Mennonite Weekly Review, May 2, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 18, p. 11

Samuel B. Nafziger, 91, of LaCrete, Alta., and formerly of Christiana, Pa., died April 8, 2005, after a long illness. He was born Oct. 29, 1913, to Elia and Mattie (Boshart) Nafziger in Milbank.
He graduated from Eastern Mennonite College in 1940. He taught at Iowa Mennonite School. He then spent about 25 years teaching the Old Order Colony Mennonites in Northern, Alta. After this, he and his wife, Martha, spent 17 years representing the Canadian Bible Society in the Northwest Territory of Canada. Before retiring they spent three years in Russia teaching English. They retired at the age of 85 after serving their Lord in his work.
Survivors include his wife of 65 years, Martha (Beachy) Nafziger; four sons, Lowell of Rockford, Ill., Clair of Portland, Ore.; David of Harrisonburg, Va., and Clifford of High Prairie, Alta.; a daughter, Linda Nafziger-Meiser of Boise, Idaho; three brothers, Ira of Milbank, Melville of Lititz, Pa., and Andrew of Bally, Pa.; two sisters, Catherine Esch and Adeline King, both of Lititz; and a number of grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by four brothers, Emanuel, Levi, Ephraim and Ezra; and a sister, Lovina Mast.
Services were held at the Bergthaler Church, LaCrete.

Raymond John Lichti, 81, of Moundridge, Kan., died March 21, 2005, at Memorial Home. He was born Oct. 23, 1923, to Elmer J. and Leona (Staufer) Lichti near Deer Creek, Okla.
He graduated from Bethel College in North Newton in 1948 and attended graduate school at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, for two years. He taught physics and mathematics at Bethel College for several years during the 1950s. He started farming in the early 1950s and began working as a real estate appraiser in the late 1970s, earning a Certified Kansas Appraiser license. He retired from appraising in 2000.
He was baptized in June 1938 at Deer Creek Mennonite Church.
On Sept. 1, 1950, he married Betty Zerger at Eden Mennonite Church in Moundridge.
He was a member of Eden Mennonite Church and served on the Moundridge School Board, the McPherson County Soil Conservation Board, the Turkey Creek Township Board, the Goering Hardware Board and the Moundridge Creamery Board.
He was an outdoorsman who loved to fish, garden and landscape.
Survivors include his wife, Betty; a son, Joseph R. and his wife, Debi, of Moundridge; two daughters, Lou Ann Lichti of Frederick, Md., and Carol Lichti and her husband, Jim Haag, of Virginia Beach, Va.; a sister, Dorene Regier of Newton; a sister-in-law, Floreda Lichti; a brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jim and Bonnie Heidebrecht of Topeka; and three grandchildren
He was preceded in death by a brother, Clarence Lichti of Blackwell, Okla.

Alvin Willard Goerzen, 82, of Goessel, Kan., died March 19, 2005. He was born June 17, 1922, to Jake and Sarah (Schroeder) Goerzen in Goessel.
He grew up on a farm near the Harvey/Marion County line. He was baptized June 1, 1941, at Tabor Mennonite Church, where he remained a member until his death. He graduated from Goessel High School in 1941.
He married Martha Friesen at Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church on June 8, 1945. Shortly thereafter they went to Denison, Iowa, where he was assigned to Civilian Public Service as a conscientious objector. During CPS he first developed his baking skills. After returning home, they began life on their own farm. He put in many hours of work each day, both on the farm and as a full-time sheet metal worker at Graber's Plumbing & Heating, where he was employed for almost 25 years.
After Martha's death in December 1980, and his retirement from farming and Graber's, he became a summer cook at Swan Lake Christian Camp in South Dakota. He spent nine summers there. In addition, he made a voluntary service trip to Bogota, Colombia.
Until he entered Bethesda Nursing Home in 2002, he enjoyed such activities as bowling and going to the Whistle Stop Cafe with his buddies, riding his bicycle, fishing with grandkids at the creek in his pasture and sharing his gift of cooking and baking. Additional ways he served his church and community included eight years as a deacon, 22 years on the Sandcreek watershed board and a few years of delivering Meals on Wheels.
Survivors include two daughters, Eileen Schmidt and her husband, Bruce, of rural Canton, and Beth Regehr and her husband, Wes, of Hesston; two sons, Ron and his wife, Susan, of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Les and his wife, Cynthia, of rural Goessel; two brothers, Milt and Willis, both of rural Newton; a sister, Alice Funk of rural Goessel; and five grandchildren.
Memorial services were held at Tabor Mennonite Church. Burial was in the church cemetery.

Marie Thiessen, 82, of Everett, Wash., died April 9, 2005. She was born May 28, 1922, to Noah and Rena Etta (Sprunger) Zuercher in Berne, Ind.
She married Harold Thiessen on Aug. 14, 1943.
She graduated from McKendree College in Lebanon, Ill. She retired after teaching 22 years at Shoultes Elementary School in Marysville, Wash. She enjoyed traveling, playing the piano, singing, painting and being with her family. Her many talents, as well as her unconditional love, will be missed.
Survivors include seven children, Renette Davis, Rosilyn Switzer and her husband, Ray, Jon Thiessen, Mike Thiessen, Richard Thiessen, Doug Thiessen and his wife, Kathy, and Connie Jackson; 28 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 42 years, Harold, in 1986; a son-in-law, Paul Davis, in 1999; a granddaughter-in-law, Melissa Valentine Hill Davis, in 2003; a grandson, Kenny Jackson, in 2005; and two brothers.
Memorial services were held at Seattle Mennonite Church.

Mennonite Weekly Review, May 9, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 19, p. 12

David D. Schrag, 85, of Moundridge, Kan., died April 15, 2005, at Memorial Home. He was born Oct. 10, 1919, to Reinhold and Maria Dirks Schrag on a farm west of McPherson.
He graduated from Hesston College. The attack on Pearl Harbor took place during his sophomore year, and he was drafted. The next four years were spent in Civilian Public Service at Weeping Water, Neb., Terry, Mont., and Gulfport, Miss. These were formative years of deep spiritual conviction for him.
During his time at Hesston College, he met Wilda Stauffer of Milford, Neb. They were married in Milford on Nov. 7, 1945.
After World War II ended, they answered the call to overseas service and helped resettle Russian/ German refugees in Paraguay, 1948-50. Returning to the United States, they made their home on a farm west of McPherson for 11 years, where he was involved in church and community activities.
In 1961, he was called to administrative duties at Meadows (Ill.) Mennonite Retirement Community. Here he found the joy of working with senior citizens. He had a special gift of communicating with older people and earning their confidence. After 18 years in Illinois, he was called to work at Memorial Home in Moundridge. As he had done at Meadows, he was again instrumental in starting extensive programs of different levels of care, from nursing to independent living, named Pine Village.
In 1986, he felt his health failing, so he retired. He had already lived a number of years with glaucoma, and later he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease.
Survivors include his wife of 59 years, Wilda; five children, Anita Lehman and her husband, George, of Bluffton, Ohio, Christine Diener and her husband, Daniel, of Goshen, Ind., Mark and his wife, Nancy, of Kenai, Alaska, Jana Schopp and her husband, Rusty, of Bloomington, Ill., and Scott and his wife, Sheila, of Moundridge; two brothers, Daniel of Hutchinson and William of McPherson; a sister, Anna Marie Pratt of Fayetteville, Ark.; and 12 grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a brother, Abe; a sister, Martha; and a grandson.
Services were held at West Zion Mennonite Church of Moundridge.

Mennonite Weekly Review, May 16, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 20, p. 8

Lavina Mae Goering, 77, of Topeka, Kan., died May 4, 2005. She was born Jan. 30, 1928, to Henry H. and Marie Schmidt Ediger on a farm near Moundridge.
She was baptized May 29, 1944, and joined Hoffnungsau Mennonite Church. She graduated from Buhler High School in 1946.
She married Emil L. Goering on Sept. 1, 1948. She was very supportive and helpful in furthering her husband's attainment of an M.D. degree in 1956.
After he finished his internship, they moved to Mountain Lake, Minn. They purchased an old home, which she decorated with great charm. She reluctantly moved from Mountain Lake to Pretty Prairie, where they again purchased a large home and she redecorated it. She was very active in the Mennonite church in Pretty Prairie. She loved entertaining, and several times a year would invite three or four couples over for dinner. In 1963, they again needed to move, this time to Hutchinson. Here she was active in the Hutchinson Mennonite church and in community affairs, including the Reno County Medical Society Auxiliary. She took up golf and became quite good at it.
In 1970 she again had to give up home, church and friends when they moved to Topeka for her husband's medical career. There she became active in Southern Hills Mennonite Church, where she served as president of the Friendship Circle for a year. She was a master quilter and helped Friendship Circle with their annual quilt to the Kansas MCC Sale for many years. In 1983 she was instrumental in organizing the Olive Branch, a combination thrift store and gift shop, which was an outreach of Southern Hills. She was co-manager of the store for several years.
Survivors include her husband, Emil; five children, Beth Tanner and her husband, Allan, of Wichita, Michael Goering and his wife, Lyn, of Topeka, Les Goering and his wife, Linda, of Topeka, Tom Goering and his wife, Deb, of Garner, N.C., and Jonas Goering and his wife, Sherry, of Topeka; and nine grandchildren.
Memorial services were held at Southern Hills Mennonite Church.

Mennonite Weekly Review, May 23, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 21, p. 8

Don L. Kreider, 88, of Seymour, Ind., died April 27, 2005. He was born June 17, 1916, in Wadsworth, Ohio, to Lloyd S. and Adelia (Stover) Kreider.
On Oct. 15, 1939, he married Elda Hostetler. She preceded him in death on March 8, 1998.
He was baptized in his early teens at Bethel Mennonite Church in Wadsworth and was an active participant in Mennonite churches wherever he lived. In Wadsworth he often served as a volunteer auditor for various church-wide organizations. While in the Chicago area, he and Elda were sponsors for the I-W unit, inviting the young people to their home twice a month for discussion and special programs. He helped found both the Evanston and Lombard Mennonite churches, and in retirement they frequently took to dinner the visitors at the Bean Blossom church in Indiana.
He had a long career in the banking industry and was president of several Chicago and Phoenix, Ariz., banks. He concluded his career by founding Southwest Suburban Bank in Illinois, serving as its president from 1979 to 1990, when he retired.
Survivors include two sons, Eldon and his wife, Pat, of Chicago and Leo and his wife, Mary Kay, of O'Fallon, Mo.; four daughters, Dierra Lehman and her husband, Merritt, of Elkhart, Donna Zehr and her husband, Wayne, of Copenhagen, N.Y., Kay Kreider of Seymour and Loretta Dutt and her husband, Timothy, of Ballwin, Mo.; a brother, Robert Kreider of Goshen; a sister, Ruth Heatwole of Harrisonburg, Va., 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Elda; and two brothers, Leonard and Carl.
Memorial services were held in Goshen.

John Landis Grasse, 79, of Calico Rock, Ark., died April 16, 2005, at Community Medical Center of Izard County in Calico Rock. He was born May 31, 1925, to Anthony Myers Grasse and Lillian Landis Grasse at Chalfont, Pa.
He was married for 52 years to Mary Margaret Miller Grasse.
He graduated from Doylestown (Pa.) High School in 1943. At the end of World War II, he traveled on several cattle ships to Italy and Greece, where cattle had been decimated as a result of starvation. In 1950, he received a bachelor of arts degree from Goshen (Ind.) College and a bachelor of science degree from Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia.
He and his wife moved to Calico Rock, and he served as a medical technologist and X-ray technician from 1952-67. In 1967-68, he worked as a medical technologist at Doctors Hospital in Sarasota, Fla. He returned to Calico Rock to serve as administrator of Community Medical Center of Izard County from 1969 until his retirement in August 1990. He was an integral part of the "in-home clinic" developed into a 25-bed hospital. In the 1960s, he served on the Calico Rock City Council, and from 1972-78 he served on Calico Rock School Board.
In October 1995, he received an award from his alma mater, Goshen College, in recognition of his service to church and community. Through the years, he was active in Calico Rock Mennonite Fellowship as an elder, trustee and youth teacher.
Survivors include his wife, Mary Margaret Miller Grasse; a son, Phillip and his wife, Feley, of Jacksonville; two daughters, Nancy Grass and Peggy Russell and her husband, David, all of Calico Rock; four brothers, A. Meryl Grasse of Calico Rock, Alvin Grasse of Alberta, Willard Grasse of Chalfont and Warren Grasse of Telford, Pa.; and six grandchildren.
Services were held at Calico Rock Mennonite Fellowship and at Calico Rock Baptist Church. Burial was in the Calico Rock Mennonite Fellowship Cemetery.

David M. King, 78, of Cochranville, Pa., died March 29, 2005. He was born Oct. 14, 1926, to Isaac S. and Rebecca Mast King in Atglen.
He married Rhoda Longacre on Nov. 5, 1949.
He was a charter member of Kennett Square Mennonite Church, where he served as Sunday school superintendent, teacher, song leader and in many other church activities.
He was a potato and dairy farmer in Cochranville. He served on the Agriculture Advisory Board for the former Core States Bank and was a board member of Camp Andrews of Holtwood. He enjoyed volunteering at Mennonite Central Committee's Material Resource Center in Ephrata.
Survivors include his wife, Rhoda; seven sons, James L. King and his wife, Joan Nathan, of Telford, Clair I. and his wife, Donella Neff King, of Cochranville, Marvin W. and his wife, Carolyn Taylor King, of Cochranville, Kevin P. and his wife, Karen Stoltzfus King, of Lititz, Earl D. and his wife, Cathie Sue Rosen King, of Ivyland, Timothy L. and his wife, Jonna Empie King, of Cochranville, Gerald R.and his wife, Vicki Gingrich King, of Cochranville; three sisters, Elizabeth M. King, Miriam K. Graybill and Ada Nancy Smoker, all of,Lititz; a brother, Naaman E. King of Atglen; a foster-brother, Harold Mast of Walnutport; and 15 Grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a son, David Marlin; and an infant twin brother, Isaac M.
Funeral services were held at Millwood Mennonite Church of Gap. Burial was in the church cemetery.

Clarence D. Hooley, 85, of North Lawrence, Ohio, died May 1, 2005. He was born Oct. 16, 1919, to David and Ella Horst Hooley on the Pleasant View farm near North Lawrence and lived there the majority of his life.
A graduate of Massillon Washington High School, he also earned a bachelor's of science degree in chemistry from Goshen (Ind.) College. After teaching and serving as principal at Kensington School for one semester, he entered Civilian Public Service in 1942. His first location was a forestry camp at Sidling Hill, Pa. Later he was moved to Mariboro, N.J., where he worked in the education department and the laboratory. There he met his wife, Nettie Classen Hooley. In July they would have been married 58 years.
He farmed and worked as chief medical technologist at Massillon State Hospital, retiring in 1981 after 35 and a half years.
He was a member of Pleasant View Mennonite Church, North Lawrence, where he served in a variety of roles including treasurer, Sunday school teacher and superintendent, on the building committee and board of elders. He was a member of the American Society of Medical Technologists, Ohio Inter-Mennonite Council on Aging and the local Parent Teacher Association. He served several terms on the board of Central Christian School in Kidron.
After retirement, he and Nettie gave a year of voluntary service to Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart and three months to Choctaw Christian Church in Louisvill, Miss. They also traveled extensively, visiting friends and family around the world.
Survivors include his wife, Nettie; three sons, David J. and his wife, Jane, of Leola, Pa., Donald E. and his wife, Mary Ina, of Bluffton, and Daniel R. and his wife, Julia, of Canton; and six grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by three siblings, Lucile, Elmo and Rhea.

Kathryn Elizabeth Ratzlaff Blair, 94, of Hillsboro, Kan., died May 11, 2005. She was born Feb. 11, 1911, to John J. and Mary Decker Ratzlaff near Meno, Okla.
She was baptized May 31, 1925, by her father at Zoar Mennonite Church, Goltry, Okla. In 1926 the family moved to Newton, Kan., where she graduated from Newton High School in 1929.
She began teaching at Meno in 1933 in a one-room school. In 1934 she came back to Kansas to teach intermediate grades in a school between Canton and Galva. It was there that she met Milford O. Blair. In 1935-37, she taught in Lehigh as her relationship with Milford grew. They were married Aug. 20, 1937, at the Bethel College Chapel.
The Canton community was home for the next six years. In 1943 they moved to a farm northwest of Lehigh. They enjoyed working with farm organizations such as Hawkeye Grange and Willing Workers 4-H Club, in which their daughter Lenore was active.
In 1955 she returned to Bethel College to complete her degree, graduating in 1957. In 1968, she received a master's degree from Emporia State University.
In 1957 they moved to Hillsboro. She taught in the Hillsboro system until her retirement in 1973. After retirement, there were seven years of volunteer work at the Et Cetera Shop in Hillsboro and traveling to all the 50 states, Mexico, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
Milford died June 25, 2003. They enjoyed 65 years of marriage and mourned the death of their only child, Lenore, in 1994 at the age of 55.
She was a member of First Mennonite Church in Hillsboro.
She is survived by a sister, Esther Schrag of North Newton.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Milford; daughter Lenore; two sisters, Ruie Becker and Sadie Harms; and a brother, Walter Ratzlaff.
Funeral services were held at First Mennonite Church of Hillsboro. Burial was in Haven of Rest Cemetery in Hillsboro.

Mennonite Weekly Review, May 30, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 22, p. 8

Zook
Herbert Edward , 91, of New Wilmington, Pa., and formerly of New Castle, died Jan. 14, 2005, at Shenango Presbyterian Home. He was born Feb. 6, 1913, to Edward F. and Florence L. Byler Zook.
A graduate of Wilmington High School, he also attended Eastern Mennonite High School in Harrisonburg, Va.
He married Mary Kathryn Bott on Dec. 27, 1956. She died in 1993. He then married Flora Belle McQuiston Turner on Sept. 3, 1994.
He was a dairy farmer and pastor of Maple Grove Mennonite Church in New Wilmington. He was a public relations director of the City Rescue Mission in New Castle.
He belonged to the Milk Co-op and was director and past president of the Lawrence County Agricultural Association. He was also director and past president of the Lawrence County Visiting Nurses Association, where he served for 10 years.
He sang in Handel's Messiah for 30 years. He loved to grow flowers and do jigsaw puzzles. As a member of Maple Grove Mennonite Church, he was also a Sunday school teacher, song leader and council member.
Survivors include his wife, Flora; three stepdaughters, Kari McClellan of Levittown, Kathy Dennison of Brookville and Marcia Briggs of Willimantic, Conn.; a stepson, Douglas Turner of Pittsburgh; and four step-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Mary; two sisters, Orpha and Helen Magyar; and a brother, Paul Zook.
Services were held at Maple Grove Mennonite Church. Burial was in Maple Grove Mennonite Cemetery.

Aaron H. Hollinger, 80, of New Holland, Pa., died May 13, 2005. He was born to John E. Hollinger Sr. and Lottie B. Fellenbaum Hollinger in Fetterville.
He graduated from Eastern Mennonite University in 1952, from Eastern Mennonite Seminary in 1954, and studied Greek and Hebrew for two years at Lancaster Theological Seminary.
He married Marian A. Hershey on Jan. 1, 1959.
A member of Weaverland Mennonite Church, he was ordained to Christian ministry for the congregation on July 17, 1957, and was ordained bishop of the Weaverland District on Feb. 15, 1975. He retired from his official duties in 1993.
He also worked for Provident Bookstore for 25 years and was overseer for Lancaster Mennonite Conference for seven church plantings in Northeastern Pennsylvania from 1975-93. He was active on various committees, including the Religious Welfare and Youth Service committees of Lancaster Conference for 24 years; Lancaster Conference Commission of Leadership 1998-2001; trustee of Philhaven Hospital Board for 15 years; trustee of Eastern Mennonite University for four years; the Garden Spot Retirement Village board; the Senior Citizens Committee of Weaverland Church, 2001-03; assistant editor of Music Messenger, 1967-79; and was a I-W counselor during World War II.
Survivors include his wife, Marian; three children, Edwin and his wife, M. Jane, of New Holland, Colleen C. Keller and her husband, Charles, of Lititz, and Carla S. Martin and her husband, Duane, of Reinholds; a brother, Mark of Akron; and six grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by three sisters, Rhoda Petersheim, Miriam Hollinger and Eva Martin; and five brothers, Paul, Wayne, John E. Jr., Homer and Luke.
A memorial service was held at Weaverland Mennonite Church. Burial was in the church cemetery.

Eldon C. Goering
The memorial service for Eldon C. Goering will be held Saturday, May 28, at 2 p.m. at Bethel College Mennonite Church in North Newton, Kan. Memorials may be designated for Bethel College Mennonite Church, P.O. Box 364, North Newton, Kansas 67117-0364 or sent to the Parkinson Foundation of Heartland, 7800 Foster, Overland Park, Kansas 66204-2955. The family requests no flowers.

Mildor F. Duerksen, 83, of Inman, Kan., died April 11, 2005, at Pleasant View Home. He was born Aug. 1, 1921, to C. R. and Martha (Funk) Duerksen in Hillsboro.
He graduated from Lehigh High School.
On Sept. 8, 1943, he married H. Bernice Unrau at Goessel Mennonite Church.
They established their first home together at the Duerksen home place at Lehigh. They moved to Goessel for a short period of time and then returned to Lehigh. In 1997, he moved to Pleasant View Home in Inman.
Church was an integral part of his life. He served as a trustee of Lehigh Mennonite Church and Sunday school superintendent of Goessel Mennonite Church. He was currently a member of First Mennonite Church in McPherson. He was a former member of the Kansas Mennonite Men's Chorus.
He was primarily a farmer and rancher, often exchanging work with fellow farmers. He also supplemented the farm income by working as an electrician for Koehn and Associates and the Rural Electric Association. He operated heavy equipment for Shears Construction and Hess Oil Co. He enjoyed woodworking and created furniture for his family and friends. He bred small draft horses and built a stage coach that they pulled for people to have rides at Mennonite Central Committee gatherings.
Survivors include his wife, Bernice, of Inman; four sons, Larry and his wife, Bobbie, of Indianapolis, Ind., Merle and his wife, Patricia, of Dacona, Colo., John and his wife, Sarita, of McPherson, and Brian of Pine Valley, Calif.; three brothers, Harlin and Willis, both of Newton, and Gerald of Dallas, Texas; three sisters, Elfrieda Gaeddertof Buhler, Irma Groening of Hillsboro and Luetta Enns of rural Hillsboro; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a brother, Roland.
Services were held at First Mennonite Church of McPherson. Burial was in Lehigh Mennonite Church Cemetery.