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)
CLAYPOOL, Genevieve B., 104, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, Oct. 14. Mother of Elizabeth Koschnick and Joseph Claypool. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of 12.
COLLINS, Stephen, 77, St. Charles Borromeo, Milan, Oct. 11. Husband of Judith Collins. Father of Kim, Liz, Susan and Terri. Grandfather of several.
DAVIS, Michaela, 21, St. Bartholomew, Columbus, Sept. 27. Daughter of Charles and Melissa Eder Davis. Sister of McKenzie Davis. Half-sister of Kandi Siebenaller and Michael Davis. Aunt of two.
FRITZ, Kenneth L., Sr., 76, St. Mary-of-the-Knobs, Floyd County, Oct. 12. Husband of Mildred Fritz. Father of Marcia Steele, Michelle Gaylord and Kenneth Fritz, Jr. Brother of D. Stephen, Oscar, Jr., and Robert Fritz. Grandfather of 10. Great-grandfather of three.
GALLAGHER, Marjorie, 90, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Richmond, Oct. 14. Mother of John, Mark and Mike Gallagher. Sister of Carol Rosselot and Ralph Sheridan. Grandmother of six. Great-grandmother of five.
GRUBB, Mary Jane, 76, St. Jude, Indianapolis,
Oct. 13. Mother of Kathy Evans, Denise Gates and Anne Talbott. Sister of John and Tom Swisher. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of one.
HOWARD, Patricia A., 76, Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Jeffersonville, Sept. 15. Wife of James Howard. Mother of Lisa Rasdon. Stepmother of Beth Cox, Susan, Bryan and Kevin Howard. Daughter of Cecelia Fischer. Sister of Betty Johnson, Carole, Larry and Michael Fischer. Grandmother of one. Step-grandmother of seven. Step-great-grandmother of eight.
KEINSLEY, Glenn, 87, St. Mary, Lanesville, Oct. 3. Husband of Betty Keinsley. Father of Brenda Brown, Rebecca Klemens and Gregory Keinsley. Brother of Nick Keinsley. Grandfather of two. Great-grandfather of four.
KOETTER, Betty J. (Kruer), 87, St. John the Baptist, Starlight, Oct. 14. Mother of Darlene Kuzmic, Susan Fields, Mark, Raymond and Regis Koetter. Sister of Jerry and Roy Kruer. Grandmother of 13. Great-grandmother of 17.
LYONS, James B., Sr., 75, Christ the King, Indianapolis, Sept. 11. Father of Melissa McGrath and Jim Lyons. Brother of Mary Helen Quinn. Grandfather of five.
MCATEE, Wilma Jean, 92, St. Simon the Apostle, Indianapolis, Oct. 8. Mother of Mary Jean Denk, Pam Hoskins, Janice Scully and Dennis McAtee. Sister of Connie Glenn and Rick Hagerty. Grandmother of 10. Great-grandmother of two.
MELCHER, Robert W., 72, St. Mary, Greensburg, Oct. 2. Husband of Mary Melcher. Father of Kim Pike, Kristen Weber and Robert Melcher. Brother of Linda Haptonstall and Gene Melcher. Grandfather of four.
RENN, Florence A. (Andres), 96, St. John Paul II, Sellersburg, Oct. 6. Mother of Wanda Bilkey, Robin Heitz, Monica Jenkins, Peggy and Bruce Renn. Grandmother of four. Great-grandmother of six.
SAGESER, Carol A., 73, St. Bartholomew, Columbus, Sept. 28. Mother of Mary Ann Frederick. Sister of Nancy Wadman. Grandmother of two.
Providence Sister Marie Alexis Geiger served in Catholic education for 50 years
Providence Sister Marie Alexis Geiger died on Oct. 14 at Mother Theodore Hall at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Winfield Woods Healthcare in Winfield, Ill. She was 91.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Oct. 18 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception at the motherhouse in St. Mary-of-the-Woods. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Elizabeth Clarissa Geiger was born on
June 22, 1928, in Loogootee, Ind. She grew up as a member of St. Patrick Parish in Indianapolis. She entered the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods on Feb. 2, 1946, and professed final vows on Aug. 15, 1953.
Sister Marie Alexis earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in St. Mary-of-the-Woods and a master’s degree in education at Marquette University in Milwaukee.
During her 73 years as a member of the Sisters of Providence, Sister Marie Alexis ministered for 50 years as an educator in Catholic schools in Illinois, Indiana and Washington, D.C.
In the archdiocese, she served at the former Sacred Heart School in Terre Haute from 1953-54, the former St. Anne School in New Castle from 1954-56, and in Indianapolis at St. Simon the Apostle School from 1969-70 and 1976-81, Immaculate Heart of Mary School from 1970-76, Holy Spirit School from 1981-89 and Cardinal Ritter Jr./Sr. High School from 1989-98. After retiring from serving in Catholic schools, Sister Marie Alexis ministered as the coordinator of Educational Family Services in West Terre Haute.
After volunteering for several years at the Providence Food Pantry in West Terre Haute and at the Providence Spirituality and Conference Center, she committed herself entirely to prayer beginning in 2012.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of Providence, 1 Sisters of Providence Road, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876.
Franciscan Sister Francis Joan Clements served in Catholic education for 48 years
Franciscan Sister Francis Joan Clements died on Oct. 6 at the motherhouse of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Oldenburg. She was 94.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Oct. 11 at the Motherhouse Chapel in Oldenburg. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Anita Evelyn Clements was born on June 2, 1925, in Clementsville, Ky.
She entered the Sisters of St. Francis on Sept. 8, 1945, and professed final vows on
Aug. 12, 1951.
Sister Francis Joan earned a bachelor’s degree in education at Marian University in Indianapolis and attended continuing education courses at Xavier University in Cincinnati and University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky.
During 74 years as a Sister of St. Francis, Sister Francis Joan ministered as an educator for 48 years in Catholic schools in Indiana, Missouri and Ohio. In the archdiocese, she served at the former St. Francis de Sales School in Indianapolis from 1948-53, St. Michael School in Brookville from 1954-55 and at the Oldenburg Academy of the Immaculate Conception in Oldenburg from 1988-92. She later served in pastoral care and in ministry at the motherhouse before retiring in 2008.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of St. Francis, P.O. Box 100, Oldenburg, IN 47036-0100. †
Franciscan Sister Rita Vukovic served for
42 years at Cardinal Ritter Jr./Sr. High School
Franciscan Sister Rita Vukovic, formerly Sister Mary Anselm, died on Oct. 5 at the motherhouse of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Oldenburg. She was 89.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Oct. 9 at the Motherhouse Chapel in Oldenburg. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Rita Mae Vukovic was born on April 6, 1930, in Dayton, Ohio.
She entered the Sisters of St. Francis on Sept. 8, 1948, and professed final vows on Aug. 12, 1954.
Sister Rita earned a bachelor’s degree in education at Marian University in Indianapolis and later completed continuing education courses at Xavier University in Cincinnati and Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
During 71 years as a Sister of St. Francis, Sister Rita ministered as an educator for 61 years in Catholic schools in Indiana and Ohio. In the archdiocese, she served in Indianapolis at Our Lady of Lourdes School from 1951-54 and St. Michael-St. Gabriel Archangels School from 1959-61. She also served at Father Thomas Scecina Memorial High School from 1961-64 and St. Mary Academy from 1967-70.
She is especially remembered for her 42 years of ministry at Cardinal Ritter Jr./Sr. High School from 1970-2012. Sister Rita went on various adventures to support the school through fundraisers. They included her riding in 2004 in a two-seater IndyCar race car at 175 miles per hour and flying in 2005 in a T-6 Texan Warbird, which was a single-engine military training aircraft used from World War II through the early 1970s.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of St. Francis, P.O. Box 100, Oldenburg, IN 47036-0100. †