Obituaries

Alice Claassen, age 91, peacefully passed away at her Bethany Home residence in Lindsborg, Kan., on Jan. 4, 2024.Alice was born in Hillsboro, Kan., on Feb. 19, 1932, to Carl and Katherine (Doell) Stelting. She attended schools in Abilene and Hillsboro, Kan.

Darrell John Kozisek, 90, of Fayetteville, Ark., passed away Nov. 24, 2023. He was born in Holyrood, Kan., on March 23, 1933, to the late James and LaVerna Kozisek. John proudly served his country in the U.S. Air Force, which prepared him for a job as lead mechanic at Delta Air Lines from 1959-1989.

Gail Louise (Mickley) Weinhold, 86, joined her husband, Richard Samuel Weinhold, in their eternal home on Dec. 19, 2023, in Omaha, Neb.Gail was born in Ellsworth, Kan., on May 21, 1937. She graduated from Wilson High School, Wilson, Kan., in 1955. She married her high school sweetheart on Jan.

Eric Vaughn Kindlesparger, 75, passed away peacefully on Dec. 10, 2023, in Salina, Kan., surrounded by his loving family. Eric was born Jan. 2, 1948, at Anderson Air Force Base in Guam to Lt. Col. John and Maxine Kindlesparger. The family moved from Guam to Syracuse, N.Y.

God is good all the time.Penny Swift Kelly fought the good fight for many years, and on Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023, she crossed the finish line. We celebrate her life, and even though she did not like running, we still celebrate a race well run.

Lois Jean Buchholz, 98, passed away Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023, surrounded by family at her home in Ellsworth, Kan. She was born March 24, 1925, in Oakland, Neb., to Albert and Alice (Nicholson) Johnson. Lois married Verlin A. Buchholz on Feb. 14, 1944, in South Sioux City, Neb.

Born and raised in Ellsworth, Kan., by parents Frederick and Helena (Pflughoeft) Choitz, Harold was the youngest of siblings Clara, John, Otto, Walter and Alfred.He served with the U.S. Army during the occupation of Japan and went on to earn a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Iowa.

On Nov. 17, 2023, Donita Lynn Cawby joined her Lord and Savior in Heaven. She was born to Don and Delores (Ankenman) Beaty on June 20, 1946, in Norton, Kan.A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. at First Southern Baptist Church of Garden City, Kan., on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023.

Father Basil Torrez, age 94, died on Dec. 5, 2023, at the Gove County Medical Center, Quinter, Kan. He was born on June 14, 1929, in Kanopolis, Kan., the son of Jose and Dionisia (Villalobos) Torrez.

Thomas L. “Tom” Walsh, 85, passed away Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023, in Lincoln, Kan. He was born Aug. 16, 1938, in La Junta, Colo., to Leonard and Louise (McCreery) Walsh. They moved to Garden City, Kan., in 1948. While attending school, Tom excelled in playing baseball for the Garden City Junior Legion.