Potter Co. TX - Obits from Amarillo Online Newspapers 23 Jan 1999 Copyright, http://www.amarillonet.com/ ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Thanks to the Amarillo Newspapers for allowing us to place their online obits in the USGenWeb Archives ==================================================================== Last updated; Saturday, January 23, 1999, 7:38 AM Area Omer Edward Whisenhunt TULIA - Omer Edward Whisenhunt, 79, died Tuesday, Jan. 19, 1999. Graveside services were at 2 p.m. Friday in Harris Creek Cemetery with the Rev. Larry Millhart officiating. Arrangements were by Burks Walker Tippit Funeral Home of Tyler. Mr. Whisenhunt was born in Winona and raised in Tyler where he graduated from high school. From 1944 until 1946, he served in World War II with the Navy. After his discharge, he returned to Tyler where he was a millwright. In 1958, Mr. Whisenhunt moved to Tulia where he owned Omer's Restaurant until his retirement in 1984. He was a member of First Baptist Church and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He married Joyce Kay in 1938 at Winona. Survivors include his wife; two sons, Fred Whisenhunt of Tyler and Bruce Whisenhunt of Aurora, Colo.; a sister, Ida Thigpen of Tyler; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Dora Elizabeth Smith WELLINGTON - Dora "Dody" Elizabeth Smith, 78, died Friday, Jan. 22, 1999. Services will be at 3 p.m. Sunday in First Baptist Church with the Rev. James McLeod, pastor, officiating. Burial will be in North Fairview Cemetery by Adams Funeral Home. Mrs. Smith was born in Collingsworth County and graduated from Wellington High School in 1937. For more than 40 years, she was employed at Wells & Wells Insurance Co. Mrs. Smith was a charter member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary and Ex-Students Association. She was a member of First Baptist Church and a former member of the Civil Air Patrol. She married Keith Smith in 1953 at Tucumcari, N.M. He died in 1990. Survivors include a daughter, Ann Husband of Childress; two stepdaughters, Sherrie Clements of Amarillo and Judy Hall of Wellington; a sister, Mary Armstrong of Huffman; four grandsons; four great-grandchildren; four stepgrandchildren; and nine stepgreat-grandchildren. The family suggests memorials be to WHS Ex-Students Scholarship Fund or Wellington Care Center Activity Fund. Warren L. Elver BORGER - Warren L. Elver, 74, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. Monday in Highland Park Cemetery with Frank Gordoa, assistant minister of Cornerstone Church, officiating. Arrangements are by Minton / Chatwell Funeral Directors of Borger. Mr. Elver was born in Phillipsburg, Kan., and had been a Borger resident since 1926. During World War II, he served in the Army and was a prisoner of war. He was employed as a painter and was a member of Cornerstone Church. He is survived by many friends. Eural Vaughan SILVERTON - Eural Vaughan, 89, died Friday, Jan. 22, 1999. Graveside services will be at 2 p.m. Sunday in Silverton Cemetery with the Rev. Norris officiating. Arrangements are by Myers-Long Funeral Directors of Silverton. New Mexico Clyde Morris Roberts CLOVIS, N.M. - Clyde Morris Roberts, 59, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. today in Parkland Baptist Church with the Rev. Doug Brooks officiating. Cremation was by Steed-Todd Funeral Home. Mr. Roberts was born in Albemarle County, Va., and had lived in Clovis the past 14 years. He served at Cannon Air Force Base from 1972 until 1976, retiring from the Air Force in 1979. Survivors include two daughters, Lisa Roberts of the home and Michelle Jones of Clovis; two half brothers, Aaron Roberts of Billings, Mont., and Wayne Roberts of Cheyenne, Wyo.; and two grandchildren. The family requests memorials be to Parkland Baptist Church, 921 Parkland, Clovis, NM 88101. Virginia Tafoya LOGAN, N.M. - Virginia Tafoya, 87, died Wednesday, Jan. 20, 1999. Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. today in San Antonio Catholic Church at Logan by the Rev. John C. Daniel of St. Anne's Catholic Church. Burial will be in the family plot at Logan Cemetery by Dunn Funeral Home. Mrs. Tafoya was born in Montoya and had been a longtime resident of Logan. She was a former resident of the Clayton area, moving to Logan after the death of her husband, Morris, in 1975. She was a homemaker and a member of the San Antonio Catholic Church at Logan. She was preceded in death by a son, Jacob, in 1978 and by two daughters, Lucy in 1994 and Linda in 1995. Survivors include his wife; three sons, Sylvan Tafoya, Joe Tafoya and Phillip Tafoya, all of Logan; two daughters, Gertrude Chavez of Las Cruces and Theresa Lavandoski of Albuquerque; a brother, Felix Hendren of Albuquerque; a sister, Mary Alarcon of Tucumcari; 21 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren. Bobby Leon Skeen CLOVIS, N.M. - Bobby Leon Skeen, 74, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 10 a.m. Monday in Central Christian Church in Clovis with the Rev. Daniel Campbell and the Rev. Kim Skeen officiating. Burial will be in Mission Garden of Memories with military honors by Cannon Air Force Base Honor Guard. Arrangements are by Muffley Funeral Home of Clovis. Mr. Skeen was born in Sweetwater, Texas, and moved to Clovis in 1936. He attended West Texas State University on a tennis scholarship, the University of Colorado where he was a member of Sigma Chi, and North Texas State University. Until 1979, Mr. Skeen owned and operated Skeen Dry Cleaners. He was in real estate sales until his retirement. He was a member and past deacon of Central Christian Church. He married Joella "Jody" Shelton in 1949 at Pampa. Survivors include his wife; two sons, Mike Skeen of DeSoto, Texas, and Marc Skeen of Midland; a daughter, Shelley Skeen of Canyon, Texas; and four grandchildren. The family suggests memorials be to Central Christian Church or the Plains Home Health and Hospice. Kansas Mary Flynt ELKHART, Kan. - Mary Flynt, 71, a former Hooker, Okla., resident, died Wednesday, Jan. 20, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. today in United Methodist Church at Hooker with the Rev. David Cook officiating. Burial will be in Hooker Cemetery at Hooker by Roberts Brothers Funeral Home of Hooker. Mrs. Flynt was born in Winfield, Kan., and moved to Raton, N.M., at a young age. She attended schools in Raton, graduating in 1945. She did clerical work for Bennett Transportation and later worked for Harris Abstract. She married Jack Flynt in 1977. They moved to Hooker, where they lived until about a year ago, when she moved to Elkhart. She was a member of United Methodist Church of Hooker where she was in the bell choir, a member of the Order of Eastern Star and helped with the school reading program. She was preceded in death by her husband in June and by a son, David Lee Camp. Survivors include her mother, Leota Kaufman of Hooker; a son, Kenny Camp of Raton; two stepsons, the Rev. Gary Flynt of Gage and Larry Flynt of Turpin; a daughter, Billie Sue Jackson of Elkhart; and nine grandchildren. The family requests memorials be to the American Cancer Society or the Morton County Care Center at Elkhart c/o Roberts Brothers Funeral Home, Box 745, Hooker, OK 73945. Elsewhere Otta Culpepper MIDLAND - Otta Culpepper, 90, died Wednesday, Jan. 20, 1999. Graveside services will be at 3 p.m. today in Dreamland Cemetery in Canyon. Arrangements are by Ellis Funeral Home of Midland. Mrs. Culpepper was born in Winters. In 1940, she married Charlie Elkins. Her second marriage was in 1987 to Raymond Culpepper. She was preceded in death by both husbands and in 1994 by a son, James "Hoss" Inman. Survivors include a son, Jerre Inman of Abilene; seven grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. Johnny Leslie Baugh ODESSA - Johnny Leslie Baugh, 55, formerly of Amarillo, died Friday, Jan. 22, 1999. Graveside services will be at 2 p.m. today in Monahans Memorial Cemetery in Monahans. Arrangements are by Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home of Odessa. Mr. Baugh was born in Monahans. He was a law-enforcement officer in Liberal, Kan., Guymon, Okla., Amarillo and Shallowater and in security for the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas. He was an active member of the South Plains Criminal Investigators Association, Texas Police Association and Sheriffs Association of Texas. Mr. Baugh was the original KVII Channel 7 "Man in Motion" news reporter in Amarillo from 1969 until 1970. In 1967, he was instrumental as a co-owner in bringing Metropolitan Ambulance Co. to Amarillo from Wichita, Kan. Survivors include a daughter, Rebecca Monterrubio of Spring; a brother, Bob Dobbins of Lubbock; and a granddaughter. Amarillo Lynnell Gae Lemons Lynnell Gae Lemons, 41, of Amarillo, died Wednesday, Jan. 13, 1999, at Phoenix. Memorial services will be at 2 p.m. today in River Road Fellowship Church with the Rev. Faye Roberts, pastor, officiating. Arrangements were by Lundberg White Rose Chapel at Glendale, Ariz., 5310 W. Northern Ave. Mrs. Lemons was born in Phoenix and moved to Amarillo in 1990. She was coowner of Lemons Trucking Co. She was a member of River Road Fellowship Church and a volunteer for Cornerstone Outreach Center. Survivors include her husband, Tony James; a daughter, Mrs. Kurt (Christine V.) Myers of Guymon, Okla.; parents, Patricia and Roger Lake of Phoenix; and two brothers, Guy Lake and Thomas Lake, both of Phoenix. The family requests memorials be to Cornerstone Outreach Center, 6418 River Road, Amarillo, TX 79108. E. Verne Gordon E. Verne Gordon, 85, of Amarillo, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. today in Westminster Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Ron Holmes and the Rev. John A. Gordon, a retired Presbyterian minister, officiating. Burial will be in Llano Cemetery by Schooler Funeral Home, 4100 S. Georgia. Mr. Gordon was born in Glenrose. He graduated from Amarillo High School in 1932 and attended Amarillo College. He was a sergeant in the 400th Armored Field Artillery Battalion in 1942. Battles he was in included Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhineland and Central Europe, where his unit was one of the first to enter liberated Berlin in 1945. Decorations and citations he received were the American Theater Campaign Ribbon, EAME Campaign Ribbon with five Bronze Stars, Good Conduct Medal, one Service Stripe, three Overseas Service Bars and a Victory Medal. He was honorably discharged in 1945. He was a member of Amarillo Lodge 731, a member and past elder of Westminster Presbyterian Church and Streamline Royal Rovers Trailer Club. He began working for Phillips Petroleum in Amarillo in 1941, where he was a bookkeeper/clerk. He retired in 1976 in Bartlesville, Okla., and returned to Amarillo in 1992. He married Elizabeth Hales in 1945 at Amarillo. Survivors include his wife; and a brother, W. Durward Gordon of California. The family requests memorials be to Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2526 Wimberly, Amarillo, TX 79109-2138 or the Leukemia Society of America Inc., 2651 N. Harwood, Suite 240, Dallas, TX 75201. Bobby Travis Sanders Bobby Travis Sanders, 59, of Amarillo, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Memorial services will be at 2:30 p.m. Sunday in First Assembly of God in Sunray with Freida Bryant, pastor, and Holley Ensey, pastor, officiating. Arrangements are by Boxwell Brothers Funeral Directors, 2820 Virginia Circle. Mr. Sanders was born in Telephone. He was in the insurance business and a member of the Pentecostal Church of God. He married Linda Walker in 1990 at Amarillo. Survivors include his wife; a son, Bobby John Sanders of Amarillo; three daughters, Crystal Ferris of Boise, Idaho, Terri Dawn Sanders of Denver and Heidi Anne Sanders of Amarillo; a stepson, James Glenn Carnagey of Oklahoma City; four stepdaughters, Barbara Bewley and Karen Williams, both of Gainsville, Pamela Mitchell of Floresville and Jeanette Hulse of Amarillo; his mother, Roena Sanders of Sunray; 12 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. The family will be at 3711 E. 17th and suggest memorials be to a favorite charity. The body will not be available for viewing. Betty Jo Walton Betty Jo Walton, 74, of Amarillo, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Graveside services will be at 2 p.m. Monday in Fairview Cemetery in Memphis with the Rev. O.K. Bowen, pastor of First Baptist Church in Memphis, officiating. Arrangements are by Boxwell Brothers Funeral Directors, 2820 Virginia Circle. Mrs. Walton was born in Rhome and lived in Memphis for more than 40 years. She was a homemaker and member of First Baptist Church of Memphis. In 1989, she moved to Amarillo. She was preceded in death by her husband, Andy Walton, in 1979. She is survived by a brother, Marvin Eugene Byrom of Nashville, Ark.; and several nieces and nephews. Aletha Mac Linville Aletha Mac Linville, 88, of Amarillo, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 10 a.m. Monday in Blackburn-Shaw Funeral Directors, Memorial Chapel, Fifth Avenue and Pierce St., with the Rev. Royce Womack of San Jacinto United Methodist Church officiating. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. Mrs. Linville was born in Dallas and moved to Amarillo when she was 3. She graduated from Amarillo High School and was a homemaker. For 25 years, she taught Sunday school at San Jacinto United Methodist Church where she was a member. She married George Linville in 1935 at Tulia. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Janice Robertson. Survivors include her husband; a son, George R. Linville Jr. of Wylie; three daughters, Joy Cassebaum of Elberta, Ala., Jean Weems of Lakewood, Colo., and Judy Byrum of Hertford, N.C.; eight grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and a great-great-grandchild. The family suggests memorials be to Crown of Texas Hospice, 1000 S. Jefferson, Amarillo, TX 79101. Francis Ogden Francis Ogden, 82, of Amarillo, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. Monday in Pleasant Valley Christian Church, 327 E. Central, with the Rev. Jerry Davey, pastor, officiating. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery by Memorial Park Funeral Home, 6969 E. Interstate 40. Mrs. Ogden was born in Snyder and moved to Amarillo in 1942 from Tucumcari, N.M. She was employed as a caretaker. She was a member of Pleasant Valley Christian Church and Rebekah Lodge. She married Harold Ogden in 1938. She was preceded in death by her husband in 1975 and by a son, Elmer Ogden, in 1995. Survivors include a son, Ben Ogden of Amarillo; a daughter, Fern Ogden of Amarillo; a brother, David McCowan of Lubbock; three grandchildren; and six greatgrandchildren. The family suggests memorials be to a favorite charity. Kimberly Gay Webb Carr Kimberly Gay Webb Carr, 35, died Wednesday, Jan. 20, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. today in Christ the King Catholic Church. Burial will be in Balmorhea Cemetery by Pecos Funeral Home of Pecos. Mrs. Carr was born in Alpine and had been an Amarillo resident for nine years. She was a homemaker and a Catholic. Survivors include her husband, Terry Carr of Amarillo; a daughter, Carissa Kaye Carr of Amarillo; her parents, Patsy Occhiato of Pueblo, Colo., and Ralph Edmond Webb of Carson City, Nev.; a brother, Jerry Don Webb of Arab, Ala.; and her grandparents, Merle Payne of Balmorhea and A.C. and Verna Webb of Guntersville, Ala. Millie Perdue Millie Perdue, 74, of Amarillo, died Friday, Jan. 22, 1999. Services will be at 11 a.m. Monday in N.S. Griggs & Sons Funeral Directors, Pioneer Chapel, 2615 Paramount Blvd., with the Rev. Danny Logan of Bell Avenue Baptist Church officiating. Burial will be in Llano Cemetery. Mrs. Perdue was born in Calipatria, Calif., and moved to Amarillo in the late 1920s. In 1991, she retired from Culligan. She was a member of Bell Avenue Baptist Church. She married Gene Perdue in 1949 at Amarillo. Survivors include her husband; two daughters, Nancy Perdue of Seattle and Debbie Collins of Austin; four brothers, H.E. Floyd of Sacramento, Calif., Frank Floyd of San Bernardino, Calif., James Floyd of San Antonio and Bill Floyd of Missouri; two sisters, Betty Gudgeon of Cottage Grove, Wis., and Louise Jones of Amarillo; and a granddaughter. The family will be at 1503 Avondale. Family visitation will be from 6 until 8 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home. Eula Virginia Choate Eula Virginia Choate, 73, of Amarillo and formerly of Panhandle, died Friday, Jan. 22, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. Monday in First Baptist Church of Panhandle with Dr. Jim Perkins of the church officiating. Burial will be in Panhandle Cemetery in Panhandle by Blackburn-Shaw Funeral Directors, Memorial Chapel, Fifth Avenue and Pierce St. Mrs. Choate was born in Booneville, Miss. She moved to Panhandle in 1952 and then to Amarillo in 1998. She was a homemaker and a Stanley Home Products representative for 35 years. She married Brooks Choate in 1945 at Dell, Ark. He died in 1988. Survivors include two sons, Marion Leon Choate of San Angelo and Robert Brooks Choate Jr., of Amarillo; two daughters, Virginia Ann Hamilton of Amarillo and Ada Louise Calhoun of Oklahoma City; two sisters, Corean Thomas of Amarillo and Allie Holder of Winston Salem, N.C.; seven grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. The family will be at 6040 W. Interstate 40, No. 280 G. On Monday, they will be at 1410 Franklin in Panhandle. The family suggests memorials be to American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association or the First Baptist Church of Panhandle. Viewing will be from 9 a.m. until service time at the church. Canyon James Paul Golden James Paul Golden, 76, of Canyon, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 1999. Services will be at 2 p.m. Monday in Brooks Funeral Directors of Canyon Chapel with Dr. Charles Price, pastor, officiating. Graveside services will be at 4:30 p.m. in Rose Hill Cemetery in Tulia. A descendent of area pioneers, Mr. Golden was born and raised in Tulia. He graduated from Tulia High School and then West Texas State University in 1951. A veteran of the Air Force, he moved to Canyon from South Carolina in 1989. He married Pauline Lee in 1943 at Canyon. He was preceded in death by a son, Jimmy Lee Golden, in 1971. Survivors include a son, Harvey Golden of West Columbia, S.C.; a daughter, Dana Ammer of West Columbia; a sister, Thelma Currie of Canyon; and three grandchildren. The family suggests memorials be to Gideons, P.O. Box 405, Canyon, TX 79015; or Rose Hill Cemetery, Box 116, Tulia, TX 79088. Oklahoma Randy D. McFatridge GUYMON, Okla. - Randy D. McFatridge, 39, died Tuesday, Jan. 19, 1999, at Houston. Services will be at 10 a.m. today in Bunch-Roberts Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Dick Powell officiating. Burial will be in Elmhurst Cemetery. Mr. McFatridge was born in Tulsa and grew up in LaJunta, Colo. He moved to Guymon in 1977. He had been a WalMart employee for the past three years. Survivors include his mother, Patricia McFatridge of the home; a sister, Cheryl Skotek of Guymon; and maternal grandmother, Mollie Dacy of Guymon. The family requests memorials in lieu of flowers be to the American Cancer Society for cancer research c/o Bunch-Roberts Funeral Home, P.O. Box 1112, Guymon, OK 73942.