Obituaries

Apr 23, 2015

Florence Edna Putman, 99, of Rensselaer, passed away Thursday morning, April 23, 2015 at Alternacare at Jasper County Hospital. She was born in Wheatfield on Sept. 27, 1915, daughter of the late Charles and Elizabeth (Kerr) Woodward.

Edna attended school in Rensselaer and had been a resident of Rensselaer for over 70 years. On Dec....

Apr 20, 2015

Jerry Lee Gies, 74, of Rensselaer, passed away at his home on Monday, April 20, 2015. He was born in Gary on August 10, 1940, son of the late Edward J. and Annabelle M. (Schnieder) Gies.

Jerry graduated from Merrillville High School with the class of 1958. He served in the Army Reserves. On January...

Apr 7, 2015

Janis Christine Allen, 58, of Morocco, passed away Tuesday, April 7, 2015 at her home. She was born in East Chicago, Indiana on August 24, 1956, daughter of the late Samuel and Margaret (Bayless) Goff. She had been a resident of Morocco for the past seven years, having moved there from Cedar Lake where she had lived for 32...

Apr 1, 2015

John Brian “Hammer” Hamer, 37, of Lafayette, formerly of Rensselaer, passed away Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at IU Health University Hospital in Indianapolis. He was born in Rensselaer on June 1, 1977 to Arthur Walter Hamer and Patricia Lynne (Geren) Froman.

John attended school in Rensselaer. John moved to Lafayette when he was 19 and...

Mar 30, 2015

Kent Wayne Stone, 61, of Gifford, passed away Monday, March 30, 2015 at Jasper County Hospital. He was born in Ransom County, North Dakota on May 14, 1953, son of the late Milard and Shirley (Thomas) Stone. He attended school in Rensselaer and went on to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps.

On Feb. 11,...

Mar 29, 2015

Homer Williamson, 85, a longtime resident of Morocco, passed away Sunday morning, March 29, 2015 at Vibra Hospital in Crown Point. He was born in Kentucky on February 11, 1930, the son of the late John and Annie Williamson.

Homer was a farmer and worked for many years for Churchill Farms. He enjoyed fishing.

Mar 26, 2015

Berlyn J. “Bert” Coburn, 91, of Zionsville, formerly of Rensselaer, passed away Thursday evening, March 26, 2015 at Witham Health Services at Anson in Zionsville. He was born in Wanatah on Sept. 19, 1923, the son of the late Elmer and Anna (Kruger) Coburn.

Bert was raised in Medaryville and graduated from Medaryville High School....

Mar 21, 2015

James Floyd Cox, 62, of Spicewood, Texas, succumbed to colon cancer at his daughter's home surrounded by his family March 21, 2015.

Jim is survived by his two children, Jill Eddleman and her husband Keith of Buda, Texas, and Justin Cox and his wife Amber of Cypress, Texas; three grandchildren; his sister Nancy Crandall and...

Mar 17, 2015

Donald Lincoln “Don” Lunsford, 48, of Earl Park, passed away Tuesday, March 17, 2015 at IU Health Arnett Hospital in Lafayette. He was born in Gary on June 23, 1966, to Donald Lee and Katie (Musgrave) Lunsford.

Don graduated from Merrillville High School with the class of 1984. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force...

Mar 3, 2015

William A. Cain, 79, of Rensselaer, passed away Tuesday , March 3, 2015. He was born on January 9, 1936 to the late William Ivan and Avinell Emma (Medley) Cain. On November 6, 1966 he married Eleanor (Rose) Atherton.

William served his country in the U.S. Army. He was an operating engineer, Local 150, and...

Feb 18, 2015

David L. Mead, 79, of Morocco, passed away at his home Wednesday evening, Feb. 18, 2015. He was born in Goodland Jan. 30, 1936, the son of the late Charles and Mary (Kay) Mead. He graduated from Morocco High School and went on to serve his country in the U.S. Army.

In 1961 David married...

Feb 10, 2015

Beatrice E. Brinkmann, 92, passed away at George Ade Memorial Health Care Center, Brook, Indiana on February 10, 2015.

Beatrice was born in Virgie, Indiana on January 6, 1923, the daughter of the late Ferdinand “Firnot” M. Schultz and Hilda (Steinke) Schultz.

On September 6, 1940, at Trinity Lutheran Church, Lowell,...

Feb 9, 2015

Emily “Betty” Yeoman, 90, of Rensselaer, passed away Monday, Feb. 9, 2015 at Parkview Haven Retirement Home in Francesville. She was born Feb. 6, 1925 in Shropshire, England, the daughter of the late John and Martha (Hanna) Horler. She attended school in England and then worked for the Lancaster Company making airplane wings during WWII. Betty was an English...

Feb 8, 2015

William R. “Bill” LaCosse, Sr., 92, of Fair Oaks, passed away Sunday evening, Feb. 8, 2015 at the Rensselaer Care Center. He was born in Newton County on Dec. 31, 1922, the son of the late Mathew and Nancy Cassie Ann (Williams) LaCosse. Bill attended school in Fair Oaks and was a lifelong resident of Jasper and Newton Counties....

Feb 7, 2015

Harold “Gus” Hageman, 81, of Rensselaer, passed away Saturday morning, Feb. 7, 2015 at his home. He was born in Remington on Sept. 5, 1933, the son of the late Julius and Hulda (Schlipf) Hageman. Gus graduated from Gilboa Township High School. He went on to serve his country in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. On April...

Feb 3, 2015

Tommy Wayne Bales, 66, of Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota, passed away on February 3, 2015 in Danville, Illinois. He was born June 3, 1948 to the late Raymond and June (Sinks) Bales.

He served his country in the United States Army from 1970 until 1976. He was a lineman with Continental Bell Telephone for 20 years....

Jan 25, 2015

Andrea Lynn “Andie” Nelson, 70, of Brook, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015 in Apache Junction, Arizona. She was born on May 27, 1944 to the late Anthony and Joan (Monjon) Zimmer. On Nov. 5, 1960 she married Thomas Nelson.

Andie was a homemaker and helped her husband on the farm. She was...

Jan 23, 2015

Mildred “Meme” Maxine Blaze, 95, of Rensselaer, passed away Friday, January 23, 2015 at AlternaCare at Jasper County Hospital. She was born Oct. 16, 1919 in Jasper County to the late George S. Blaze and Ona (Ricks) Blaze. She was a lifetime area resident and a full participant in our society. She was born three months after the Treaty...

Jan 20, 2015

Lois Irene Boring, 67, of Rensselaer, passed away Tuesday, January 20, 2015. She was born in Rensselaer on February 17, 1947, the daughter of the late Robert Downs and Myrtle (Demps) Downs.

Lois attended Rensselaer Schools. She married Thomas Boring March 19, 1965. She was a bus driver for Rensselaer Schools and for summer detasseling....

Jan 20, 2015

John J. Barrientos, 88, of Rensselaer, passed away Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015 at Jasper County Hospital. He was born in Ft. Wayne on Oct. 2, 1926. He was a teacher for 46 years, having taught at St. Augustine School, Rensselaer Middle School, and Rensselaer High School. He also served as the tennis coach at St. Joseph College. John enjoyed...