Obituaries
Please submit in writing to our office by 10 a.m. Thursday before the week of publication; be sure to state date of death. Obituaries of archdiocesan priests serving our archdiocese are listed elsewhere in The Criterion. Order priests and religious sisters and brothers are included here, unless they are natives of the archdiocese or have other connections to it; those are separate obituaries on this page. Submit an obituary here (parishes and funeral homes only)
BRUCE, Mary E. (Hemmelgran), 91, St. Patrick, Indianapolis, March 8. Mother of Judith Kennedy and Thomas Bruce. Sister of Ann Horner. Grandmother of six. Great-grandmother of 11.
DAMIN, Julia M., 88, St. Paul, Tell City, March 9. Mother of Alice Huckstep, Irma Kavanaugh, Eldon Early, Arthur and Tom Damin. Grandmother of 12. Great-grandmother of 17.
DIERCKMAN, Bernice M., 81, St. Anthony of Padua, Morris, March 14. Mother of Helen Balte, Marlene Bruno, Jean Huber, Dr. Judy, Ruth Mary, Anthony, Mike and Theodore Dierckman. Sister of Betty Lou Forthofer and Wilbur Meyer. Grandmother of six. Step-grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of one. Step-great-grandmother of six.
ERHARDT, Sylvia M., 69, St. Anthony of Padua, Morris, March 15. Wife of Richard Erhardt. Mother of Shelley Dreyer, Julie, Dan and Greg Erhardt. Sister of Delores Ginder, Ruth Stenger, Lucille Teufel, Carrol, Donald, Melvin and Wilfred Gramman. Grandmother of five.
GATCHELL, Margarete, 89, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, March 4. Mother of Mark Butz. Stepmother of Rita Spellman and Mark Gatchell.
GRUNER, Charlotte G., 88, St. Barnabas, Indianapolis, March 3. Wife of Kenneth Gruner. Mother of Patricia Pittman and Edward Gruner. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of 11. Great-great-grandmother of two.
HOMBURG, Charles F., 82, St. Lawrence, Indianapolis, March 6. Husband of Esther (Smith) Homburg. Father of Jane Holmes and Robert Homburg. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of two.
KREMP, John, 64, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, Feb. 26. Father of Laura, Allen and Mark Kremp. Brother of Martha Bagley, Richard and Stanley Kremp. Grandfather of one.
LEPPERT, Rosina M., 99, St. Joseph, Shelbyville, March 10. Mother of Mary JoAnn Sullivan and Ralph Leppert. Sister of Clara Stagge and Paul Bogemann. Grandmother of four. Great-grandmother of eight. Step-great-grandmother of three.
LOPEZ, Tara (Tate), 31, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, Feb. 28. Wife of Santiago Lopez. Mother of Chelsea Lafferty and Luis Alejandro Lopez. Daughter of Charles and Ruth Ellen Tate. Sister of Leah, Molly and Brent Tate.
MAHALEK, William Charles, 82, Sacred Heart of Jesus, Terre Haute, March 9. Husband of Suse Ann Mahalek. Father of Julie Todd, James and John Mahalek. Brother of Fred Mahalek. Grandfather of eight. Great-grandfather of one.
McKENNA, Michael F., Sr., 65, Holy Name, Beech Grove, Feb. 22. Husband of Joan Elaine (Kelley) McKenna. Father of Carrie Wagoner, Debra, Susan, Daniel, Dwayne, John and Michael McKenna Jr. Brother of Elizabeth Garrison, Josephine McCulley, Catherine Sexton, Margaret Mary Whittman, James and Patrick McKenna. Grandfather of 10.
MOTSCHMANN, Helen, 93, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, March 4. Mother of Helen Datillo and Barbara Staton. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of 16. Great-great-grandmother of one.
MURPHY, William Bernard, 80, Annunciation, Brazil, March 2. Husband of Ramona Murphy. Father of Claudia Marratta and Patrick Murphy. Stepfather of Rebecca Loyd. Brother of Anita Cary and Delores Beaman. Grandfather of five. Great-grandfather of one.
OBERMEYER, Jonathan Michael, infant, St. Louis, Batesville, March 11. Son of Jeff and Kristen (Byers) Obermeyer. Grandson of David and Emily Byers, Kim Byers, Bob and Kathy Obermeyer, Chris Marshall and Bruce Sears. Great-grandson of John Short and Gertrude Nickles.
OBERMEYER, Ruth Florence (Trimpe), 87, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, Feb. 27. Mother of George Obermeyer. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of 11. Great-great-grandmother of one.
POPE, Anna Marie, 77, St. Philip Neri, Indianapolis, March 6. Mother of Paula and Timothy Pope. Sister of Ronald Walter. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of one.
SHAWLER, Irma (Kemp), 74, St. Augustine, Jeffersonville, March 1. Wife of Paul Shawler. Mother of Wilma Jackson and Larry Shawler. Sister of Betty Cleffman and Gary Kemp. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of two.
SOYACK, Andrew, 63, St. Joseph, Universal, Dec. 19. Husband of Peggy Soyack. Father of Kendra and Kevin Soyack.
STAHLEY, Clara, 88, St. Charles, Milan, March 8. Mother of Edward Stahley. Sister of three. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of six.
STEINFORT-GIBSON, Floreen E., 79, Holy Family, Oldenburg, March 12. Wife of Charles Gibson. Mother of Den, Ken and Tim Steinfort. Stepmother of Charla Gindling, Pam Meyer, Brent and Greg Gibson. Sister of Sally Kocher, Marge Meier, Delores Pope and Joe Hurst. Grandmother of two. Step-grandmother of several. Step-great-grandmother of several. †
Robert F. Beidelman built large altar and ambo
for Jubilee Mass
Robert F. Beidelman, a member of Holy Spirit Parish in Indianapolis and the father of Father Patrick Beidelman, pastor of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in Indianapolis, died on March 17 at his home. He was 72.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on March 23 at Holy Spirit Church. Burial followed at Holy Cross Cemetery in Indianapolis.
A native of Indianapolis, he graduated from Little Flower School and Cathedral High School as well as Purdue University’s Institute of Technology.
He served in the U.S. Navy for four years then worked in construction and construction management.
As a gift to the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, he built the large altar and ambo used during the eucharistic liturgy for “Celebration in the Spirit of Hope: The Great Jubilee” Mass held on Sept. 16, 2000, at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.
Surviving are his wife, Patricia (Casey) Beidelman; four sons, Kerry, Michael, Father Patrick and Stephen Beidelman; three sisters, Kathryn and Martha Beidelman and Rose Rudnicki; and six grandchildren.
Memorial gifts may be made to Holy Spirit Parish, 7243 E. 10th St., in Indianapolis or St. Augustine Home for the Aged, 2345 W. 86th St., in Indianapolis. †
Ina Schaftlein, the mother of Father Steven Schaftlein,
died on March 11
Ina Pauline Schaftlein, a member of St. Mary-of-the-Knobs Parish in Floyds Knobs and the mother of Father Steven Schaftlein, pastor of St. Michael Parish in Charlestown and St. Francis Xavier Parish in Henryville, died on March 11 at the Green Valley Care Center in New Albany. She was 79.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on March 14 at St. Mary-of-the-Knobs Church. Burial followed at the parish cemetery.
Surviving are her husband, Clarence Schaftlein; three sons, Clarence Jr., Dean and Father Steven Schaftlein; two daughters, Melanie Casey and Dolly Wallis; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. †