Garnetta B. Coller
[Published December 14, 2004]
Garnetta B. Coller, 74, Mount Penn, died Dec. 10 at 1:51 p.m. in the emergency room of St. Joseph Medical Center.
She was the wife of Richard P. Coller.
Born in Shillington, she was a daughter of the late Carl R. and Elizabeth (Bixler) Speck.
Coller had been employed for 10 years as an office manager by K-Mart Corp., Muhlenberg Township.
She was a 1948 graduate of Reading High School.
Coller is also survived by two sons, Christian J., Seattle, and Craig P., Reading.
There is also one grandson.
Services will be Friday at 11 a.m. in Lutz Funeral Home Inc., Mount Penn. Burial will be private.
Eugene Gallagher
[Published December 14, 2004]
Retired Army Master Sgt. Eugene Gallagher, 79, Phoenixville, Chester County, died Dec. 12 in Good Samaritan Hospital, Pottsville.
His wife, Sheila (Mahoney) Gallagher, died in December 1998.
Born in County Leitrim, Ireland, he was a son of the late Michael-John and Sarah (O'Rourk) Gallagher.
Gallagher was a career military veteran, serving in the Army from 1950 until his retirement in 1970. He was a veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars.
He later worked for BF Goodrich Co., Oaks, Montgomery County, until the plant closed in 1980.
Gallagher is survived by three sons: Eugene, White Plains, N.Y.; Brian, Phoenixville; and the Rev. Kevin P., St. Clair, Schuylkill County.
Other survivors include a sister, Sally (Gallagher) McPartlan, County Leitrim.
There are also three granddaughters.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church, Phoenixville. Burial will be in St. Ann's Cemetery. Campbell-Ennis-Klotzbach Funeral Home Inc., Phoenixville, is in charge of arrangements.
Carlton E. Koons
[Published December 14, 2004]
Carlton E. Koons, 66, died of natural causes Dec. 11 in his Amity Township residence.
He was the husband of Jean M. (Szabo) Koons.
Born in Reading, he was a son of the late Carlton and Cynthia (Wanger) Koons.
Koons had been employed as a press operator by Danco Precision Inc., Phoenixville, Chester County.
He was a Navy veteran.
Koons is also survived by a daughter, Robin (Koons) Riegner, Boyertown; and two sons, Joseph E., Reading, and Ricky C., Jacksonville, Fla.
Other survivors include a brother, Randy, Sarasota, Fla., and four grandchildren.
Graveside services will be Thursday at 1 p.m. in St. Paul's Cemetery, Amityville. Dengler Funeral Home Inc., Birdsboro, is in charge of arrangements.
Hannah R. Ladner
[Published December 14, 2004]
Hannah R. Ladner, 89, formerly of Douglassville, died Dec. 13 in Montgomery County Geriatric Center, Upper Providence Township, Montgomery County, where she had been a resident since March 1998.
Her husband, R. Frey Ladner, died Jan. 6, 1986.
Born in Phoenixville, Chester County, she was a daughter of the late Elmer A. and Bessie (Wade) Vanderslice.
Ladner was a member of St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church, Douglassville.
She was a 1932 graduate of Mont Clare High School, Montgomery County.
Ladner is survived by a son, Roger F., Douglassville; and three daughters: Betty M. (Ladner) Dilliplaine, Douglassville; Hazel A. (Ladner) Stuart, Boyertown; Rebecca L. (Ladner) Painter, Spring City, Chester County.
There are also seven grandchildren, six great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.
Memorial services will be Monday at 5 p.m. in St. Gabriel's Church. Dengler Funeral Home Inc., Birdsboro, is in charge of arrangements.
Kenneth C. Lutz
[Published December 14, 2004]
Kenneth C. Bud Lutz, 86, a resident at Cedar Haven, Lebanon, died Dec. 9 at 7:30 a.m. in Good Samaritan Hospital, Lebanon.
His wife, Beulah E. (Deck) Lutz, died May 14, 1993.
Born in North Lebanon Township, he was a son of the late Harvey W. and Sadie Eva (Eby) Lutz.
Lutz had been employed as a tracer by Bethlehem Steel Corp., Lebanon, until his retirement.
He was a member of St. Luke's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Schaefferstown, Lebanon County.
Lutz was a graduate of Lebanon High School.
He is survived by a daughter, Helen R. (Lutz) Ernst, Wyomissing.
There is also one granddaughter and two great-grandchildren.
Memorial services will be Tuesday, Dec. 28 at 2 p.m. in the Chapel at Cedar Haven. Burial will be in Schaefferstown Cemetery. Christman's Funeral Home Inc., Lebanon, is in charge of arrangements.
Joel A. Matos
[Published December 14, 2004]
Services and burial for Joel A. Matos, 20, who died Dec. 11, will be held in the Dominican Republic.
Gallman-Sonoski Funeral Home Inc., Reading, is in charge of arrangements.
Matos died as a result of gunshot wounds suffered in the 300 block of North Eighth Street early Saturday. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Reading Hospital.
The cause of death has been ruled a homicide by the Berks County coroner's office.
Born in the Dominican Republic, he was a son of Ramon Quezada and Yndira Matos, both of Reading.
Matos was a 2001 graduate of Reading High School.
He was a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq war.
Matos is also survived by a sister, Nilda Matos; and three brothers: Ramon A., Juan M. and Emmanuel Matos, all of Reading.
M. Lucille Reber
[Published December 14, 2004]
M. Lucille Reber, 87, formerly of Orlando, Fla., died Dec. 13 at 1:35 a.m. in the Lebanon Valley Brethren Home, Palmyra, Lebanon County, where she had been a resident for one year.
Her husband, Homer M. Reber, died July 2, 1993.
Born in Denver, Colo., she was a daughter of the late Walter A. and Martha E. (Bowman) Brown.
Reber had been employed as a school teacher, first in Lancaster County for 13 years, then Orange County, Fla. for 24 years, retiring in 1976.
She received a bachelor's degree from Elizabethtown College, Lancaster County, and her master's degree from Temple University, Philadelphia.
Reber is survived by a brother, James W. Brown, Lancaster.
Memorial services will be Saturday at 11 a.m. in Mohrsville Church of the Brethren. Burial will be in Viewpoint Cemetery, Centre Township. Leibensperger Funeral Homes Inc., Hamburg, is in charge of arrangements.
Edward T. Sedlack
[Published December 14, 2004]
Edward T. Sedlack, 78, was pronounced dead of natural causes Dec. 13 at 5 a.m. in his Crestwood residence.
His wife, Rose A. (Horyczko) Sedlack, died Dec. 22, 2003.
Born in Reading, he was a son of the late Michael and Mary (Scibek) Sedlack.
Sedlack had been employed for 40 years as a refrigeration technician by York Air Conditioning, Reading with Philadelphia Local 420.
He was a member of St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church, Reading.
Sedlack was a Navy veteran of World War II.
He was a fourth degree knight with the Knights of Columbus Holy Eucharist Council 4198, Reading.
Sedlack is survived by two daughters, Patricia R. (Sedlack) Leocha, Hershey, Dauphin County, and Ann M. (Sedlack) Copeland, Little Meadows, Susquehanna County; and three sons: Michael T., Fleetwood; Thomas E., Mertztown; and Frank J., Virginia Beach, Va.
Other survivors include a sister, Monica (Sedlack) Richards, Laureldale.
There are also 11 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. in St. Paul's Church. Burial will be in Gethsemane Cemetery, Laureldale. Kopicki-Bradley Funeral Home Inc. is in charge of arrangements.
Sallie R. Wetzel
[Published December 14, 2004]
Sallie R. Wetzel, 78, Earl Township, died Dec. 13 in Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, where she had been a patient since Dec. 5.
She was the wife of Gerald D. Wetzel Sr.
Born in Niantic, Montgomery County, she was a daughter of the late Harrison R. and Sallie (Christman) Miller.
Wetzel had been employed for 28 years as a casket liner by Boyertown Casket Co., retiring in 1986.
She was a member of Calvary United Church of Christ, Barto.
Wetzel was a clerk at the Earl Township voting precinct.
She is also survived by a daughter, Dorothy (Wetzel) Fick, Boyertown, and a sister, Mary (Miller) Jacob, a resident at Pennsburg Manor, Montgomery County.
There is also one granddaughter and two great-grandchildren.
She was predeceased by a son, Gerald D. Jr., and a daughter, Sallie Ann Wetzel.
Graveside services will be Thursday at 2 p.m. in Christ Union Cemetery, Niantic. Linwood W. Ott Funeral Home Inc., Boyertown, is in charge of arrangements.
Ralph R. Yoder
[Published December 14, 2004]
Ralph R. Yoder, 77, formerly of Maidencreek Township, died Dec. 9 in Berks Heim Annex, where he had been a resident.
Born in Maidencreek Township, he was a son of the late Robert O. and Mamie V. (Stetsler) Yoder.
Yoder had been employed for 20 years by Lehigh Cements, Evansville, Maidencreek Township, last working in 1968.
He was a member of St. John's (Gernant's) United Church of Christ, Ontelaunee Township.
Yoder was an Army veteran of World War II.
There are no immediate survivors.
Services will be Friday at 11 a.m. in Mae A. Stump Funeral Home Inc., Fleetwood. Burial will be in St. John's (Gernant's) Cemetery, Ontelaunee Township.
Jacqueline L. Youst
[Published December 14, 2004]
Jacqueline L. Youst, 71, Reading, died Dec. 13 at 9:50 a.m. in Reading Hospital, where she had been a patient since Dec. 6.
Her husband, Edwin A. Youst Sr., died Feb. 5, 1972.
Born in Reading, she was a daughter of the late Morris L. and Thelma M. (Drey) Ritz.
Youst was a 1951 graduate of Reading High School.
She is survived by a daughter, Lynn L. (Youst) Slovik, St. Louis, Mo.; and four sons: Edwin A. Jr., Reinholds; Keith A. and Rusty J., both of Reading; and Craig J., Raleigh, N.C.
Other survivors include a sister, Geraldine Ritz, in Pennsylvania, and a brother, Robert Ritz, Boca Raton, Fla.
There is also seven grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.
Services will be Wednesday at 11 a.m. in Sanders Funeral Home and Cremation Services Inc. Burial will be in Forest Hills Memorial Park, Reiffton.
Dr. Robert A. Abraham
[Published February 9, 2005]
Dr. Robert A. Abraham, 79, formerly of Reading, died Feb. 3 in his residence in Lutherville, Md.
His wife, June (Lazzell) Abraham, died in October 2000.
Born in Mahanoy City, he was a son of the late David and Margaret (Auman) Abraham.
Abraham began his medical practice in general medicine in Towson, Md., and entered the private practice of obstetric anesthesia in Baltimore and then in Albany, N.Y.
He served as director of obstetric anesthesia at the Albany Medical Center from 1964 to 1975 and became the first full-time director of obstetric anesthesia at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, from 1975 to 1986.
At Johns Hopkins, Abraham was named teacher of the year several times, was published in his field and held the appointment of associate professor emeritus at the school of medicine until his retirement.
He was a graduate of Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, and received his medical degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, College Park.
Surviving are a daughter, Margaret A. (Abraham) Jones, Wilmington, Del.; and three sons: Dr. John D., Albany; Mark A., Satellite Beach, Fla.; and Howard A., Baltimore.
Other survivors include a brother, Dr. James, Sinking Spring; and a sister, Jane (Abraham) Kerper, Wyomissing.
There are also five grandchildren.
Services and burial will be private. Henninger Funeral Home Inc. is in charge of arrangements.
Marie Ackerman
[Published February 9, 2005]
Marie Ackerman, 87, formerly of Pottstown and Boyertown, died Feb. 7 in her residence in Chestnut Knoll, Boyertown.
Her husband, Dr. Harold M. Ackerman, died in 1993.
Born in Pottstown, she was a daughter of the late Norman and Edna (Brunner) Bitting.
Ackerman was employed by Mrs. Smith's Pie Co. and Jacob's Aircraft, both of Pottstown, and was also employed as office manager and bookkeeper in her husband's dental practice in Boyertown until her retirement.
She was a member of Christ Episcopal Church, Pottstown.
Surviving are a daughter, Doris Jane Ackerman, Reading; and a son, Dwight M., Birdsboro.
Other survivors include a brother, Donald Bitting, Sanatoga, Montgomery County; and three sisters: Ruth Elaine (Bitting) Henricks, Pottstown; Grace (Bitting) Harty, Berwick, Columbia County; and Jane (Bitting) Fritz, Melbourne, Fla.
There are also two grandchildren.
Services will be Friday at 11 a.m. in Christ Episcopal Church. Burial will be in Pottstown Cemetery West. Houck & Gofus Funeral Home Inc., Pottstown, is in charge of arrangements.
Marian L. Anspach
[Published February 9, 2005]
Marian L. Anspach, 74, Shartlesville, died Feb. 7 at 5:35 a.m. in Reading Hospital, where she had been a patient since Jan. 29.
Born in Upper Bern Township, she was a daughter of the late Willie and Clara (Long) Keener.
Anspach was employed for 49 years as a seamstress by the Wright Knitting Mill, Hamburg. She was also employed as a waitress by Haag's Hotel, Shartlesville.
She was a 1948 graduate of Hamburg High School.
Anspach was a member of Friedens Church, Shartlesville.
Surviving is her stepmother, Arlene Breidigan, Hamburg.
Services will be Tuesday at 11 a.m. in Friedens Church. Burial will be in the adjoining cemetery. The Kirkhoff Funeral Home, Bernville, is in charge of arrangements.
