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Patricia Friesen
Funeral services for Pat Friesen, 63, of Gering, will be held at 10:30 a.m., Monday, July 12, at the Northfield Assembly of God Church with Pastor Robert Nazarenus officiating. Pat passed away Wednesday, July 7, 2004, at her home, ending a courageous three-year battle with cancer.
Burial will be at West Lawn Cemetery. A memorial in Pat’s name has been established to Prairie Haven Hospice. Visitation will be Saturday and Sunday, 1 to 6 p.m., at Gering Memorial Chapel.
Pat was born May 3, 1941, to Rolland and Lily (Schaneman) Baker in Torrington, Wyo., where she also graduated from high school. On December 28, 1958, she married Allen, the man with whom she celebrated her 45th wedding anniversary this past year. As a young couple, Pat and Allen lived in numerous states in the region and eventually settled in Gering, where they resided for the past 34 years.
Pat loved gardening, shopping, preparing for the holidays, entertaining, traveling and vacationing with family and friends. She will always be remembered for her fabulous cooking/baking and for being an ever-gracious hostess. She will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her.
Survivors include her husband, Allen; children, Dean Friesen of Littleton, Colo. and Brenda (Gary) Clarke of Newcastle, Wyo.; six grandchildren and one great-granddaughter; mother, Lilly Baker; brother, Larry (Joyce) Baker; and sister, Debbie (Gerry) Bolger.
Her father, maternal and paternal grandparents and several aunts and uncles preceded her in death.
Gering Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements
Elmer C. Peterson
Elmer C. Peterson, 78, of Scottsbluff, died Wednesday, July 7, 2004, at the Western Nebraska Veterans Home, where he lived since 2001. Graveside services will be held at 1:30 p.m., today, July 9, at the Kimball Cemetery.
Cantrell Funeral Home of Kimball is in charge of the arrangements.
He was born July 20, 1925, in Auburn. Elmer graduated from Dix High School. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II.
He is survived by his brother, James Peterson and his wife Barbara, of Dodge City, Kan.; and sister, Frances Annabelle Peterson, of Cheyenne, Wyo.
Delah R. Sporhase
KIMBALL — Delah R. Sporhase, 83, of Kimball, died on Wednesday, July 7, 2004, at Kimball Health Services.
Funeral arrangements are pending. Cantrell Funeral Home is assisting with the arrangements.
Judith Wright
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — Memorial services for Judith Wright, 57, will be held at 2 p.m., Monday, July 12, at the Lighthouse Ministries with Pastor Rick Carroll officiating. Burial will follow in the Valley View Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to either the Niobrara County Hospital in Lusk, Wyo., or the donor’s choice.
Judy died at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, Calif. Cremation has taken place. Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home.
Brittany Marie Baldwin
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — Funeral services for Brittany Marie Baldwin, 17, will be held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, July 21, at Our Savior Lutheran Church with Pastor Marvin Temme officiating. Burial will follow at Valley View Cemetery. Brittany died Friday, July 16, 2004, as the result of a drowning accident.
Visitation hours will be held at the Colyer Funeral Home on Tuesday, July 20, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The casket will be open at the church service. Those who wish may direct memorial contributions to the Goshen County Search and Rescue.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home.
Brittany was born Nov. 15, 1986, in Scottsbluff, the daughter of Bruce and Sherrie (Riffel) Baldwin. She lived on the family ranch 35 miles north of Torrington with her parents and two younger brothers. She attended school at Prairie Center for six years before transferring to Torrington Public Schools, where she attended Torrington Middle School and then Torrington High School.
Brittany was a cheerleader for one year and was also involved in French Club and Choir. She was active in the 4-H program for nine years. She was a member of the Lutheran Youth Group. She loved music, sewing and spending time with her friends. Brittany was also very honored to have been chosen for the “Who’s Who of American Teenagers;” this summer she traveled with her mother for a 12-day tour to New York, London, Paris and Amsterdam. The two enjoyed themselves and felt that “they had the time of their lives.”
Following their trip abroad, Brittany went to work at the Chicken Hut in Torrington. She also worked in the kitchen at the sale barn. She will be greatly missed by her family and all of her many friends.
She was the joy of our lives.
Survivors include her parents, Bruce and Sherrie; brothers, Scott and Michael, all of the family home north of Torrington; paternal grandparents, Ed and Wilma Baldwin of Torrington; maternal grandfather, Larry Riffel of Bayard; aunts and uncles, Elden and Tena Baldwin of Torrington; Barb and Wayne Erickson of Stacy, Minn.; Ed and Lorraine Brummell of Torrington; Lester and Gina Riffel of Bayard; Lance and Beth Riffel of Bayard; Jon and Lori Riffel of North Platte; uncle, Lonnie Lane of California; and great-grandmother, Ruth Noland of Gering.
Her maternal grandmother preceded her in death.
Leon C. Holmes Jr.
PORTLAND, Ore. — Leon C. Holmes Jr., 82, passed away July 14, 2004, peacefully at home, of lung cancer. Services will be held at Willamette National Cemetery in Portland, 10 a.m., today, July 20.
He was born in Strang, Neb., to Leon and Ellen Holmes, March 5, 1922. He graduated from Strang High School and moved with his family to the Scottsbluff area in 1940. H served his country in WWII in Europe, Japan and the Philippines; honorably discharged in 1947.
He married Cathearn Cowan on April 10, 1949. The couple had two children, Linda Kay and Roger Allen. Before moving to Oregon in 1969, Leon worked at Gillette Dairy and Burlington Northern Railroad. While in Oregon, he was employed by Sheet Metal Union #16.
Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Cathearn; son Roger and his wife, Debbie; granddaughter, Andrea Yaeckel and her husband, Curtis; great-grandchildren, Evan and Ryan; brothers, Dale of Scottsbluff and Jim and his wife Thelma of Casper, Wyo.; and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Linda; brother, Jack; and nephews, Dick and Lee Holmes.
James B. Jessup
James B. Jessup, 93, of Scottsbluff, died Wednesday, July 14, 2004, at Heritage Health Care Center in Gering. Family and friends will gather to celebrate his life Aug. 14, at the Village at Regional West; from 2 to 4 p.m. Cremation was held at Sunset Memorial Park Crematory. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Banner County Historical Society, Harrisburg, NE 69345, or the donor’s choice. Tributes of sympathy may be left at www.geringchapel.com
He was born March 24, 1911, near Minatare, to Frank P. and Marie (Barr) Jessup. He attended Horseshoe Bend School and graduated from Banner County High School, Harrisburg.
After school, he continued living and farming on his parents’ Horseshoe Bend homestead, during which time he met and courted Mary B. Petrie of Denver, Colo. They were married in Denver, July 14, 1935, and lived on the homestead where their daughter Evelyn and son Alan were born.
In 1941, the family moved to Denver, where James worked in the Burlington Railroad Shops and learned welding. The family moved to California during World War II, where James worked in the shipyards building Liberty Ships. Their son, John, was born in Concord, Calif., in 1944.
After the war, the family returned to the homestead until 1952, when Frank P. Jessup retired as Banner County Clerk and James was appointed to finish his father’s term. The family moved to Harrisburg, and James was re-elected to numerous terms as Banner County Clerk until 1965, when he joined the new Banner County Bank in Harrisburg as cashier, from which he retired in 1976.
James and Mary spent the next 15 summers back on the homestead and winters in Mesa, Ariz., before moving to the Village at Regional West in 1991.
James is survived by his wife, Mary B. Jessup of Scottsbluff; son, Alan J. Jessup and his wife, Susan of Laguna Niguel, Calif.; son, John F. Jessup of Kansas City, Mo.; son-in-law, Richard L. Wyatt of La Quinta, Calif.; grandchildren, Karen Wyatt; Sandra Nyeholt and her husband Douglas; Steve Jessup; Scott Jessup and his wife Andrea; and Sally Jessup; and great-grandchildren, Jameson and Taylor Nyeholt; and Cailin and Colin Jessup, all of California.
He was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Evelyn Wyatt; brother, Charles; and sisters, Mary Alice Burchfield, Louise McBride and Geraldine Jessup.
Reva Johnson
DIX — Reva Loraine Johnson, 95, of Dix, died Saturday, July 17, 2004, at the Kimball County Manor Nursing, Kimball. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 21, at First Lutheran Church in Potter with Pastor Dwane Hunzeker officiating. Burial will be in the Potter Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the First Lutheran Church or the donor’s choice. Friends may call from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., today, July 20, at Holechek Funeral Home in Sidney.
Reva was born Jan. 24, 1909, near Winterset, Iowa, to Jesse and Edna (Chilcote) Poindexter. She lived in Iowa until 1920, when her father’s new job as a signal maintainer with Union Pacific Railroad brought the family to Dix, where she graduated from high school. Reva attended Hastings College and graduated from the University of Wyoming. She taught grade school for 18 years at District #8 School, south of Dix, Dix Grade School and at Powell and Cheyenne, Wyo.
On June 25, 1948, she married Verner Johnson of Dix and became a farm wife and homemaker. The family farm was her home until after Verner’s death in 1999.
She enjoyed cooking and caring for her family, gardening, music and family gatherings, church groups and friends. She was an active member of the First Lutheran Church of Potter, and was active in the LCW and WELCA Lutheran Church Women’s organizations. She was a charter member of the Kimball County branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW), served on the Kimball County Extension Board, member of the Neighborettes Extension Club, served on the Dix Election Board and participated in the Kimball Library Book Review Group.
She is survived by her brother, Walter Poindexter of Laramie, Wyo.; daughter, Jane Johnson of Casper, Wyo.; son and daughter-in-law, Ken and Sherri Johnson and granddaughter, Crystal, all of Dix; and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Verner; brother, Wayne; and sisters, Helen Nelson, Vera Kane and Mildred Baker.
Steven L. Peters
Steven L. Peters, 52, formerly of Bayard, died Friday, July 16, 2004, at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada. Funeral arrangements are pending at Gering Memorial Chapel.
Manuel ‘Manny’ Ramos
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — Mass of Christian burial for Manuel “Manny” Ramos, 75, will be held at 10 a.m., Thursday, July 22, at St. Rose Catholic Church in Torrington, with The Very Rev. Father Kevin Koch officiating. Burial will follow at Hillcrest Cemetery in Lingle, Wyo. A Wake/Rosary will be held at 6 p.m., Wednesday, July 21, at the church. Manny died July 17, 2004, at United Medical Center in Cheyenne, Wyo.
Visitation hours will be held at the Colyer Funeral Home, Wednesday, July 21, from 1 to 5:30 p.m. The casket will be open at the Rosary/Wake service and closed at the funeral mass. Those who wish may direct memorial contributions to the Guadalupe Society.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home.
Manny was born Oct. 18, 1928, in Van Houten, N.M., a coal mining town west of Raton, N.M. He was the son of Adrian Alvino and Maria (del Refugio) Ramos. The family moved to Lingle in March of 1930, where Manny lived until his death.
He married Dora Baros of Sunrise, Wyo., in Cheyenne, on Sept. 24, 1949. Manny then worked for Union Pacific Railroad until 1951, when the couple moved back to Lingle. He went to work for CF&I mine in Sunrise for the next 29 years, retiring in 1980.
He is survived by his daughters, Valerie Herrera and her husband Manuel of Craig, Colo. and Tara Ramos Martinez, also of Craig; sons, Ricardo, Carlos and Mario Ramos, all of Torrington; and Patrick Ramos of Laramie, Wyo.; 17 grandchildren, 9 great-grandchildren; and sisters, Maria Quiñonez and her husband Arnie of Torrington; Rose Wuellner of Chesterfield, Mo.; and Christina Haddenham of Henderson, Nev.
His parents; son, Dennis Ramos; daughter, Regina Mae Ramos; two brothers; and four sisters preceded him in death.
Kenneth Jake Rein
Kenneth Jake Rein, 69, of Gering, died Saturday, July 17, 2004 at Regional West Medical Center. His funeral will be held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, July 21, at Emmanuel Congregational Church in Scottsbluff with Pastor Doug Rupp officiating. Interment will be at West Lawn Cemetery in Scottsbluff. Memorials have been established to the church or the family.
Friends may call at Jolliffe Funeral Home in Scottsbluff, Tuesday, July 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Wednesday, July 21, from 9 a.m. to noon. Condolences may be e-mailed to the family sympathy@jolliffefuneralhome.com.
Kenneth was born Feb. 5, 1935, at Minatare, the son of Jake Rein Jr. and Flora (Brehm) Rein. He was raised and educated at Minatare and graduated from Minatare High School with the Class of 1953. He was united in marriage to Joann Richard, Jan. 29, 1956, at Emmanuel Congregational Church in Scottsbluff. After their marriage, they moved to Gering, where they have since resided. Ken worked for Lockwood Corp. as a welder and parts supervisor for 30 years. He then worked for the City of Gering as parts supervisor for 10 years, retiring in March 1999.
He was a life member of Emmanuel Congregational Church, serving as trustee for four years and as Deacon for eight years. Ken enjoyed woodworking; his yard and was an avid fisherman.
Survivors include his wife, Joann; daughter, Vicki Schlager and her children, Amanda and Andrew Schlager, all of Gering; son, Kenneth Allen Rein and his wife Lori, and their children, Tyson and Kolbee, all of the Alliance; father, Jake Rein of Scottsbluff; sister, Gladys Maser and her husband John of Alliance; brother, Ralph Rein and his wife Marian of Bayard; and numerous nieces and nephews.
His mother and nephew, Michael Maser, preceded him in death.
Clifford Allen Schaub
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — Memorial services for Clifford Allen Schaub, 63, will be held at 2 p.m., Friday, July 23, at the Colyer Funeral Home Chapel with the Reverend Robert Smith officiating. Burial will follow in Valley View Cemetery. Cliff died July 17, 2004, at his home and cremation has taken place. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be directed to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation for research.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home.
Cliff was born Nov. 11, 1940, in Lyman, the son of George and Millie (Rau) Schaub. He grew up and received his education at Katzer and Huntley, Wyo. before entering the U.S. Marines. He then lived in California for two years before returning to Torrington to farm. Cliff was always a friend to a friend
Survivors include his sister and brother-in-law, Donna and William Rexius of Royal City, Wash.; brother, Dennis Schaub of Torrington; nieces and nephews, Debbie and Joe Frazier of Walla Walla, Wash.; Becky and Neil Christensen of Mattawa, Wash.; and Robin and Mike Scroggins of Royal City; aunts, Elsie Schaff of Scottsbluff and Mary Fisher of Casper, Wyo.; uncle, Dave Rau of California; nine great-nephews and one great-niece.
He was preceded in death by his parents and grandparents.
Clark Waine ‘Casey’ Willhite
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — Memorial services for Clark Waine “Casey” Willhite, 94, will be held at 2 p.m., Thursday, July 22, at the Colyer Funeral Home Chapel with The Rev. Peggy Brown officiating. Burial will follow at Valley View Cemetery. Casey died July 17, 2004, at Torrington Community Hospital. Cremation has taken place. Those who wish may direct memorial contributions to the “Special Touch” program at Torrington Community Hospital.
Casey was born July 18, 1909, in Grant City, Mo., the son of Dillard and Effie (Snoddy) Willhite. The family moved to Wyoming from Missouri when Casey was 9 years old. They farmed, worked and operated businesses in the Yoder and Torrington areas for many years. Casey was the third of four children, with two older sisters and one younger brother.
He attended Torrington schools from fourth grade through high school, graduating in 1928. During his school years, Casey worked at gas stations and grocery stores, and then later for the Goshen Irrigation District, Ledbetter Wholesale Company, Bronco Bar and Holly Sugar Corp., before moving to Bridgeport, where he owned and operated a pool hall and a trenching business.
He married Etta Gobble Sept. 6, 1936, in Lingle, Wyo. In the midst of everything, Casey served his country during wartime in the U.S. Navy, from 1943 to 1945, as a gunners mate on the USS Liberty. In 1957, he and his wife and son moved from Bridgeport to the family farm north of Yoder, where they resided for 10 years. They moved to Torrington in 1967, where Casey worked for the City of Torrington until his retirement in 1977. He was a member of the American Legion, the V.F.W. and the Last Squad.
Survivors include his son and daughter-in-law, Tom and Cathy Willhite of Grant; granddaughters, Joey Hiesterman and her husband Roger of Belleview and Ellie Willhite and her fiancé Bryce of Canyon, Texas; grandsons, Casey Willhite of Lincoln and Brady Willhite of Grant; great-granddaughter, Kassidy Hiesterman of Belleview; sister-in-law, Vadah Gamble of Torrington; and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents; wife Etta; sisters, Mildred Kidney and Wilma Ainsworth; and brother, Neil Willhite.
Eli Essay Jr.
ALLIANCE — Eli Essay Jr., 76, died Tuesday, July 20, 2004 at Box Butte General Hospital. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 a.m., Saturday, July 24, at the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Alliance with Father Bryan Ernest officiating. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. A wake service will be held at 7 p.m., Friday, July 23, at the church.
Memorials may be given to the Holy Rosary Catholic Church or the Box Butte General Hospital.
Eli was born Sept. 12, 1927, in Alliance, to Elias and Martha (Mohanna) Essay. He married Joan Mohanna June 10, 1957, in Valentine.
Eli was the president of the Pepsi Cola Bottling Company of Alliance. He had also served on the Boards of the WIS-PAK Canning Company and the LIN-PEPCO Bottling Company. He was a member of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church, where he had served as a trustee, member of the Knight’s of Columbus, and past member of the St. Agnes Academy School Board, where he had served as president.
Survivors include his wife, Joan Essay of Alliance; son and daughter-in-law, Chuck and Pat Essay of Alliance; son, John Essay of New York, N.Y.; daughter and son-in-law, Cheryl and Rick Murray of Colorado Springs, Colo.; grandchildren, Taylor and Nicholas; brother and sister-in-law, John and Blanche Essay of Alliance; and sister, Freda Malooley of Indianapolis, Ind.
His parents and four brothers preceded him in death.
Bates-Gould Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
