Mervin Randall “Merv” Hathaway, 92, formerly of Hudson, passed away May 25, 2023, at Good Samaritan Society-Hutchinson Village.

He was born September 29, 1930, in Stafford, to Elmer William and Dora Louise (Hart) Hathaway.

Merv attended school in Stafford and St. John. He served in the United States Army from 1948-1949, in the Army Reserve from 1949-1953, and in the United States Air Force from 1953-1961. Merv owned and operated a service station in Haysville and Hudson, but found his true passion as a drug and alcohol counselor for the Larned State Hospital.

Deborah “Deb” Dawn Anderson, 65, of McPherson, passed away on Monday, June 12, 2023, at McPherson Hospital.

Charles “Charlie” Raymond Velz, 50, of Winfield, Kansas, passed away on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, after sustaining fatal injuries following a rollover accident. 

He was born November 9, 1972 in Plainville, Kansas to George and Lyndal (Hance) Velz. His father died when Charles was a young boy and he spent much of his teen years with his grandparents, Raymond and Christine Hance of rural Stockton. He was a 1992 graduate of Stockton High School.

Doris Jean Miller, 96, passed away on June 7, 2023, under Hospice care, and tended by her children and extended family, at SunPorch of Smith County in Smith Center, Kansas.

Jean was born on November 26, 1926, in Waterloo, Iowa to C.J. and Elizabeth (Rietz) Hamer.

Jean attended schools in Waterloo, Iowa. After graduating high school, Jean received a teaching contract at Bennett, Iowa on her sister Ruth's reputation. She taught 2nd Grade in Bennett, Iowa. Jean then attended two years at McPherson, Kansas, meeting a handsome young man from Burr Oak, Kansas.

Irl L. Brassfield, 85, Bogue, passed away April 6, 2023, in Graham County Hospital, Hill City.

Irl was born on the family farm near Palco, Kansas, on May 3, 1937, to Chris and Mary Brassfield. He was the eleventh of twelve children.

Charles Clinton “Chuck” Bird, 86, passed away on December 10, 2022.

He was born at home on October 18, 1936, to Basil Elisha Bird and Susan Elizabeth (Howell) Bird in Hill City, Kan.

He grew up living in many towns throughout the state, including Hill City, Bogue, and Plainville, before ending up in Stockton where he graduated high school in 1955.

While in high school, he worked for the Beck Hotel and Café.

Chuck joined the Navy right out of high school and was stationed in Pensacola, Fla. and Norfolk, Va., before being honorably discharged in 1959.

Lenor Cecil (Manny) Irby, age 97, joined her Savior on December 5, 2022, at the Phillips County Hospital in Phillipsburg, Kansas.

She was the third child born June 7, 1925, to Aldey and Evelyn (Saindon) Manny on the family farm three miles south of Bogue, Kansas. Lenor loved the Lord, her family, and playing cards.

Patsy Lee (Raines) Poore passed away Wednesday, January 19, 2022, at age 87 and Freddie LeRoy Poore passed away on Wednesday, May 24, 2023, at age 92 in Prescott, Arizona.  

Pat and Fred met at Stockton High School and married in Stockton, Kansas in August of 1952. They both had long and productive lives and many adventures.

They will be missed as much as they were loved.

Joy Forster Crawford Birdwell, 93, of Natoma, Kansas, went to her heavenly home on May 28, 2023. She was the youngest of 11 children born to Ray and Livona Dudley Forster, on August 27, 1929, in Cawker City, Kansas.

When Joy was a young child during the Dirty '30s, she was overcome with dust pneumonia and recovered by God’s grace.

William Lowell “Bill” Pettijohn, 70, Hutchinson, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on May 11, 2023, at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita.

He was born in Hays, Kansas on October 20, 1952, to William Gordon and Anna Jane (Foley) Pettijohn.

Bill graduated from Stockton High School in Stockton, Kansas in 1970. He attended Fort Hays State College, Hays; received an associate's degree from Colby Community College, Colby, in 1972; and earned a bachelor’s degree in Administration of Justice from Wichita State University, Wichita, in 1974.