R.H. 'Red' Lewis
R.H. "Red" Lewis of Yellow Springs died peacefully at Community Hospital in Springfield on Friday, July 26. He was 80 years of age. Born in Morgan County, Ky., on June 24, 1922, he was the son of Chess Van and Bell Howard Lewis. He owned and operated R.H. Lewis Excavating for 45 years, and was joined by his two sons, Donald and Ronald, 40 years ago. He worked in the business beside his sons until the day of his death. His sons will continue the business. For more than 50 years, he was a member of the Yellow Springs Masonic Lodge No. 421, where he was also a trustee, and a member of the International Union Operating Engineers Local No. 18. He was also a member of the Glen Forest Cemetery Board and a Kentucky Colonel. He was a steam train enthusiast and owner of an old Coney Island steam locomotive. He was preceded in death by his parents, three sisters and three brothers. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Claris Alspaugh Lewis; two sons and a daughter-in-law, Donald E. Lewis of Yellow Springs, Ronald L. and Brenda K. Lewis of Xenia; a daughter, Norma G. Lewis of Yellow Springs; four grandchildren, Ronald C. Lewis, Travis Lewis, Christy L. Comerford and Kori Lewis; six great-grandchildren, Mary Adeline, Fielding and Fisher Lewis, Cecelia and Ella Comerford and Devon Lewis; and a granddog, Maggie. A viewing was held Tuesday, July 30, at the Jackson Lytle Ingling and Williams Funeral Home with Masonic services held in the evening. Funeral services were held Wednesday, July 31, with an interment at the Glen Forest Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent to either the Community Children's Center, P.O. Box 42, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387, or the Antioch School, P.O. Box 242, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387.

Judith Russell
Judith E. "Judy" Russell of South Vienna died Wednesday, July 24, as a result of an automobile accident. She was 55 years of age. She was a member of the American Legion, AMVETS and the Navy Club. She was preceded in death by her husband, James Russell, on Oct. 5, 2001; her parents, Charles and Naomi Thompson; and sister Diana Thompson. She is survived by a son, Dennis Hostetter of South Vienna; daughter, Christine (Christy) Davis of Springfield; two step-sons, Marty Cooper of Ft. Pierce, Fla. and Billy Russell of Charlotte, N.C.; two step-daughters, Susan Byerly of Rockville, S.C., and Denise Wallace of Springfield; two brothers, Charlie Thompson of Cookville, Tenn., and Rickie Thompson of South Vienna; sister Shirley Anderson of Yellow Springs; three grandchildren, 12 step-grandchildren and two step-great-grandchildren. Funeral services were held Sunday, July 28, in the Jones-Kenney-Zechman Funeral Home.

Eleanore Edwards
Eleanore Ophelia Edwards of Cincinnati and formerly of Yellow Springs died Sunday, Sept. 22, in The Meadows in Cincinnati. She was 98 years of age. Born on Nov. 27, 1903, in Union City, Tenn., she was the daughter of William S. and Savanna G. (Hunger) Edwards. She graduated from Wilberforce University with a teaching certificate. She received her bachelor of arts degree from McKendree College in Lebanon, Ill., and went to graduate school at the University of Illinois. She was a teacher for 40 years and taught in public and Catholic schools in East St. Louis, Ill. She was preceded in death by her parents; six brothers, Ralph, Hugh, Bruce, William, Frank and Floyd; three sisters, Josephine Hughes, Ethel Colby and Pauline Sykes. She is survived by a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. Services were held Wednesday, Sept. 25, in the Jackson Lytle & Ingling Williams Funeral Home in Yellow Springs. Burial was in Glen Forest Cemetery.

John Malone
John "Jack" Edward Malone of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., formerly of Dayton and Yellow Springs, died Saturday, Sept. 21, at Hospice of Dayton. He was 80 years of age. Born July 25, 1922, in Washington, Ky., he was the son of James and Elizabeth (Foley) Malone. He served in London, Paris and Scotland as a control tower operator during World War II. He returned to the U.S. to earn degrees from Moorehead University, study at several other universities and begin a noteworthy career as an educator. He taught at Flemingsburg and Paris, Ky., and Trotwood and Englewood, and became the superintendent of Clayton schools at age 33. In subsequent years, he served as principal of Yellow Springs High School for 16 years, during which it was chosen as one of the 30 model schools in the U.S. He also served as assistant superintendent of Northmont schools and Dayton city schools and as a supervisor in Clark County schools. He was a John Hays Fellow and received numerous other educational awards. He was preceded in death by four brothers, Gerald, Thomas, James and Vincent. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Patricia (Day) Malone; children, Michael Malone and his wife, Julie, of San Francisco, John Steven Malone and his wife, Kathryn, of Yellow Springs, Mollye F. Malone of Yellow Springs, Kathleen Malone of Surfside City, S.C., Margaret Larson and her husband, Michael, of Fayetteville, N.C., and Amy Fugate and her husband, Anthony, of Springfield; seven grandchildren, Matthew and John David Larson, John Michael Malone and Mollye K. Malone; Joseph and Jacob Fugate and John "Jack" Hudson Malone; two sisters, Elizabeth (Wayne) Bell of Lexington, and Mary Jo Pfeffer of Washington, Ky.; and several nieces and nephews. Services were held in St. Paul Catholic Church on Tuesday, Sept. 24. The family was served by Jackson Lytle & Ingling Williams Funeral Home. Donations may be made to the John Malone Scholarship Fund at Yellow Springs High School, 420 East Enon Road, Yellow Springs, OH 45387 or Hospice of Dayton, 324 Wilmington Avenue, Dayton, OH 45420.

Katherine Benning
Katherine L. Benning of Springfield died Friday, Sept. 20, in Southbrook Care Center. She was 90 years of age. Born Feb. 12, 1912, in Yellow Springs, she was the daughter of William and Fannie Mae Hubbard. She was a fulltime pioneer minister for the Jehovah’s Witnesses West Congregation and was a past employee of Greene Memorial Hospital. She was preceded in death by her parents; four sisters, Jewel Smith, Anna Lee Butler, Goldie Douthy and Lucille Peterson; three brothers, Floyd Hubbard, Leon Hubbard and Marion Hubbard, who died when he was a baby. She is survived by her husband of 41 years, Ellsworth L. Benning; two brothers, Cassius Hubbard and his wife, Doris, of Cedarville, and John Hubbard of Dayton; and a host of nieces and nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews. Memorial services were held on Saturday, Sept. 28, at the Jehovah’s Witnesses West Congregation.

Harry Butler
Harry Butler of Oakwood died Friday, Sept. 27, in the Kettering Medical Center. He was 83 years of age. Born Dec. 25, 1918, in Springfield, he was the son of Harry and Sarah Butler. He served overseas in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was retired from the Van Dyne Crotty Company, where he was twice named “Man of the Year.” He was also employed at Crowell-Collier for 19 years. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Bernice, who died in August 2001; one brother, Bob Butler; and one grandson, Jerry McKee, who died on Sept. 5, 2002. He is survived by his stepmother, Esther Ours of Springfield; his daughter, Phyllis McKee of Pittsburgh; one son and daughter-in-law, Jack and Barbara Harkins of Springfield; two brothers and three sisters-in-law, Jay Lee and Garnet Butler of Fort Wayne, Ind., Tom and Sue Butler of Springfield, Mary Butler of Yellow Springs; six grandchildren, 11 great grandchildren and one great-great grandson; numerous nieces and nephews who loved him; a special cousin, Marge Kirby; and three special friends, Steve Wolf and Bill and Mary Frye. Funeral services were held Wednesday, Oct. 2, in the Littleton & Rue Funeral Home in Springfield. Burial was in Rose Hill Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Dayton, 324 Wilmington Avenue, Dayton, OH 45420. Condolences may be expressed to the family at www.littletonandrue.com.

Virginia Hofmann
Virginia (Ginnie) Hofmann of Yellow Springs, whose life was spent working for environmental and liberal causes, died on Sunday, Sept. 29, at Hospice of Dayton. Her earliest interests were not social, but centered on music. She became a member of the Detroit All-City Orchestra and played bass guitar in dance and bluegrass bands. A lifelong interest in learning caused her to give up music to attend colleges in California, where she received bachelor of science degrees in political science and liberal arts. She then earned a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Dayton. She received a commendation from the Washington Air Force Office of Scientific Research for her work as assistant director of the Engineer Training Program for Minorities at U.D. She was a teacher in the Dayton school system, worked for a while as a reporter for area newspapers and was campaign manager for Ed Orlett when he ran for state representative. She worked for eight years as a grant coordinator for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency in Columbus. She spent a great deal of her spare time working with various organizations concerned with human rights and community issues. She served on the Trotwood-Madison school board for four years and was elected for 16 years to be a Madison Township trustee. After moving to Yellow Springs in 1992, she kept up her activism in various capacities. She continued as president of the Miami Valley Landfill Coalition, a citizens group that worked 15 years to bring about the cleanup of the Powell Road Landfill, a superfund site. She became a member of the Village Environmental Commission and served as president of the Greene County Democratic Women’s Club. She is survived by her sister, Charlene Florin-Amacher of Apache Junction, Ariz., a daughter, Vickie Marmelstein of Woodbridge, Va., and two grandchildren, Allen and Sarah. A memorial service will be announced at a later date.

Quaker memorial service for Enid Keen
A Quaker memorial service for Enid Keen will be held Saturday, Oct. 5, 2 p.m., at the Rockford Chapel, on the Antioch College campus. Keen died in June at the age of 96. All who wish to celebrate her life are welcome to attend the service.

Dessie Newsome
Dessie Lorena Newsome of Yellow Springs died Sunday, Sept. 29, after a courageous battle with breast cancer. She was 71 years of age. Raised in Plantsville, near Athens, Ohio, she was the daughter of John and Bernice Tate. She graduated from Amesville High School and moved to Columbus to work at Mt. Carmel Hospital. She later moved to Yellow Springs, where she worked at the Antioch Bookplate Company, now called The Antioch Company, and the Yellow Springs Clinic. She married Thomas “Tommy” Newsome in January 1953. After Tommy died in 1977, she devoted her life to caring for her children and grandchildren. She was also a very active member of her church. She sang in the choir, visited and assisted the sick, and ministered to many through her cards of encouragement. She was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Howard; sisters Marie and Dorothy; and her husband. She is survived by her loving children, Brent, Belinda Ramsey, Bryan, Brad and Barrett; daughters-in-law, Debby, Gayle and Linda; son-in-law, Peter Ramsey, and 11 grandchildren. Also mourning her passing are numerous friends and church family. A memorial wake service will be held today (Thursday), 1–3 p.m., at the Jackson, Lytle & Ingling Williams Funeral Home in Yellow Springs. Services honoring her life will be held tomorrow (Friday), 1 p.m., at the Church of God, 760 East Second Street in Xenia. Burial will be in Glen Forest Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Church of God at the address above.

Eileen Roche
Eileen M. Roche of Yellow Springs died Tuesday, Sept. 24, at her home. She was 80 years of age. Born in North Fitzroy, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, she was the daughter of Cyril and Myrtle French. After graduating from the University of Melbourne, she worked at The Royal Australian Naval Office in Melbourne during World War II and at the Fels Research Institute in Yellow Springs from 1970 to 1976. She was an active member of the Xenia Woman’s Club and the Shakespeare Club of Yellow Springs. She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Jack. She is survived by her husband, Alex, of Yellow Springs; her children, Peter and his wife, Ginni, of Enon, Stephen of Boston, and Margaret and her husband, Charles Adams, of Beavercreek; grandchildren, Eric Adams of Oxford and Nicole Adams of Dayton; and many friends and relatives in Australia, particularly her sister, Joan, and her husband, Jim Davin, and her sister-in-law Joan French. A requiem mass was celebrated for Eileen on Monday, Sept. 30, at St. Paul Catholic Church in Yellow Springs. Memorial contributions may be made to the Yellow Springs Senior Center, 227 Xenia Avenue, Yellow Springs, OH 45387.