Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 131, Number 2, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 10 January 2008 — Page 2

Page 2

Advance News • Thursday, January 10, 2008

Obituary

Floyd H. Sommers May 3, 1948 - Dec. 24, 2007

CONVERSE Floyd H. Sommers, 59, Converse, died at 12:40 p.m. Monday, Dec. 24, 2007, at Howard Regional Health System. Floyd fought a 20-vear battle against cancer. He went to Heaven to celebrate Christmas with his mother and father. Bom on May 3, 1948, in Elkhart, he was the son of Katie Ann (Mullet) Sommers and Ralph E. Sommers. Flovd worked for General Cage Manufacturing, located in Elwood, for more than 18 years. Also, he was a member

of Open Door Fellowship Church, Converse. Mr. Sommers enjoyed attending festivals and traveling. He especially enjoyed sharing a cup of coffee with his "coffee . buddv," Levi. Also, he worked very hard for his employers and always gave more than what was asked of him. Although he was handicapped, he worked hard to overcome the adversity and make the best of his life. He is survived bv four sisters: Frieda Bowman, Kokomo, Judy Sommers, Goshen, Irene and husband Bob Zehring, Kokomo, and Man- and husband Chuck Carden, Kokomo; two brothers: Wilbur Sommers and wife Lola (Needham) Sommers, Centralia, 111., and Levi Sommers and fiancee Donna Kokomo; and a niece, Heather Bowman, Kokomo. He is preceded in death by his parents. Funeral services were at 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 29 at Ellers Mortuary, 3400 S. Webster St., with Pastor Jim Miller officiating. Burial followed in Christner Cemetery in Miami County. Friends called from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 28 at the mortuary. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or Open Door Fellowship Church. Envelopes will be available at the mortuary. Messages mav be e-mailed to the family at ellersmortuary.com. AROUND, cont. from front page the Elkhart County Convention and Visitors Bureau. All meetings are at 8 a.m. at the Elkhart County Visitors Center, 219 Caravan Dr., Elkhart, unless otherwise noted. Meeting dates are Jan. 11, March 14, May 9, July 11, Sept. 12 and Nov. 14. For more information call the Elkhart County CVB , 574-262-8161 or e-mail [email protected]. NAPPANEE BOARD OF WORKS AND PUBLIC SAFETY All meetings of the Nappanee board of works and public safety' are open to the public and are at 3:30 p.m. in the Council chambers at the Nappanee Municipal Center, 300 W. Lincoln St., Nappanee, unless otherwise noted. Meeting dates for 2008 include Jan. 14 and 28; Feb. 11 and 25; March 10 and 24 (no meetings March 31); April 14 and 28; May 12, no meeting May 27 (Memorial Day); June 9, 23, no meeting June 3b; July 14 and 28; Aug. 11 and 25; Sept. 8, 22, no meeting Aug. 29; Oct. 13, 27; Nov. 10, 24; Dec. 8, 22, no meeting Dec. 29.

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ream nonces ii ■ —, r * nr waner n. Lawmaster Dec. 23, 2007 NAPPANEE Walter H. Lawmaster, 82, of Nappanee died Sunday, Dec. 23 at his winter home in Naples, Fla. He is survived by his wife: Barbara J. Lawmaster; daughter, Kimberly (Dennis) Bilinski of Bremen; son, Jeffrey A. (Charity) Truhn of Florida; five grandchildren; brother, Oliver (Ethel) Lawmaster of California; sisters: Arline Johnson of Indiana and Evelyn Lawmaster of Naples, Fla; and many nieces and nephews. Visitation was one hour prior to services at the Thompson-Lengacher & Yoder Funeral Home in Nappanee. Funeral services were Saturday, Jan. 5 at 10 a.m. at the funeral home. Burial was at Union Center Cemetery in Nappanee. Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society. Destin Skylar Miller Dec. 29, 2007 MILFORD Destin Skylar Miller, 7 weeks, of Milford died Saturday, Dec. 29 at 5:57 a.m. at home. He is survived by his parents, Joseph and Teresa Miller; sister, Jessica Miller, at home; brothers: Zachary Miller and Tyler Miller, at home; and grandparents: Leon (Judy) Miller of Nappanee and Raymond (Wilma) Borkholder of Nappanee. Visitation was Monday, Dec. 31 from 2 to 8 p.m. at the Thompson-Lengacher & Yoder Funeral Home in Nappanee. Funeral services were Tuesday, Jan. 1 at 9:30 a.m. at the Bethany Church of the Brethren. Burial was at Union Center Cemetery. Memorials may be made to Bethany Church of the Brethren. Alda M. Slabaugh Dec. 31, 2007 MILFORD Alda M. Slabaugh, 89, of Milford died Monday, Dec. 31 at 8:45 a.m. at home. He is survived by his daughter, Betty Lou (Leßoy) Hochstetler of Milford; sons: Richard Lee (Ada) Slabaugh of Nappanee, Allen Ray (Ellen) Slabaugh of Milford and Lyle (Barbara Ann) Slabaugh of Milford; 16 grandchildren, 67 great grandchildren and one great-great

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7 grandchild. Visitation was at the Lyle Slabaugh residence, 3701 W. 1350 N. after 1 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 1 and all day Wednesday, Jan. 2. Funeral services were at the Floyd Helmuth residence, 3707 W. 1400 N. Tliursday, Jan. 3 at 9:30 a.m. Burial was at West Union Center Cemetery. The Thompson-Lengacher & Yoder Funeral Home in Nappanee was in charge of arrangements. Roy D. “Jack" Bean Jan. 3, 2008 NAPPANEE Roy D. "Jack" Bean, 90, of Nappanee died Thursday, Jan. 3 at 7 a.m. at Miller's Merry Manor in Wakarusa. He is survived by his son, Jeff Bean; daughter, Renee (Dennis) Hochstetler; three grandchildren; eight great grandchildren; half brothers: Jackie (Noma) Miller of Nappanee and Harold (Lois) Miller of Nappanee; and half sister, Margaret Cripe of Nap panee. Visitation was Monday, Jan. 7 from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Thompson-Lengacher & Yoder Funeral Home in Nappanee. Funeral services were Tuesday, Jan. 8 at 1 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial was at Union Center Cemetery. Military graveside services by the Nappanee American Legion were held. Memorials may be made to the Nappanee American Legion. Phyllis M. (Sauer) Whitehead Dec. 30, 2007 BREMEN Phyllis M. (Sauer) Whitehead, 90, of Bremen, died Sunday, Dec. 30 in her son's home. She is survived by sons: Lewis (Barbara) Whitehead of Bremen and Hal (Carole) Whitehead of Albuquerque, N.M.; son-in-law, Ed (Sandy) Schafer of South Bend; eight grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren. Visitation is Friday, Jan. 11 from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Mishler Funeral Home in Bremen. Funeral services are Saturday, Jan. 12 at 10 a.m. in the funeral home. Burial will be at the Bremen Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Center for Hospice, 112 S. Center St., Suite C, Plymouth, IN 46563 or St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 605 S. Center St., Bremen, IN 46506.

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Unlike Nappanee councilmembers before them, Kitson and Nunemaker will both take over heavily-damaged areas following the Oct. 18 tornado. "One (issue) is going to be the rebuilding process," Kitson said. "I think when you have a city that is full of faith and family and pride as Nappanee is, it goes a lot smoother. I believe we need to rebuild and continue to strengthen not only our employers but also everyone who continues to work, live and come see Nappanee." Aside from tornado recovery, Nunemaker does not have any specific issues to address, but looks forward to seeing what residents of his district bring to the table. "I don't really have a platform or agenda or anything like that," he said, "but as the oath said .I’m going to do my job to the best of my ability and as issues come up, I'll use my problem solving skills to make the best decision." However, Nunemaker does have specific areas of interest that he hopes to be able to work at during his term. I've always thought anything that has to do with community, recreation, the parks, has been an important aspect of my life," he said. "I have kids that use them and enjoy that." Kitson looks forward to seeing overall community growth during his term. "I believe Nappanee is always looking to attract new businesses and growth of current businesses," he said. "I believe (there) is always going to be a strong need for housing and growth with our sense of communitv that w'e have here, and that may be a challenge, but it’s also a positive challenge." Kitson also anticipates developing a good relationship with the various city departments and working together with them to resolve related issues in his district. "(I look forward to) working with the mayor and Wayne (Scheumann) and Gale (Gerber) on our streets and water and sewer to continue to make sure they have everything they need to do their everyday jobs," he said. "I'm looking forward to the challenges that not onlyface us for 2008, 2009," Kitson said. "Were growing, and with that growth there seems to be things that always need to be addressed, and I want to continue to make sure we are the best municipality in the state of Indiana." Nunemaker anticipates similar challenges. "As a city official you're always trying to balance what the government provides versus what the taxes pay," he said. "Some specifics are going to be the city utilities." This includes usual things like upgrades, rate increases and so forth. Kitson, a Syracuse native, moved to Nappanee with his wife, Brandi, about five and a half years ago. They have been married eight years and have two children, Keaton, 6, and Riley, 2. Kitson works at Newmar Corporation as a purchasing agent. He is also a member of the Friends of the Playground committee for Little Paws playground, a member and past president of the Nappanee Kiwanis and a volunteer at McCormick Creek Golf Course. The Kitsons attend Nappanee Missionary Church. In their spare time, the family enjoys bike riding, golfing and swimming. Kitson also enjoys hunting. Nunemaker, an architect, owns the company Agape Designs, which began in 2000 and primarily designs lake cottages. He and his wife, Beth were married July 29, 1995 and have two children, Nathan, 9, and Betsy, 7. During the summer; the Nunemakers enjoy various outdoor activities, including camping, traveling and making frequent visits to Lake Syracuse.