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)
ALLISON, Mary Jane. 84, St. Roch, Indianapolis, Jan. 26. Sister of Judith Allison and Emily King. Aunt and great-aunt of several.
BADER, Ronald W., 63, St. Jude, Indianapolis, Jan. 23. Husband of Debra Bader. Father of Stacy Bader. Son of Robert Bader. Brother of Cindy Dall and Nancy Smith.
BENNETT, Richard, 84, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, Dec. 16. Husband of Marie Bennett. Father of Jackie Flanigan and Tony Bennett. Grandfather of five.
BRUGGENSCHMIDT, Marian F., 86, St. Paul, Tell City, Jan. 22. Mother of M. Jane and Jim Bruggenschmidt. Grandmother of two. Great-grandmother of two.
BURDETTE, Hazel K., 96, St. Paul, Tell City, Jan. 26. Mother of Jean Floyd, Gary and Jerry George. Sister of Billie Jean Suiter. Grandmother of 10. Great-grandmother of 22.
CALLAHAN, Mildred, 94, St. Lawrence, Indianapolis, Jan. 12. Mother of Janice Griffith, Rita Wampler, Charles Jr., James and Robert Callahan. Grandmother of 12. Great‑grandmother of five.
CERAMI, Joyce, 70,
St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, Jan. 15. Mother of Paula Callis and Tonia Kopp. Sister of Allen and Leo O’Hara. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of two.
CLEMONS, Ernie, 94, St. Mary, Greensburg, Jan. 26. Father of Marty Ogden and Jeff Clemons. Grandfather of two. Great-grandfather of five.
CONCANNON, Virginia A., 91, St. Vincent de Paul, Bedford, Jan. 23. Mother of Jane Scott, Patrick and William Concannon. Sister of John Richards. Grandmother of two. Great-grandmother of two.
CONVERY, Hugh, 82, Holy Family, New Albany, Jan. 21. Husband of Sandra Convery. Father of Shannon Fairfield, Heather Powell and Hugh Convery. Brother of Patty Janus, Gerald, Terry and Tim Convery. Grandfather of six.
DANGLER, Robert J., 93, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, Jan. 21. Father of Coleen Martin, Pattiann Sharp, James and John Dangler. Grandfather of 13. Great-grandfather of 30.
ECKART, Paul E., 91, St. Joseph, Corydon, Jan. 22. Husband of Winnona Eckart. Father of John and Sam Eckart. Grandfather of five. Great-grandfather of 10.
GREHL, Anita, 72, St. Charles Borromeo, Milan, Jan. 24. Wife of Jim Grehl. Mother of Bob and Steve Grehl. Sister of Carol Greenwood, Sheila Lehrter, Bob, Brian, Gene, Jerry and Mike Voegele. Grandmother of six.
HAGNER, Herman F., 89, St. Jude, Indianapolis, Jan. 26. Father of Andrea Schultz and Joseph Hagner. Grandfather of three. Great-grandfather of one.
HALAS, Margaret J. (Daw), 80, St. Mary-of-the-Knobs, Floyd County, Jan. 27. Wife of James Halas. Mother of Vikki and James Halas. Sister of Louann Bell, Virginia Connelly-Daw, JT and Roy Daw. Grandmother of four. Great-grandmother of two.
HAMILTON, Mary M., 84, St. Christopher, Indianapolis, Jan. 27. Wife of Richard Hamilton. Mother of Susan Leonard, Shelly Ochs, Sherry Toms, Mark, Matt and Mike Hamilton. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of one.
HUFF, Bernard L., 84, Immaculate Conception, Millhousen, Jan. 24. Husband of Darlene Huff. Father of Tammy Condra, Robyn Greiwe, Kelly King, Brian and Randy Huff. Brother of Andrew Huff. Grandfather of 11. Great‑grandfather of three.
JACKSON, Evelyn C. (Dunkman), 90, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, Jan. 23. Mother of Linda Hargraves, LeAnn Hittle and Michael Jackson. Sister of Joann Worton. Grandmother of nine.
MANG, Leroy C., 74, St. Louis, Batesville, Dec. 6. Husband of Judith Mang. Father of Harold and Henry Mang. Brother of Mary Ann Klingworth and Paul Mang, Sr. Grandfather of five.
MCMAHON, James P., 75, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, Jan. 22. Brother of Geralyn Davis, Mary Ann Lowe, Karen Stein, Bill, Jack and Kevin McMahon. Uncle and great-uncle of several.
MEDJESKY, Hazel M., 99, St. Christopher, Indianapolis, Jan. 18. Mother of Rosalie Vawter. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of 14. Great-great-grandmother of 20. Great-great-great grandmother of seven.
MOORE, Nancy M. (Salyers), 85, St. Gabriel, Connersville, Jan. 27. Mother of Karen Powell and Michael Moore. Grandmother of one. Great-grandmother of three, great-great-grandmother of three.
NOCTON, June (Steinken), 91, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Richmond, Jan. 22. Mother of Susan Brunner, Carol Craig, Catherine Taylor and Michael Nocton. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of 22.
PRUETT, Robert D., 83, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, Jan. 18. Brother of Richard Pruett. Uncle and great-uncle of several.
PUKALA, Bonnie, 95, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, Jan. 20. Grandmother of two. Great-grandmother of three.
REILLY, Ada, 95, St. Lawrence, Indianapolis, Jan. 12. Mother of Kathleen Damisch, Eileen Guerrieri and Mary Krespach. Sister of Elmo Giacomelli. Grandmother of four. Great‑grandmother of four.
ROBERTSON, Sylvia, 91, St. Mary, New Albany, Jan. 19. Mother of Mark Cox. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of seven.
SCOTT, James C., 69, St. Jude, Indianapolis, Jan. 18. Husband of Mary Scott. Father of Laura Scott.
SMART, BRIAN E., 57, St. Matthew the Apostle, Indianapolis, Jan. 17. Husband of Tracy Smart. Father of Eileen, Sarah and Colin Smart. Brother of Michelle Lael, Joni Schmalzried and David Smart.
THEOFANIS, Colleen F., 86, St. Christopher, Indianapolis, Jan. 20. Mother of Stephanie Beatty and Tony Theofanis. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of one.
WALLACE, Leonard J., 95, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, Jan. 12. Husband of Eileen Wallace. Father of Nancy Daugherty, Terri DeFabis and Cindy Wallace Luce. Grandfather of one. Step-grandfather and step-great-grandfather of several.
WARNER, Betty, 90, Annunciation, Brazil, Jan. 5. Mother of Cathy Bennani and David Warner. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of two.
WENZEL, Mary T., 74, Christ the King, Indianapolis, Jan. 20. Sister of Paul and Peter Wenzel. Aunt and great-aunt of several. †
Carolyn Etienne, 82, mother of Archbishop Paul D. and Benedictine Sister Nicolette Etienne, died on Jan. 28
Carolyn (Voges) Etienne, the mother of Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Anchorage, Alaska, and Benedictine Sister Nicolette Etienne of Our Lady of Grace Monastery in Beech Grove, died on Jan. 28. She was 82.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Feb. 1 at St. Paul Church in
Tell City, where she was a lifetime member along with her husband Paul D. Etienne.
Etienne attended the former Academy of the Immaculate Conception in Ferdinand, Ind., and continued her studies at Indiana State University in Terre Haute.
She is survived by her husband, whom she married in 1957. In addition to Archbishop Etienne and Sister Nicolette, she is survived by her daughter Angie Ward, and her sons, Rich and Fathers Bernard and Zachary Etienne (both of the Evansville, Ind., Diocese). She is also survived by her siblings, Benedictine Sister Jeanne Voges, Kathy Peabody, Hubert and Jim Voges, and eight grandchildren
In addition to living as a faithful wife, mother and homemaker, she also worked as an office manager at a State Farm office where her husband was an agent, and was the first female member of the Tell City Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Daughters of Isabella. Etienne loved
theatre and was a cast member in many
Tell City summer play productions. She was an accomplished pianist, organist and choir member. She enjoyed music, gardening and the outdoors.
In his “Truth in Love” blog entry on Jan. 29, Archbishop Etienne noted that his mother’s “faith was certainly the driving force of her life, and the adornment of the home she created. As she learned her faith from her mom, she passed it on to us, and through her witness of life, brought many others into the warmth and compassion of Jesus.”
He wrote that, “By God’s providence, I was already in southern Indiana rather than Alaska when we put her in the hospital Friday evening. We surrounded her with love and prayers during the final two days of her life. We told stories, laughed and cried, embraced and said our goodbyes. It was a sacred moment, and one I’m sure would have pleased mom very much.”
Memorial gifts may be sent to Our Lady of Grace Monastery, 1402 Southern Ave., Beech Grove, IN 46107, or to St. Paul Parish, 824 Jefferson St., Tell City, IN 47586.
Franciscan Sister Adele Zahn served at Marian University for 55 years
Franciscan Sister Adele Marie Zahn, formerly Sister Mary Karen, died on Jan. 24 at the motherhouse of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Oldenburg. She was 98.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Jan. 29 at the Motherhouse Chapel in Oldenburg. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Adele Marie Zahn was born on May 12, 1919, in Dayton, Ohio.
She entered the Sisters of St. Francis on Dec. 28, 1937, and professed final vows on Aug. 12, 1942.
Sister Adele graduated from the former Atheneum of Ohio Teachers College in Cincinnati. She later earned a bachelor’s degree in French at Marian College (now Marian University) in Indianapolis, a bachelor’s degree in French literature from the University of Cincinnati, and master’s and doctorate degrees in French from Fordham University in New York.
During 81 years as a Sister of St. Francis, Sister Adele ministered as an educator for 67 years in universities and Catholic schools in Indiana, New York and Ohio, including 55 years at Marian University. Her positions there included professor of literature, French and humanities; academic dean; dean of students; and professor of courses in the school’s honors program.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of St. Francis, P.O. Box 100, Oldenburg, IN 47036-0100. †