Remembering

After my mom passed away, I found a folder in her desk marked “funeral.” The folder contained her self-written obituary, a poem and a copied short story. The story was about how your date of birth and date of death are important dates but the most important is the dash between the two. The dash […]

We lost my beloved mother-in-law, Elsie Jane Black, in September of this year. Mom, or “Momma Else,” as her son and my husband, Eric, called her, had a smile that would light up a room and melt away any troubles. She was a devoted mother, wife and sister. Momma Else was also grandmother extraordinaire to […]

Brandon was a faithful follower of God, loving brother, friend and beloved son. He was an Eagle Scout, member of Chatham Baptist Church, participant in Boys State and lover of the band Twenty One Pilots. He was incredibly intelligent and always had a passion for following the Lord and seeking after God no matter the […]

During this past year we lost the matriarch of our family, Delores L. (Prior) Powers. She was born Dec. 18, 1940, in Mechanicsburg. She married John F. Powers Sr. (1940-2003) on Oct. 15, 1957. They had five children, John F. Powers Jr., Levi L. Powers Sr., Vickie D. Landholt, Mark Q. Powers and Charlene D. […]

D’Wayne Morris was the kind of friend everyone wishes they had: selfless, kind and always up for an adventure. He was a friend to everyone – someone with whom you could share successes, heartbreak, secrets and fears. His infectious laugh and warm smile could brighten even the darkest day. He was a confidante, a comforter […]

My sister, Linda Kay Vincent (nee Lee), passed away April 10 after a six-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease. She was diagnosed in her early 60s as early onset dementia. They say Alzheimer’s/dementia is the long goodbye and it truly is. I miss my sister. We were only 1 1/2 years apart in age and many […]

I would like to take a moment to pray for the peace of members of the homeless community that we have lost this past year. There is no obituary mentioning family and their accomplishments. Their voice is quiet but their value is great as everyones’ is. They are children of God and will be missed […]

Bill Holland arrived in Springfield modestly but stayed for almost a half-century and became a revered public servant, mostly out of public sight. What brought him here was a one-year internship after graduating from Seattle University in 1974 with a degree in public affairs. He was hired on full time by the House Democratic staff […]

We lost our sister, Diane Bantner, on June 23, 2024, to non-alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver which turned to cancer. Diane worked in the pathology department at Memorial for 45 years before retiring. She started with Dr. Grant Johnson. She was a little intimidated by him at first, but then became good friends with him. […]

Barb’s parents were Fred and Doris Brown. In 1966 they allowed me to marry their daughter. This began a wonderful loving 58-year marriage. During those years the two of us grew up together. The first four years we were apart due to the military, the last 54 together every night. Barb had a love of […]

Phil Kennedy was the type who never met a stranger. While chatting with someone for the first time, it would indubitably be discovered they knew a person in common or were even related. His gregarious personality delighted in these reveals. He loved music and could often be found volunteering downtown and at Jerryfest. If there […]

“When we took all the crap off it” – the crap being ill-considered “modernizations” that had turned a handsome 19th century commercial building into an ugly 20th century one – “we had a building that was simply stunning.” That was Carolyn Oxtoby, recalling the eureka moment when she became alive to the wisdom (and the […]