Mennonite Weekly Review July 4, 2005 83rd Year, No. 27 p. 8

Roselena Ruth Roupp, 80, of Goshen, Ind., died June 15, 2005, at Greencroft Healthcare Center. She was born Nov. 13, 1924, to Abraham F. and Anna Willems in Greensburg, Kan.
She married S. Milford Roupp on Aug. 8, 1948, in Greensburg.
She taught school for three years. She was the church secretary and historian for Whitestone Mennonite Church of Hesston, Kan. She was co-owner of Country Gardens floral shop in Hesston for 17 years, and owner of the Sunflower Patch of Hesston for seven years.
She was a member of Whitestone Mennonite Church. She was co-founder of the Hesston Garden Club and a member of Dyck Arboretum.
Survivors include her husband, Milford Roupp; four daughters, Valerie Helser of Denver, Colo., Sherry Jordan and her husband, Mark, of Goshen, Janelle Diller and her husband, Steve, of Colorado Springs, and Patrice Dunbar of Kelowna, B.C.; two brothers, Ezra "Mike" Willems of Craig, Colo., and John Willems of Salem, Ore.; and seven grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by two brothers, Aaron and Abe Willems, and a sister, Esther Selzer.
Memorial services were held at Whitestone Mennonite Church. Burial was in Eastlawn Cemetery.

Virginia Carol Zimmerly, 57, of Homestead, Fla., died June 17, 2005. She was born Oct. 4, 1947, to David and Marguerite Zimmerly in Miami.
Her activities and interests included South Dade Audubon Society, South Dade Community Choir and Bible Study Fellowship International. She was a charter member of Southmost Mennonite Church and a member of Homestead Mennonite Church. As a teenager, she decided to follow Jesus and walked with him all her life. She liked traveling, reading and creative crafts. She enjoyed the children in her care, and they appreciated her gift of listening to them.
She began her career in food services at East Ridge Retirement Village and continued with Miami Dade County Public Schools, retiring from the cafeteria at Homestead Senior High School.
Her services in the church included serving food at meals, snacks at vacation Bible school, washing the coffee cups and preparing communion. Occasionally she played her autoharp and sang in trios with her sisters.
She was a caregiver to her parents in their later years. She survived cancer and Hurricane Andrew.
Survivors include two sisters, Sara Alice Zimmerly and Amy Zimmerly Grimes; a niece, Jennifer A. Grimes; and two nephews, David W. Grimes and John M. Grimes.
She was preceded in death by a brother, Glen Edward Zimmerly.
Memorial services were held at Homestead Mennonite Church. Burial was in Palms Memorial Park of Homestead.

Menno Duerksen, 88, of Germantown, Tenn., died June 20, 2005. A newspaper journalist, he wrote stories of his life, including growing up in a Mennonite farm family in western Oklahoma, in Dear God, I'm Only a Boy (Wordsworth, 1986 and 1995).
As a reporter with the Memphis Press-Scimitar, in 1968 he watched doctors at St. Joseph Hospital trying to save the life of Martin Luther King Jr. As a reporter for the United Press, he covered the Nuremberg trials of Nazi leaders after World War II. While covering the trials, he climbed a church tower to witness the hanging of prisoners in a courtyard. He covered Israel's creation in 1948, dodging bullets as he got the story.
In 1987, he wrote a book about the Memphis Belle, the first Flying Fortress to make 25 bombing runs over Europe with its original crew. More recently, he wrote for an antique car restoration magazine.
He is survived by his wife, Theresa; three stepsons, Gerriet Folkerts of Fredericksburg, Va., Heiko Folkerts of New York and Bernie Folkerts of Lebanon, Tenn.; a stepdaughter, Meta Lippold of Northport, N.Y.; a sister, Eva Mae Reimer of Granbury, Texas, 17 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Ruth.
Services were held at Memphis Funeral Home Poplar Chapel.

There were no obits in the July 11, 2005, issue of MWR.

Etta Salome Schmitt, 76, of Hesston, Kan., died June 7, 2005, at Schowalter Villa. She was born Feb. 22, 1929, to Edwin and Sara (Friesen) Bartel in Drake, Sask.
She married Peter Schmitt on Oct. 1, 1948, in Drake. He preceded her in death on Feb. 24, 1993.
She moved from Canada to Goshen, Ind., in 1953, and then to Hesston in 2002. She was co-owner of Aurora Cabinet Co. in Goshen and a member of College Mennonite Church of Goshen.
Survivors include a son, Ken Schmitt and his wife, Becky, of Goshen; a daughter, Jan Orpin and her husband, Gary, of Hesston; three brothers, Erwin Bartel of Drake, Sask., Laurence Bartel of Newton and Wilmer Bartel of Lee's Summit, Mo.; three sisters, Erna Wittenberg of Vancouver, B.C., Leila Kornelsen of Saskatoon, Sask., and Myrial Wiebe of Burns; and five grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Peter; a son, Wesley, in 1955; and a sister, Leona, in 1997.
Memorial services were held in Hesston and Goshen. Burial was in Violett Cemetery in Goshen.

Mennonite Weekly Review, July 25, 2005, 83rd Year, No. 30, p. 8

Ray Lee Miller, 69, of Orrville, Ohio, died June 7, 2005, at Doctors Hospital in Massillon following a sudden illness. He was born Dec. 12, 1935, to Eli L. and Lucy (Hochstetler) Miller in Apple Creek.
He married Arlene M. Lehman on Aug. 6, 1957, at Wooster Mennonite Church.
Although he previously hauled milk for Blough Brothers and Wayne D. "Tuffy" Kurtz, he was a dairy farmer and a Holmes and Wayne County resident all of his life. He was proud to contribute to his community in a variety of ways, which included rebuilding churches, serving as a volunteer fireman and donating 21-plus gallons of blood over the years through American Red Cross blood drives. His favorite hobby was spending time with his children and grandchildren. He was a member of Wooster Mennonite Church.
Survivors include his wife, Arlene; two sons and four daughters, Bonnie Miller of Shreve, Louella Becker and her husband, Ronald, and Russell Miller and his wife, Mary, both of Orrville, Amy Bugaj and her husband, Greg, of Wooster, Allen "Dale" Miller and his wife, Karen, of Shreve, and Nancy Speicher and her husband, Rusty, of Loudonville; four sisters, Mary Ann Kandel of Berlin, Leona Miller and Mabel Gable, both of Apple Creek, and Ruby Lehman of Mount Eaton; 15 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a nephew.
Services were held at Wooster Mennonite Church. Burial was in Maple Grove Cemetery.

Ola A. Brenneman, 98, of Iowa City, Iowa, died July 7, 2005. She was born July 31, 1906, to Jacob and Lydia Zimmerman Brenneman.
She was a lifelong member of Lower Deer Creek Mennonite Church of rural Kalona. She worked as a maid in the Mennonite Union until retiring in May 1976. She was active in church activities, an avid reader, enjoyed gardening and flowers and was very interested in her family.
Survivors include her sisters, Hilda King of Harrisonburg, Va., and Freda Bush of Iowa City.
She was preceded in death by a sister and five brothers.
A memorial service was held at Lower Deer Creek Mennonite Church. Burial was in Lower Deer Creek Cemetery.