the District Manager of the Social Security Office in Great Falls, Montana, his professional career was spent in the service of others. In October of 1975, Raymond was honored in a ceremony in Baltimore with the bestowment of the SSA's highest award, the "Commissioner's Citation." In October of 1981, he returned to Baltimore to receive another award recognizing his commitment of 40 years of Federal Service.
Through all of this, Raymond and his beloved wife, Kay, raised a family of nine children. The oldest and the youngest children were girls and the seven children in between were boys. It was his devotion to his family and a drive to succeed that spurred him on. After eight moves and several promotions, the Pedersens called Great Falls, Montana, home. There they stayed from July 1960 until July 1993. From Great Falls, Montana, Ray and Kay moved to La Grande, Oregon, where they lived for three years. As Kay's health declined, they moved back to Great Falls and then finally to Helena, Montana. During his life, when time allowed, Raymond liked to work with wood, he liked working in the yard and around the house, and he looked forward to the weekly broadcast of "The Lawrence Welk Show." He enjoyed any music by Anne Murray and he loved baseball.
His parents, Carl C. and Anna C. Pedersen, his only brother, Stanley C. Pedersen, and his wife and best friend, Kay Pedersen, preceded Raymond in death.
The family suggests memorials to St. Peter's Hospital Foundation, 2475 Broadway, Helena, MT 59601; Benefis Health Care Foundation, 1101 26th Street, South Great Falls, MT 59405; or to your favorite charity.
