Obituaries

Lena

Colton George Drye, 22

Colton George Drye, age 22, of Belton, TX, formally of Lena passed unexpectedly away on July 29, 2019.

He was born on April 23, 1997 to Richard “Rich” and Deanna (Herman) Drye in Freeport, IL. He grew up in Lena and in 2015 he graduated from Lena-Winslow High School. Colton served his country in the United States Air Force. He was currently serving as a Special Operations TACP/ JTAC 9th ASOS in Fort Hood, TX. He had a strong love for the brotherhood TACP Special Ops. In his free time Colton enjoyed hockey and baseball; he competed in cross fit, and enjoyed working out. Most of all Colton had an infectious smile that would light up a room and had a heart of gold.

He is survived by his parents Rich and Deanna Drye of Lena, two brothers- Dustin of Bakersfield, CA and Andrew of Twenty-Nine Palms, CA; grandparents- George Drye of Lena, Robert and Tana Herman of Lena; great-grandmother Betty Raders of Lena; girlfriend Aubree Rosa of Glendora, CA; numerous aunts, uncles and cousins; and his brothers of the TACP ASOS.

Colton was preceded in death by his grandmother Norma “Jeanie” Drye, great-grandma Leona Grebner, and great-grandfather Frank Raders.

Visitation was held from 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Sunday August 4, 2019 at the Lena-Winslow Elementary School Fine Arts Center, 401 Freemont Street, Lena, Illinois 61048. Funeral Service was held at 1:00 p.m. on Monday August 5, 2019, with a visitation prior to the Funeral Service from 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at the Lena-Winslow Elementary School Fine Arts Center, 401 Freemont Street, Lena, Illinois 61048. Interment will take place at the Lena Burial Park with full Military Honors. Gathering followed at Route 20 Bar and Grill.

A memorial has been established in his name. Condolences may be sent to the family at http://www.leamonfh.com

Elizabeth “Betty” Koehn

Elizabeth “Betty” Koehn, age 97, of Lena passed away on August 1, 2019 at Walnut Acers in Freeport, IL.

She was born on April 17, 1922 in Lena, IL to William and Carrie (Gerber) Diestelmeier. She married Cletus Koehn on October 14, 1945 at the First English Lutheran Church in Freeport, IL. From 1941 to 1946, Betty worked for Burgess and then she worked for Micro Switch for another 17 years after that. She was a house wife and an excellent mother. She was a member of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Lena, IL and was very strong in her faith- frequently praying for others. Betty loved animals, especially her dogs Gidget and Festus, horses, and baking. She loved her family and was loved by all who met her.

She is survived by her daughter-in-law- Susan Koehn of Lena, IL, and son Ronald (Fran) Koehn; grandchildren- Chad (Tara) Koehn of San Jose, CA, Angela (Ryan) Pierce of Freeport, IL, Kimberly (Matt) Haverland of Lanark, IL, Brittney Koehn of Peoria Heights, IL, Heidi (Mike) Stingley of Freeport, IL and Jaime (Steve) Pizzolato of Freeport, IL; 10 great grandchildren- Hunter and Hayley Koehn, Jayden and Bayley Pierce, Brighton, Quinc and Zyacn Haverland, Evie Stingley, and Hanna and Hailey Pizzolato.

She is preceded in death by her parents, her husband Cletus in 1984 and her son Donald in 2017.

Visitation was held from 9:00-10:00 a.m. on Saturday August 3, 2019 at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Lena, IL. Funeral Services was held at 10:00 a.m. following the visitation. Officiating was Pastor Miho Yasukawa. Interment will take place at Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens in Freeport, IL.

A memorial has been established in her name. Condolences may be sent to the family at http://www.leamonfh.com

Pearl City

Edwin R. Curry, 58

Edwin R. Curry, age 58 of Pearl City, IL, was suddenly called home on Monday, July 29, 2019.

He was born on May 29, 1961 to Robert Earl and Thelma Maxine (Wisely) Curry in Galesburg, Illinois. Graduated from Toulon High School in 1979, Blackhawk East in 1982, and Illinois State University in 1984 with an Agriculture Education Degree. He married Barbara Musser on June 27, 1987.

Ed was a social butterfly; he knew no stranger. He had a passion for Christ, family, education, and vegetable gardening. And when it came to the long-standing argument of Cubs or Cardinals, you know that Ed would always pick the St. Louis Cardinals. FFA being a big part of his life, he was honored by receiving many awards- one of his proudest was the “District 1: Excellence in Teaching” award in 2017. Ed was driven to make a difference in many ways, through FFA activities, colleagues, FFA students, River Ridge students, and Sunday school classes at Zion Community Church. Ed was called to serve the Lord as a pastor alongside Wayne Fischer and Chip Sohl at ZCC. He was very proud of his family and he especially enjoyed his ‘punny’ jokes. You could always count on Ed for a joke or story, a smile, and a positive attitude. He loved to beat his family in a game of cards. He was always willing to participate and help anyone at any time… for anything. Community service, volunteering and giving back to others was a big part of Ed’s life. Words cannot begin to express the impact that Ed had on the people around him, including his school family, church family, Pearl City community, and his own family and friends. He will be greatly missed.

Ed is survived by his wife, Barbara Curry; daughters: Kerstin (Adam) Traylor and Morgan (Keagan) Blasing; son: Grant Curry and Grandpa Ed was looking forward to the arrival of a grandchild in January. He is also survived by his siblings: Al (Jan) Curry, Audrey (Steve) Curless, Barb (Bill) Loan, Charles (Karen) Curry; In-Laws: Kenneth and Donna Musser; brother-in-law, Jim (Denise) Musser; sister-in-law, Leslie Musser and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Visitation was held Thursday, August 1st at Zion Community Church from 4:00pm- 8:00pm: 10100 West Sabin Church Rd., Pearl City, IL 61062. The funeral was Friday, August 2nd at River Ridge High School. Burial and luncheon will follow at Zion Community Church. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Zion Community Church and/ or Illinois FFA Foundation.

Condolences may be shared with his family at http://www.hermannfuneralhome.com.

Michael Duane Miche “Clancy”, 62

Michael Duane Miche “Clancy”, age 62 of Pearl City, IL passed away Saturday, August 3, 2019 at Lena Living Center.

He was born on August 1, 1957 in Freeport, IL to Duane and Joyce (Spangler) Miche.

Mike was a 1975 graduate of Pearl City High School. He worked for Whole Earth Concrete Construction and enjoyed helping on the family farm and various sports.

He is survived by his mother, Joyce Miche of Pearl City; his brothers, David Miche of Pearl City and Keith (Ruth) Miche of Pearl City. Mike was preceded in death by his dad, Duane and his grandparents.

The funeral service was held on Wednesday, August 7, 2019 at Hermann Funeral Home in Pearl City at 1:00 p.m. A visitation was held on Tuesday, August 6, 2019 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. also at the Funeral Home. Interment will take place at Highland Cemetery in Pearl City. A memorial Fund has been established.

The family would like to give a special thank you to the family and friends that came to visit and to the nurses and staff at Lena Living Center. Condolences may be shared with Mike’s family at http://www.hermannfuneralhome.com.

Stockton

Gerald Stephen Dorich, 76

Gerald Stephen Dorich, age 76, of Stockton, IL passed away Saturday, August 03, 2019 at Lena Living Center.

He was born on May 9, 1943 in Chicago, IL to the late Stephen and Helen (Barnes) Dorich. Gerald married Marlene Bailey on October 13, 2007 at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Burbank, IL

He was a graduate of De Lasalle High School and attended the City College. Gerald served in the U.S. Army during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars as a Sergeant and Paratrooper. He then served 30 years with the Chicago Police Department. In his early years he ran track. Later in life, he enjoyed golfing, Shakespeare Theatre, music, Nascar and Indy Cars. He was a photographer and wrote a column for Nascar.

He is survived by his wife, Marlene Dorich of Stockton, IL; her children, Ronald Nelson Jr. of Bridgeview, IL, John Nelson of Riverside, IL, April (James) Giertich of Toma, WI, and Ann Marie Jonkman of Bartlett, IL; and his brother, Thomas Dorich of Chico, CA.

The funeral service was held on Thursday, April 8, 2019 at Hermann Funeral Home in Stockton at 10:30 a.m. There was a visitation on Wednesday, August 7, 2019 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. also at the funeral home. Interment will take place at Ladies Union Cemetery in Stockton. A memorial fund has been established.

Condolences may be shared at http://www.hermannfuneralhome.com.

Lanark

Duane Lester Kruse, 80

Duane Lester Kruse, age 80, of Lanark, IL, passed away Tuesday, August 6, 2019 in his home. Cremation rites will be accorded. A funeral service was held Monday, August 12, 2019, at the First Brethren Church in Lanark at 11 am. Visitation was held Sunday, August 11, 2019 from 4 pm to 7 pm at First Brethren Church, and also one hour prior to Monday’s service. The Masonic Rite will take place during the Sunday visitation at 6:30 pm. A memorial will be established in his memory. Family and friends are invited to share in Duane’s life at http://www.lawjonesfuneralhome.com.

Duane was born July 12, 1939, in Freeport, IL, the son of Lester and Doris (Butterbaugh) Kruse. He attended Freedom School as a child, graduating from Lanark High School with the class of 1957. On November 14, 1958, at the Baptist Church in Mt. Carroll, Duane married his wife of 60 years, Doris Gelwicks and they were blessed with four children.

Duane built a legacy, breeding and raising purebred Angus cattle for 50 years. He established DeKap Angus Farm in 1968. Last year his herd was recognized by the American Angus Association as a Historic Angus Herd. Duane sold Angus Bulls throughout the Midwest for many years. In 1998, he was named Illinois Seed-stock Producer of the Year. Duane traveled the country attending numerous Angus events and was a regular at the Denver Stock Show. Duane worked hard on his family farm and was a recipient of the Carroll County Conservation Farmer of the Year Award. When he wasn’t hard at work, Duane enjoyed dancing, flying his airplane, and family events. Duane was a member of the Lanark Masonic Lodge. Above all else, he loved and valued his family.

Duane will be dearly missed by his wife Doris; one son, Dan (Mary) Kruse of Mt. Carroll IL, three daughters, Dena (Mike) McKnight of DeKalb, IL, Danita (Dick) Emford of Lena, IL, and Darci (Josh) Francque of Dixon, IL; eight grandchildren, Mistia Cook, Jose Castro, Rebecca Kruse, Haley Emford (fiancé, Kyle Johnson), August Emford, MD, Mary Francque, JD (fiancé, Andrew Lauver), Victor Francque, and Alyssa McKnight; four great-grandchildren, Jozlynn, Cutter, Priseis, and Cyrus; two sisters, Darlene Breemes of Greenwood, NE and Diane (Frank) Konfrst of Blair, NE; and a sister-in-law, Marcie Kruse of Lanark, IL; and nieces and nephews.

Duane is preceded in death by his parents Lester and Doris Kruse, brother Darryl Kruse, and brother-in-law Jerry Breemes.