Wanda Jean Walker Adams, 72, of Princewick, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2005.
Born July 12, 1933, she was the daughter of the late Milburn Dewey and Ada Lee Cooper Reedy Walker.
She was a member of Missionary Baptist Church of Princewick, a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and had a love for her cats.
Mrs. Adams was preceded in death by her parents, and sisters, Nora Lee Burnette and Iris Perdue.
Those left to cherish her loving memory include her husband, Clyde Adams; a daughter, Mona Kester and her husband, Billy, of Princewick; grandchildren, Kevin Kester and wife, Bonny, of Kyle, Texas, Sarah Lilly and her husband, Doug, of Shady Spring and Tony Kester and his wife, Edna, of Princewick; great-grandchildren, Christina, James, Jesse, Nicole, Josh, Sarah and Scott; and several nieces and nephews.
The family will be accepting flowers; however, a contrubution may be made to Hospice of Southern West Virginia.
Service will be 10 a.m. Saturday at Blue Ridge Funeral Home, 5251 Robert C. Byrd Drive, Beckley, with Pastor Lee Lafferty officiating. Burial will follow at Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens, Beckley.
Visitation will be 6 to 8 p.m. today at the funeral home.
Blue Ridge Funeral Home, Beckley, is serving the family.
Arleen Austin
Arleen Austin, of Beckley, died at 12:33 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005, at her home.
Arrangements by Ritchie and Johnson Funeral Parlor, Beckley.
William Hugh Carson
William Hugh Carson, 78, of 507 Broadway St., Beckley, died Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005, at BARH following a long illness.
Arrangements by Ritchie and Johnson Funeral Parlor, Beckley.
Moses Lee Cassis
CHARLESTON — Moses Lee Cassis, 82, of Charleston, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2005, in Fayetteville.
Born July 8, 1923, at Charleston, he was the son of the late Lee Moses Cassis and Doris Shaheen Cassis.
Mr. Cassis will be remembered as an honest, friendly and respected person who was good to everyone and always willing to lend a hand. A graduate of Charleston High School and DeVry University, Mr. Cassis played with the Charleston Reds league basketball team. He became a master electrician, and served his country during World War II on assignment as an electrician in Louisiana. He taught electrician apprentices in Charleston for 19 years. His caring for his students and the type of electrician they became was evident in the patient and compassionate training they received from him. He was a past president of his union, IBEW Local No. 466.
Mr. Cassis enjoyed teaching, learning and tinkering with all things electrical and mechanical. He had been known to contact NASA rocket scientists about articles they published in “Popular Mechanics” to learn more about their research.
A life-long member of St. George Orthodox Church in Charleston, he served in the past as president of the board of directors.
Most of his community service came through his involvement with St. George and with his Shriner and Masonic activities. He joined the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, Valley of Charleston, in 1968, where he was a member of the Building Committee and a large contributor to the Scottish Rite Childhood Language Disorder Center. He was a past wise master of the Chapter of Rose Croix and a past commander of Kadosh.
One of the greatest passions was his involvement in various branches of the Masonic brotherhood. Mr. Cassis was a 33rd Degree Mason and was honored by the Supreme Council in Washington by investing him a knight commander of the Court of Honor in 1975 and coronetting him a 33 degree Inspector General Honorary in 1989. He was a member of Tyrian Chapter No. 13, Royal Arch Masons, and a past commander of Kanawha Commandery No. 4. He was initiated into Charleston Chapter No. 88, Order of the Eastern Star, on June 10, 1974, and initiated into Beni Kedem Shrine on Nov. 2, 1968, where he was a member of the director’s staff. He was a past director of Charleston Court 11, Royal Order of Jesters. He drove the Fez in Shriner parades for many years.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Lee Moses and Doris Shaheen Cassis; brothers, Nick, Paul, Michael and Philip; and sister, Sadie Cassis.
Mr. Cassis is survived by his wife of 54 years, Rowanna Howard Cassis; daughters, Cindi Branham and her husband, David, of Huntsville, Ala., Candy Minotti and her husband, Jeff, of Charleston and Pam Hughes of Fayetteville; son, Dr. Bruce Cassis and his wife, Eva, of Fayetteville; and sisters, Virginia Cassis and Pauline Skaff, both of Charleston. He is also survived by 11 grandchildren, Lee, Philip, Louie, Daniel and David Cassis of Fayetteville, Mariah, Matthew, Sarah and Jennifer Minotti of Charleston, and Keaton and Tyler Hughes of Fayetteville.
Service will be 10 a.m. today at St. George Orthodox Church, Court and Lee streets, Charleston. Burial will be in Sunset Memorial Park, MacCorkle Avenue, South Charleston, with Masonic rites being conducted by the Kanawha Lodge No. 20 at the mausoleum.
Grandsons will serve as honorary pallbearers.
Visitation was 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Bartlett-Burdette-Cox Funeral Home, Charleston. A Trisagion service was held at 5:30 p.m. with Father Olof Scott officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family request memorials be made to St. George Orthodox Church, P.O. Box 2044, Charleston, WV 25327-2044.
Dodd-Payne-Hess Funeral Home, Fayetteville, and Bartlett-Burdette-Cox Funeral Home, Charleston, are in charge of arrangements.
Arminta Louise Elmore
SCOTTSMOOR, Fla. — Arminta Louise Elmore, 81, of 6065 Magnolia St., formerly of Bland, Va., died Monday, Dec. 19, 2005, at Parrish Medical Center in Titusville, Fla.
Born Jan. 23, 1924, in Princeton, she was the daughter of the late Otis Jesse and Beulah Mae Winfrey Belcher.
Mrs. Elmore was a retired caregiver and last attended Mount Horeb United Methodist Church in Princeton. She had been a resident of Scottsmoor for two years, moving there from Bland.
In addition to her parents, her husband, Robert J. Elmore, and a grandson, David Norton Lewis Jr., preceded her in death.
Survivors include two daughters, Connie Sue Lewis and husband, David, of Beckley and Barbara Gail Bird and husband, Lee, of Scottsmoor; two sons, Donald Lee Elmore and wife, Brenda, of Princeton and Sam Robert Elmore and companion, Deborah Haynes, and her children, Allison and Lauren, and grandson, Ryan, of Centreville, Va.; four grandchildren, Jeri Lynn Mullins and husband, Michael, Sarah Bird Woodring, Samantha Bird and Morgan Elmore; a great-grandson, Edward Thomas Woodring; two brothers, Clarence Belcher and wife, Helen, of Elyria, Ohio, and Eugene Belcher and wife, Jean, of Princeton; and a sister, Glenna Brown of Oakvale.
Service will 1 p.m. today at George W. Seaver Chapel of Seaver Funeral Home, Princeton, with the Rev. Olen Robertson officiating. Burial will follow at Roselawn Memorial Gardens, Princeton.
Family and friends will serve as pallbearers.
Friends may call noon until time of service today at the funeral home.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Southern West Virginia, P.O. Box 4172, Beckley, WV 25802, or to Mount Horeb United Methodist Church, C/O 602 Old Pisgah Road, Princeton, WV 24740.
Arrangements by Seaver Funeral Home, Princeton.
John Franco
CHAPMANSVILLE — John Franco, 79, formerly of Rupert, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2005, at Logan Regional Medical Center after a long illness.
He was born Jan. 30, 1926, at Nallen to Joseph and Bertha Ratzer Franco.
John attended Rupert High School and began working as a coal miner at the age of 15, working in deep mines between school terms. After years of mining in West Virginia and operating his own mine for a couple years, John accepted a position from the U.S. Department of Interior as a coal mine inspector supervisor, Mining Enforcement and Safety Division, traveling across the United States working various regions until his retirement in 1988. John was a loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, enjoyed his family and the endless wonders of the nature God’s hand created. John was a lifelong member of the Elks and a Christian of the Protestant faith.
He was preceded in his death by his parents, his first wife, Barbara Reynolds Franco, and son, Randy A. Franco; his brothers, Wilmer, George, Louis, August, Albert and Donald; and sisters, Threasa and Rose.
Those left to cherish this honorable and loving man’s memory are his wife, Vickie L. Franco; her daughter, April, and her grandson, Jimmy; John’s children, Sharon Janice Mundy and husband, David, Darrell Rickey Franco and wife, Emmy, Judy Ann Hardway and Jaquelyn L. Burkholder and husband, Tony; John’s brothers, Alfred, Theadore and Paul, and his sister, Mildred Ruth “Sis” Snead; John’s 10 grandchildren, Tearsa Keatley, Kristy Smerecki, David “J.R.” Yoakum, Kara Bragg, Darric Franco, Charity Burkholder, Justin Hardway, Krysta Hardway, Stephen Hardway and Kaysha Burkholder; and four great-grandchildren, Tori Bragg, Tyler Keatley, Caitlyn Keatley and Kyleigh Bragg, along with extended family members and friends.
Service will be 11 a.m. Tuesday at Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home, Rainelle, with Pastor Brent Franco officiating. Entombment will follow in Wallace Memorial Mausoleum, Clintonville.
Visitation will be 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
Arrangements by Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home, Rainelle.
Vivian Harper
On Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005, Vivian Harper went to see her Lord and Saviour in a Charleston hospital following a short illness. She was in her 82nd year.
Born Vivian Ilus Bullock on Aug. 8, 1923, in Duff, Tenn., she was the daughter of the late John and Emma Davis Bullock.
Vivian spent her childhood in Tennessee. She and her late husband, James, settled in Baltimore, Md., where she resided for 34 years. While in Maryland, she worked for Glen L. Martin Industries, retiring from Westinghouse with 20 years of service. She was a member of Trinity Baptist Church in Baltimore.
Vivian came to Beckley in 1984, settling on Oscar Avenue. Working as a caregiver for the elderly, Vivian was a member of Calvary Assembly of God on Sunset Avenue. In her leisure time she enjoyed working in her flowers, gardening, making dolls and bears and sewing in general. She was a much loved mother and a previous Nanny to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
The last survivor of her immediate family, she was preceded in death by her husband, James Westlake Harper, in September 1993; brothers, Fred, Everett and Charlie; and a sister, Ethel.
Survivors include two sons, Marvin Harper and his wife, Patty, of Beckley and Wesley Leon Harper of Pennsylvania; six grandchildren, Carol, Steven and Donna Harper, Michael Becker, Sharon Harper and Susan Crews; and four great-grandchildren, Madison and Helen Green and Joshua and Seth Crews.
Service will be 2 p.m. Saturday at Melton Mortuary Chapel, Beckley, with the Rev. John Jordan officiating. Entombment will follow in Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens, Beckley.
Friends may call 1 p.m. until time of service Saturday at the funeral home.
Pallbearers will be members of Calvary Assembly of God.
Donations of sympathy may be made to the Lupus Foundation of America, P.O. Box 631047, Baltimore, MD 21263-1047, in honor of Sharon Harper. The family may be contacted at the home of Marvin and Patty Harper, 104 Dutch Lane, Beckley.
Arrangements by Melton Mortuary, Beckley.
Eric Matthew Jordan
ROANOKE, Va. — Eric Matthew Jordan, 23, formerly of Richwood, died Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2005.
Service will be 1 p.m. today at Simons-Coleman Funeral Home, Richwood. Friends may call 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. today at the funeral home.
Arrangements by Simons-Coleman Funeral Home, Richwood.
Williams-Blue Ridge Funeral Home, 147 Virginia St., Sophia, is serving the family.
Earl Douglas Shelton
FENWICK MOUNTAIN — Earl Douglas Shelton, 82, died Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005.
Service will be noon Saturday at Simons-Coleman Funeral Home, Richwood. Friends may call 11 a.m. to noon Saturday at the funeral home.
Arrangements by Simons-Coleman Funeral Home, Richwood.
Rev. Timothy William Smith
GATEWOOD — The Rev. Timothy William Smith, 45, went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2005.
Born Sept. 21, 1960, at Oak Hill, he was the son of the late Irving W. Smith and Oretha Lee Robinson Smith.
Rev. Smith was a member of Oak Hill Apostolic Holiness Church where he was an associate minister and youth Sunday school teacher. He was a member of the Pentecostal Assembly of the Lord Jesus Christ. Church was his life and he enjoyed working for the Lord. He was a graduate of Fayetteville High School and he worked several years with Allegheny Gas as a service technician.
Survivors include his wife, Pamela M. Lewis Smith; two sons, Joshua I. Smith and Zachary W. Smith, both at home; a sister, Alma G. Coleman and her husband, Bruce, of Oak Hill; and a host of relatives, church family, and friends.
Service will be 11 a.m. Saturday at Oak Hill Apostolic Holiness Church with the Rev. Carlos Lewis, the Rev. Arliss Smith and the Rev. Louis Wooten officiating. Burial will follow in High Lawn Memorial Park, Oak Hill.
Friends may call 6 to 9 p.m. today at the church.
Dodd-Payne-Hess Funeral Home, Fayetteville, is in charge of arrangements.
Josh Vest
Josh Vest, 82, of Shady Spring, died Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005, at Raleigh General Hospital.
Arrangements by Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Home, Shady Spring.
