Justin Cruz Larson
May 24, 2014
Justin Cruz Larson, 23, died May 24 at Great Bend Regional Hospital, Great Bend. Born May 14, 1991 at Aberdeen, Wash., he was the son of Dion and Candi (Larson) Vasquez. A long time Hoisington resident, Justin worked for Quality Lawn Care. Justin enjoyed music. Survivors include his parents, Dion and Candi Vasquez, Hoisington; four sisters: Sheena Vasquez of Wichita,...
Mark Alan Smith
May 23, 2014
Mark Alan Smith, 56, died May 23 at Salina Regional Medical Center, Salina. Born Sept. 7, 1957 at Great Bend, he was the son of Robert and Margaret (Murphy) Smith. A project facilitator for R.A.M. Partners, Mark had been a Salina, Kansas resident since 2009, living previously in Atlanta, Ga., Birmingham, Ala., and Silver Springs, Md. Mark enjoyed camping, hiking,...
Dorothy "Dot" Jordan
May 21, 2014
Dorothy Barbara "Dot" Jordan, 58, died May 21 at O'Fallon, Mo. Born Aug. 20, 1955 at Ellsworth, she was the daughter of William and Mary Gerritzen. Dot married the love of her life Joseph A. "Joe" Jordan on December 28, 1973, at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church, in Great Bend, KS. They had four children, John Allen, Joleen Lynn,...
Dixie Lee Stein
May 20, 2014
Dixie Lee Stein, 66, died May 20, 2014 at her home in Katy, Texas. Born July 25, 1947 in Hoisington, Kansas, she was the daughter of Eldon Howard and Fern Marie (Folkerts) Harper. Raised on her family's farm in Albert, she graduated from Fort Hays State University. On June 15, 1968, she married Dean LeRoy Stein in Albert. The couple...
Monte Dean Jamison
May 19, 2014
Monte Dean Jamison, 52, died May 19, 2014, at Midland Memorial Hospital in Midland, Texas. Born September 20, 1961, in Chickasha, Oklahoma, he was the son of Harold Dean and Carol Jean (Burgess) Jamison. He was employed by the County of Midland, Texas as a Procurement Manager. Mr. Jamison was a member of the Faith Community Church in Great Bend....
Eric R. Beran
May 19, 2014
Eric R. Beran, 50, died May 19 at home in Odin. Born Aug. 15, 1963 at Great Bend, he was the son of Gerald W. "Jerry"and Elvita (Dolechek) Beran. Eric married Kristi Schreiber August 27, 1988 at Great Bend. She survives. Eric was a pumper for Richlan Drilling. A longtime Odin resident, Eric was a member of Holy Family Catholic...
Gilbert Francis Penka
May 17, 2014
Gilbert Francis Penka, 66, died May 17, at his home in Great Bend. Born February 25, 1948, in Great Bend, he was the son of August and Agnes (Rziha) Penka. A resident of Great Bend since 2009, coming from Hoisington, he was a farmer and delivered propane for Mid Continent L.P. Services. He also later was employed by Moeder Oil...
Blanche Opal Rea
May 17, 2014
Blanche Opal Rea, 92, died May 17, 2014 at Woodhaven Care Center, Ellinwood, Kansas. She was born October 30, 1921 at Hoisington, Kansas, the daughter of Charlie "Chase" and Stazie (Novotny) Hejny. She married Kenneth "K. E." Rea August 22, 1943 at Hoisington. He died November 14, 1998. A Great Bend resident since 2001, coming from The Ozarks, Missouri, she...
Betty Jean Schneider
May 16, 2014
Elizabeth J. "Betty Jean" Schneider, 83, died May 16 at Salina Regional Medical Center, Salina. She was born Aug. 9, 1930, at rural Odin, to Joseph and Mary (Reif) Finger. She married Joseph Francis Schneider Aug. 11, 1953, at Odin. He died March 29, 1995. Betty was a homemaker and farm wife, also being employed as a bank teller. A...
Kenneth L. Ford
May 13, 2014
Kenneth L. Ford, age 87, died Tuesday, May 13, 2014 at Woodhaven Care Center in Ellinwood, Kansas. He was born March 23, 1927 at Newton, Kansas the son of John and Hazel B. (Spangler) Ford. Kenneth, a lifelong resident of the area, worked for Shirer Well Service for over thirty years until his retirement. He served his country in the...
Winnis A. Becker
May 12, 2014
Winnis A. Becker, 98, died May 12 at his home in Norman, Oklahoma. Born May 9, 1916, in Barton County, Kansas, he was the son of Albert L. and Edna Mae (Smith) Becker. On July 18, 1938, he married Evelyn Emma Guion in Carlsbad, New Mexico. She died on March 30, 2002. A longtime resident of Great Bend, moving to...
Shirley A. Endsley
May 12, 2014
Shirley A. Endsley, 78, died May 12, 2014 at her home in Great Bend. She was born August 23, 1935 at Luray, the daughter of Clarence S. and Iva Clara (Palmer) Maupin. She delivered buses for El Dorado Bus, Salina. Mrs. Endsley was a Great Bend resident since 2001, coming from Luray. She was a member of V. F. W....
Janet Hipp
May 11, 2014
Janet Hipp, age 72, died Sunday May 11, 2014 at her home in rural Claflin, Kansas. She was born March 2, 1942 at Great Bend the daughter of Jim and Cecelia Lorene (Pundsack) Keeley. Janet, a lifelong resident of the area, graduated from Radium High School and completed nurse's training at the Dominican School of Nursing in Great Bend, Kansas....
Grace M. Conard
May 3, 2014
Grace M. Conard, 82, died May 3, 2014 at Hospice House in Hutchinson. Born September 11, 1931, in Waverly, she was the daughter of Mervin and Norma (Dawson) Estep. She married Harold Smith. The later divorced. She then married Jack Conard. They later divorced. A resident of Great Bend since 1970, coming from Larned, she was a housekeeper for Fuller...
Charlene E. Strobel
May 2, 2014
Charlene E. Strobel, 73, died May 2, 2014 at Hospice House of Reno County, Hutchinson. She was born May 1, 1941 at Arkansas City, the daughter of Charles and Anna (Cook) Stoss. Charlene married Raymond A. Strobel Nov. 11, 1959 at Hoisington. He died March 21, 1999. She worked for Larned State Hospital and Central Kansas Medical Center as a...
Brandon H. Stein
Apr 28, 2014
Brandon H. Stein, 30, died April 28, 2014 at Barton County, Kansas. He was born July 1, 1983 at Great Bend, the son of Gary and Kim (Kloxin) Stein. He was a carpenter for Quality Remodeling, and was a former roughneck and oilfield hand for Duke Drilling and Mallard Drilling. Mr. Stein was a lifetime Great Bend resident. He formerly...
Wendell M. Doonan
Apr 27, 2014
Wendell M. Doonan, 91, died April 27, 2014 at Eckstein Center - Hospice of the Valley, Scottsdale, Arizona. He was born February 27, 1923 at Great Bend, Kansas the son of Clarence Cecil & Florence Roberta (Bowyer) Doonan. He married Wanda Lee Wolf January 31, 1944 at Hoisington, Kansas. She died October 19, 1980. He then married Mary Jane (Stricker)...
James E. Detherage
Apr 26, 2014
James E. "Budjoe" Detherage, 77, died April 26, 2014 at his home in Great Bend. He was born November 2, 1936, at Altus, Arkansas, to Coyle and Daisy (Covert) Detherage. James married Arletta Mohr on October 10, 1957, at Larned, Kansas. She survives. A truck driver for Rainbow Trucking until his retirement, Mr. Detherage was a long-time Great Bend resident,...
Laura Agatha Tinkel
Apr 22, 2014
Laura A. Tinkel, age 94, died Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at Clara Barton Hospital in Hoisington, Kansas. She was born February 19, 1920 in Barton County, Kansas the daughter of Joseph and Mathilda (Beran) Birzer. A homemaker and farmwife, Laura was a lifelong area resident. She attended St. Peter and Paul Catholic School. On November 27, 1945 she married Albert...
Donald E. Cates
Apr 22, 2014
Donald E. Cates, 67, died April 22, 2014 in rural Pawnee County, Kansas. Born October 8, 1946, in Cushing, Oklahoma, he was the son of V. E. and Thelma J. (Gower) Cates. On May 29, 1965, he married Ginger Krug in Pratt. A resident of Claflin, he was owner and operator of the 94 Store in Claflin, was a pilot...
