Mae Ritch
Mae (Cooley) Ritch, 84, of Vevay, passed away Tuesday, June 19th, at Hickory Creek in Madison.
She was born September 2nd, 1922, in Big Sandy, Tennessee, the daughter of Robert and Maggie (Atkins) Cooley, who both preceded her in death. She had resided in Arcadia, Florida, from 1978-2006. She came to Vevay often to visit her nephew, Wayne Howell. When her health began to fail she made her home with Wayne and Janet Howell. She was a member of the Church of God in East Prairie, Missouri.
She was united in marriage in 1962 in East Prairie, Missouri, to Glenn Ritch. Unto this union a son and a daughter arrived to bless their home.
Survivors include her great-nephew who cared for her, Wayne C. Howell and wife Janet of Vevay; her son, Ronnie Ritch of Clarksburg, West Virginia; her daughter, Kimberly Ramirez of Arcadia; 11 grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
She was also preceded in death by her sister, Edna Hardin.
Graveside services will be conducted at 11 a.m. today (Thursday) by Brother Leon Peelman with burial in Vevay Cemetery. Friends may call from 10 a.m. until service time at the Haskell & Morrison Funeral Home in Vevay. Memorial contributions may be made to the family. Online condolences may be sent to the family via the funeral home’s website at www.haskellandmorrison.com.
Eulena Campbell
Eulena Coffey Campbell, 75, of Madison, passed away Friday, June 15th, at King’s Daughters’ Hospital in Madison.
She was born November 2nd, 1931, in Sunshine, Kentucky, the daughter of Richard and Etna Johnson Coffey, who both preceded her in death. She was a 1949 graduate of Brownstown High School and received her associate degree ins business from Ivy Tech.
She was first united in marriage to Dale Carpenter July 21st, 1950. Unto this union two daughters arrived to bless their home. She had resided in North Vernon for 12 years and in Madison since 1962. While living in North Vernon she was co-owner with her husband of the Dairy Queen and the Scenic View Restaurant. On August 14th, 1965, she was united in marriage to Virgil Campbell and they shared 16 years of marriage together. She was the former owner of Campbell’s Restaurant in Madison for five years. She later was co-owner of Not Just Pottery for 15 years and had worked as a substitute teacher for five years for the Madison Consolidated School System. She was a faithful member of North Madison Christian Church, Madison Bridge Club, Madison Elks Lodge #524, and a former board member of the Madison Country Club. She had co-owned with Virgil a race horse named “King Petare” for several years. She was an avid golfer, bowler, enjoyed traveling all over the world, playing bridge and dancing.
Survivors include her daughters, Karen Sue Mathis and husband Everett of Westport and D. Michelle Carpenter of Bonsecour, Alabama; her stepsons, Don Campbell and wife Shirley of Covington, Indiana and Jim Campbell and wife Linda of Naples, Florida; her sister, Ruth Bayne and husband Robert of Shelbyville; her brothers, Augusta Coffey and Frank Coffey and wife Sandy, all of Shelbyville; her grandson, Anthony Brandon and wife Dawn of Hanover; her great-grandchildren, Bailee and Bryanna Brandon; her step-grandchildren, Jodi and Brad Dunham; Dawn and Paul Rudolph; Jim Aaron, Preston and Jamison Campbell; Carolyn and Kenny Smith; her step-great-grandchildren, Alecia Pauline Campbell, Amber Hilligoss, Damon Rudolph, Jonathan Dexter, Kiefer and Spencer Dunham; several nieces, nephews and other relatives.
She was also preceded in death by her husbands, Dale Carpenter in January, 1973, and Virgil Campbell November 1st, 1981; her grandson, Jonathan Brandon March 17th, 1983; and her brothers, Richard and Carthel Coffey.
Funeral services were conducted Tuesday, June 19th, by Brother Bob Hicks at North Madison Christian Church in Madison. Interment was in Springdale Cemetery in Madison. Memorial contributions may be made to North Madison Christian Church “Journey of Faith.” Morgan & Nay Funeral Centre of Madison was in charge of arrangements. Online condolences may be sent to the family via the funeral home’s website at www.morgan-nay.com.
Alfred J. Spiry, Sr.
Lt. Col. Alfred J. Spiry, Sr.,(USAF-Ret.) 90, passed away Sunday morning, June 10th, at Saint Margaret Hall Nursing Home in Cincinnati, Ohio, after an illness of eight months. He had lived in Hyde Park for 37 years.
He was born April 5th, 1917, in Germersheim, Germany to Jacob H. and Magdalena Wolfart Spiry. He came with his family to the United States in February, 1927, and lived most of his youth in St. Louis, Missouri. He received his bachelor degree from Washington University – St. Louis.
He was called to service in World War II and served in the U.S. Army in the Burma Theater. At the close of the war, he returned to Missouri and worked on his master degree at the University of Missouri – Columbia. He transferred to the Air Force reserves after returning from the war and served in the armed forces for more than 34 years. He retired from the Air Force in 1977 as a Lieutenant Colonel. During those years, he also worked for Johnson and Johnson Company and then for Polyken Tape®.
He received an award for 50-year membership in the Oriental and Craftsman Lodges of the Masons; in 1992, he was made a Kentucky colonel for his philanthropical efforts in the area of genealogy and records preservation; and from Delta Phi Alpha Deutsche Ehrenberbindung in 1941. For several years, he and Margaret Cotton Spiry were the genealogist columnists for The Madison Courier and The Weekly Herald and later a column for Round About Madison.
Surviving are his wife, Margaret Cotton Spiry of Cincinnati, Ohio; his daughters: Babette Waldrop of Des Moines, Iowa; Margarete Jones and husband Rick of Berthoud, Colorado; his son, Georg Spiry of Mt. Carmel, Ohio; his grandsons, Gregory, Daniel and George; his great-grandchildren, Sullivan, Kyle and one to be born in November; his brother-in-law, Walter Cotton and wife, Helen of Vevay; his nephew, Byron Cotton and wife Pam of Bend, Oregon; two great-nephews; an one great-niece.
Preceding him in death were his parents; his only sister, Margarete Spiry; his son, Alfred Jacob Spiry I; his mother-in-law and father-in-law, Margaret and Chester Cotton.
Masonic funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. next Saturday, June 30th, at the Haskell & Morrison Funeral Home, 208 Ferry Street, Vevay. Burial will be in Vevay Cemetery with military rites being conducted at the graveside by the Ceremonial Unit of the Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Visitation will be from 10-11 a.m. Saturday, June 30th, at the Haskell & Morrison Funeral Home in Vevay.
The family requests memorial contributions to the genealogy department of the Switzerland County Public Library P.O. Box 133, Vevay, IN 47043.
Charles D. Loos
Charles D. “Deb” Loos, 81, of Madison, passed away Monday, June 18th, at Thornton Terrace Health Campus in Hanover.
He was born October 25th, 1925, on Ryker’s Ridge in Jefferson County, the son of Charles G. and Ethel Ann McDaniel Loos, who both preceded him in death. He was raised on Ryker’s Ridge, graduating in 1944 from Central High School. At Central he played four years of varsity basketball. He was a 1948 graduate of Lane Business College in Indianapolis. He was inducted May 18th, 1944, into the U.S. Army. He rose to the rank of sergeant serving in the Military Police during World War II, handling prisoners of war. He was honorably discharged September 4th, 1946.
He was united in marriage September 21st, 1947, at the Madison Presbyterian Church in downtown Madison, to Martha Green. Unto this union one son and three daughters arrived to bless their home. Deb and Martha shared 39 years of marriage together until her death April 17th, 1987.
He served as County Clerk for Jefferson Circuit Court from 1948-1955. He then served as a past president of the Indiana County Clerk’s Association. He served as a U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Indiana from 1955-1977. While serving as a Federal Marshal, he was one of a few selected to serve on a Special Investigative team that inspected offices with the Marshal’s Service. He was involved in the longest extradition in the history of the Justice Department, flying around the world to return a prisoner from Thailand. He co-developed and co-chaired the Indiana Deferred Compensation Plan. He was the first elected state official to endorse Ronald Reagan for President in 1980. He then served from 1978-1982 as the 34th Auditor of the State of Indiana. From 1983-1986, he was the Director for the Indiana Highway Safety Division. In 1983, he was a member of the Governor’s Task Force Against Drunk Driving until 1986.
On November 14th, 1992, he was united in marriage to Margaret Ringwald Wilhelm at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in downtown Madison, and she survives.
He was a 50-year member of the Union Lodge #2 F & AM, the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite Valley of Indianapolis, the Murat Shrine, Jefferson Post 9 of the American Legion, served for seven years as DeMolay Chapter Dad, and an Assembly Dad for the Greenwood Assembly $78, Order of Rainbow For Girls. He was a faithful member of the Madison Presbyterian Church, serving as a deacon, elder and trustee, while living in Greenwood and Cicero communities for 34 years he was a member of Greenwood Presbyterian Church. He was an avid fisherman, spending many early mornings at the Indian-Kentuck Creek and Manville Fishing Hole. He also enjoyed playing euchre, organizing Central High School reunions and being the historian. He loved Indiana University basketball and John Wayne movies. He was a devout Republican and his passion was talking politics.
Other survivors include his daughters, Ellen Gill and husband Michael of Greenfield and Mary Kay Liverett and husband James of Greenwood; his son, Phillip Loos and wife Suzie of Galveston, Indiana; his stepsons, Michael Wilhelm of Madison and Mark Wilhelm and wife Beth of Plainfield; his sisters, Betty J. Horton of Madison (formerly of Vevay) and Dorothy Phillips of Indianapolis; his sister-in-law, Mary Kasper Loos of Indianapolis; his grandchildren, Adam, Eve, Aaron, Charles Edward, Sarah and Beth; his great-grandchildren, Chas, Jarrett, Dylan, Wyatt and Emma; his step-grandchildren, Matthew and Andrew; several nieces, nephews, cousins and other relatives.
He was also preceded in death by his daughter, Elizabeth Ann Loos December 27th, 1950; and his brothers, Gerald “Gus” Loos and John F. Loos.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, June 22nd, at Morgan & Nay Funeral Centre in Madison. Interment will be in Olive Branch Cemetery in Madison with full military honors conducted at the graveside by Jefferson Post 9 of the American Legion. Masonic services will be conducted at the funeral home by Union Lodge #2 F & AM tonight (Thursday) at 7:30 p.m. Friends may call from 4-8 p.m. today (Thursday) and Friday from 9 a.m. until service time at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to the Indiana Masonic Home or Olive Branch Cemetery Association. Online condolences may be sent to the family via the funeral home’s website at www.morgan-nay.com.