Obituaries

May 18, 2023

Gary D. 'GG' Graves, 64, died May 18, 2023, at his home, in Hutchinson. He was born June 2, 1958, in Wichita, to Duane E. Graves and Beverly K. Graves.

Gary graduated from Hutchinson High School in 1976 and went on to be an electrician for many years. In his career, he taught at IBEW and eventually...

May 18, 2023

Kathy Sue Vollnogel, 64, of Hutchinson, died May 18, 2023, at Hutchinson Health and Rehab. She was born February 22, 1959, in Hutchinson, to William D. and Ruby L. (Stapleton) Chronister.

Kathy graduated from Hutchinson High School in 1977 and attended Hutchinson Community College. She worked in medical records and as a CNA at Sunshine Meadows Retirement...

May 18, 2023

Larry Dean Thode, 86, died May 18, 2023, at Hospice House, Hutchinson.  He was born August 31, 1936, on the family farm north of Plevna, to Albert Daniel "Danny" and Thelma Elnora (Drake) Thode.

Larry graduated from Plevna High School, received his associates degree from Hutchinson Junior College, and proudly served in the United States Navy from...

May 16, 2023

Judith D. 'Judy' Wright, 78, died May 16, 2023, at Prairie Sunset Home, Pretty Prairie. She was born May 31, 1944, in Yuma, AZ, to John Wilbur, Sr. and Eula Annabelle (Davis) Odil.

Judy graduated from Wichita West High School in 1962. Shortly after graduation, she married Keith Aaron Wright on June 2, 1962, in...

May 16, 2023

Forest Jay Pitts, 100, formerly of Hutchinson, died May 16, 2023, at Newton Presbyterian Manor, Newton. He was born April 30, 1923, in Jetmore, to Charles and Sarah Patton (Freerksen) Pitts.

As a child, Forest had a shoe shine stand in Whitman's Barber Shop as well as at the Sale Barn on sale days. During...

May 15, 2023

Robert 'Bob' Wesley McCullough, 83, passed away May 15, 2023, at his home. He was born November 15, 1939, in Burlington, KS, to John Dee McCullough and Lena J. (Woods) McCullough.

Bob received an Associates Degree from Hutchinson Community College and served in the United States Army. He was employed as the maintenance supervisor and...

May 14, 2023

Mary Jane Mollett, 96, passed away peacefully May 14, 2023, at Hester Care Center, Hutchinson.  She was born October 11, 1926, in St. Joseph, Missouri, to John R. and Kathryn (Keefer) Marts.

Mary Jane graduated from Hutchinson High School and attended Lindenwood College, St. Charles, Missouri, and Kansas State University.  She was a homemaker and a member...

May 13, 2023

Carol June Heisler, 73, of Kingman, died May 13, 2023, at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita. She was born April 1, 1950, in Hutchinson, to Jess A. and Elva P. (Kerns) Bishop.

Carol attended Hutchinson schools. She was a bus driver for Haven and Pretty Prairie schools for many years until retiring in 2019. Carol...

May 11, 2023

William Lowell "Bill" Pettijohn, 70, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on May 11, 2023 at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita, KS. He was born in Hays, KS. on October 20, 1952 to William Gordon and Anna Jane (Foley) Pettijohn.

Bill graduated form Stockton High School, Stockton, KS, in 1970. He attended Fort Hays State College, Hays,...

May 9, 2023

Gary Calvin Johanning, 69, of Nickerson, died May 9, 2023, at his home. He was born November 3, 1953, in Hutchinson, to Victor and Marceline (McAllister) Johanning.

Gary graduated from Nickerson High School. He worked at Consolidated Manufacturing and Reno County Public Works before retirement. Gary enjoyed farming, fishing, gardening, and most importantly, spending time...

May 9, 2023

Vernon Wier Norton, 77, passed away May 9, 2023, at Hospice House, Hutchinson, KS. He was born December 6, 1945, in Eye, England, to Kenneth W. Norton and Netta (Jolly) Norton.

Vernon was a graduate of Kermit High School, Kermit, TX, and earned an Associate Degree in Law Enforcement from Seward County Community College, Liberal,...

May 9, 2023

Lisa Marie Ramirez, 52, formerly of Hutchinson, died May 9, 2023, at Wesley Medical Center. She was born November 10, 1970, in Emporia, to Ismael and Ann Kathleen (Zimmerman) Cordero.

Lisa graduated from Great Bend High School in 1988. Most recently, she worked as a customer service representative for Faneuil, a division of Georgia Natural...

May 8, 2023

Doris Lee Kimmel, 94, died May 8, 2023, at Pleasant Hills, Hutchinson. She was born December 7, 1928, in Oskaloosa, KS, to Charles Earl and Imo Odessa (Cottrell) Johnson.

Doris graduated from Oskaloosa High School and Kansas State University with her bachelor's degree in Home Economics. She was raised on the family farm, learning the...

May 6, 2023

Keith Aaron Wright, 83, of Hutchinson, died May 6, 2023, at Prairie Sunset Home, Pretty Prairie. He was born October 21, 1939, in Dodge City, to James Henry and Jessie Mae (Schofield) Wright.

Keith graduated from Cheyenne County High School, St. Francis, KS, in 1958. He also graduated from Wichita Business College.

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May 6, 2023

Bernice 'Bea' Katherine Reed, 79, passed away May 6, 2023, at her home. She was born May 17, 1943, in Hutchinson, KS, to Verner E. Briggs and Ethel Mary (Hester) Briggs.

Bea began working at F.W. Woolworth Department Store. Shortly thereafter, she married Joseph M. Reed, Sr., during her sophomore year of high school. They...

May 4, 2023

Victoria Lee O'neal, 49, died May 4, 2023, at her residence in Hutchinson. She was born April 9, 1974, in Hutchinson, to Michael Dennis and Patricia Lee (Patterson) O'neal.

She was a Hutchinson High School graduate in 1993. Later on, she attended Hutchinson Community College, where she earned her paralegal degree in 2002. Victoria worked...

May 4, 2023

Thelma Mae Chancellor passed away peacefully May 4, 2023, at the Legends Assisted Living facility, Hutchinson, KS at the age of 81 from Parkinson Disease. Thelma was the youngest of five, born September 12, 1941, to parents Charley and Elsie (Dibben) Debenham, rural Abilene, KS.

Attending local one room schools in the Industry community during...

May 4, 2023

Kathryn (Barrows) Casady Smith passed away peacefully on May 4, 2023, in Jupiter, Florida.

She was born in Trenton, Missouri on December 21, 1925, the daughter of George and Martha Barrows. She spent her early years in northern Missouri where her family owned pharmacies. Kathryn happily tended the soda bar as a young girl and,...

May 4, 2023

Lester "Les" Lavon Troyer, 83, died May 4, 2023, at his home in Yoder. He was born August 26, 1939, in Hutchinson, to Oliver and Mary (Yutzy) Troyer.

Les worked for Showalter Oil, eventually owning it for many years and later retired from USD 312 where he did school bus maintenance. He was a member...

May 3, 2023

Gretchen Kay Theisen-Halpain, 85, died May 3, 2023, surrounded by her daughters and son-in-law. She was born August 10, 1937, in El Paso, TX, and raised by Karl and Gladys (Stewart) von Metzradt.

Gretchen enjoyed working in retail sales, with cosmetics as her specialty. In addition, she enjoyed fishing, gardening, and traveling (especially when she...