All Obituaries

John Lewis Benard, of Metropolis, Illinois, passed away on Tuesday, July 16, 2019 at the age of 85.  John was born on March 12, 1934, in Metropolis, IL, to Herman and Mary Walbright Benard. He enlisted in the Army in 1954 and was stationed in Arlington, VA, where he was a corporal in the Military Police. On November 30, 1956, he married Alice Schulte. After leaving the Army, John and Alice moved to Metropolis, where they raised two daughters, Brenda and Bonnie. John was an avid...

Mrs. Peggy Edwards, age 86 of Benton, KY, formerly of Harrisburg, IL, passed away on Monday, July 8, 2019 at Stilley Assisted Living in Benton, KY. Funeral services will be held at 11 am on Saturday, July 13, 2019 at the Loftus-McManus Brookport Funeral Home with Darrell Simon and Bob Coburn officiating. Burial will follow in Pell Cemetery. Peggy was a member of Harrisburg Church of Christ. Peggy is survived by her daughter, Robyn Dowdy and husband Greg; two sons, Terry Edwards and wife...

Lester J. Meinders, age 93 of Metropolis, Illinois passed away at 4:55 am on Sunday, July 7, 2019 at Southgate Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Funeral services will be held at 1 pm on Wednesday, July 10, 2019 at Miller-Loftus-McManus Funeral Home with Rev. Kent Hollis officiating. Burial will follow in the St. John Lutheran Church Cemetery. Lester was a member of St. John Lutheran Church. He served in the United States Army as a Military Policeman during World War II. He owned and...

Mrs. Margaret Hocker, age 78, of Metropolis, IL, formerly of Los Angeles, CA, passed away at 7:15 pm on Tuesday, July 9, 2019 at her home, surrounded by her family after a long battle with cancer. A celebration of Margaret’s life will take place on Saturday, July 20, 2019 from 6 to 8 pm at Denise and Doug’s home. All family and friends are invited to attend. Mrs. Hocker retired as a manager of Happy Heart Senior Citizen Center. Margaret is survived by her daughters, Corrine...

James Foss, age 79, of Grantsburg, IL, passed away on Monday, July 1, 2019 at the family farm house that he was born in. Funeral services will be held at 11 am on Saturday, July 6, 2019 at St. John Lutheran Church with Rev. Kent Hollis officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery with military rites. James was united in marriage with Carolyn Sue Cromeenes on June 7, 1964 and they were married 50 years until her passing in 2014. Mr. Foss was an U.S. Army veteran who served as a...

Mr. Robert “Bob” Howell, age 84 of Metropolis, Illinois passed away at 5:26 am on Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at Baptist Health Paducah. Funeral services will be held at 1pm on Saturday, June 29, 2019 at Aikins-Farmer-Loftus-McManus Funeral Home with Shane Baker and Cletus McClane officiating. Burial will follow in the Metropolis Memorial Gardens. Bob owned and operated Howell’s Used Furniture in Metropolis for many years and was a member of Living Waters Pentecostal Church in...

Natasha "Nikki" Sparks, age 34, of Metropolis, IL, passed away on Thursday, June 27, 2019 at Massac Memorial Hospital. Nikki is survived by her father, Steve Abney and wife Anna; fiancé, Shane Pace; sisters, Dana Corns and Robin Chance; brothers, Phillip Abney and Waylon Abney; grandmother, Barbara Kane; uncles, Chris Vance and Billy Young and wife Connie; several nieces, nephews, and cousins. She was preceded in death by her mother, Linn Sparks. Services are pending at...

Patsy Ann Harris, age 79 of Metropolis, Illinois, passed away at 1:10 pm on Thursday, June 13, 2019 at Metropolis Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Graveside services will be held at 1 pm on Wednesday, June 19, 2019 at the IOOF Cemetery in Metropolis with Rev. Jon Cockrel officiating. Patsy was retired from West Kentucky Community and Technical College, where she taught nursing. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Metropolis. Patsy is survived by her son, Kyle...

Velda Louise Jones age 77 of Bardwell, KY passed away Saturday, June 15, 2019 at the Ray and Kay Eckstein Hospice Care Center in Paducah, KY.  Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, June 18, 2019 at 12 noon at the Aikins-Farmer- Loftus-McManus Brookport Funeral Home with Bro. Troy DeWeese officiating. Burial will follow in the Mt. Sterling Cumberland Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Velda is survived by her children, Tina L. Jones of Lexington, KY and Kenyon H. Jones of Bardwell, KY,...

Travis Lee Girtman age 35 of Metropolis, IL, passed away June 8, 2019 at Baptist Health in Paducah, KY, with his loving family by his side. Funeral services will be at 1 pm on Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at the Aikins-Farmer Loftus-McManus Funeral Home with Dr. Joe Buchanan officiating. Burial to follow in the Metropolis Memorial Gardens. Born August 12, 1983, Travis was a 2002 graduate of Massac County High School. He was employed at Big John’s of Metropolis and TJ Maxx of Paducah, KY....