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)
BECHTOLD, Sr., Robert, 95, St. Martin of Tours, Martinsville, March 7. Father of Margaret McGuire, Robert, Jr. and Richard Bechtold. Grandfather of 13. Great-grandfather of 19.
BOX, Johnathon, 27, St. Lawrence, Indianapolis, Feb. 29. Father of Bentley and Bryson Box. Son of Mary Box. Brother of Jennifer Kessler and Joyce Box.
DELUCA, Joseph S., 95, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, Feb. 14. Father of Tom DeLuca. Grandfather of three. Great-grandfather of three.
DILLON SULLIVAN, Joanne, 92, St. Luke the Evangelist, Feb. 28. Mother of Margaret Dillon, Agnes Hall, Sally McGree, Katie Robinson, Francis and Vincent Dillon. Grandmother of 12. Great-grandmother of 20.
ECKSTEIN, Joseph H., 81, St. Anthony of Padua, Morris, March 6. Father of Debbie Kaeser, Bev Knueven, Andy, Joey and Pat Eckstein. Brother of Rosella Koehne, Franciscan Sister Helen Eckstein and Tony Eckstein. Grandfather of 17. Great-grandfather of eight.
GRIESHOP, Jeffrey T., 64, Holy Family, Oldenburg, March 4. Father of Kim Owens and Will Grieshop. Son of Rita Giesting. Brother of Sandy Cameron and Lisa Struewing. Grandfather of one.
LUKEN, Juanita T. (Crowley), 93, St. Margaret Mary, Terre Haute, Jan. 23. Wife of Albert Luken, Sr. Mother of Rita Cottrell, Theresa McCullough, Karen Shafer, Sheryl Smith, Albert Jr., Garold and Gregory Luken. Sister of Martha Boyke, Mary and Gertrude Dragon, Dorothy LeBrun, Rose Schaffer, Albert, George, James, John and William Crowley. Grandmother of 36. Great-grandmother of 93. Great-great-grandmother of 17. (Correction)
POPP, Carol Ann (Bickel), 70, St. John Paul II, Sellersburg, March 9. Wife of Marvin Popp. Mother of Lori Garrison and Dr. Bryan Popp. Sister of Brenda Wilkerson. Grandmother of six.
RIEMENSCHNEIDER, Joseph L., 74, St. Joseph, Shelbyville, March 7. Uncle of several.
SINCLAIR, Christine A., 68, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, Feb. 24. Wife of Jeff Walden. Mother of Kimberly Hall, Amy Harris and Nichole Williams. Sister of Deborah Morelock, Charles and Daniel Sinclair. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of four.
WILEY, Joan, 84, St. Joseph, Corydon, Feb. 28. Mother of Darrell Wiley. Sister of Mary Veronica Baumer, Mary Cabrini Gordon, Diane Mattingly, Mary Elaine Miles, Charlene Nugent, Mary Angie Puckett, Mary Terri Sympson, Johnny, Joseph and Michael Blandford. Grandmother of two.
WISE, Charles E., 84, Holy Family, New Albany, March 2. Father of Grace Martin, Melissa Mendick, Dee Pate and Chris West. Grandfather of seven. Great‑grandfather of seven.
Providence Sister Francis Edwards served in Catholic schools as a math teacher, librarian for 32 years
Providence Sister Francis Edwards died on March 2 at Mother Theodore Hall at the motherhouse of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods in St. Mary-of-the-Woods. She was 95.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on March 12 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception on the motherhouse grounds. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Sister Francis was born on Sept. 20, 1924, in Oklahoma City. She entered the Sisters of Providence on Sept. 8, 1942, and professed final vows on Aug. 15, 1950.
Sister Francis earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, a master’s degree in mathematics at Indiana State University in Terre Haute and a master’s degree in library science at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Okla.
During her 77 years as a member of the Sisters of Providence, Sister Francis served for 32 years in Catholic schools in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Oklahoma.
In the archdiocese, Sister Francis served in Indianapolis at the former St. Catherine of Siena School from 1948-50, St. Anthony School from 1950-52, the former St. John Academy from 1952‑55, the former St. Agnes Academy from 1959-66 and the former Ladywood High School from 1968-69.
Although she retired from ministry in 1999, Sister Francis returned to Indianapolis in 2006 when Providence Cristo Rey High School was founded to help set up its library, serving there until 2008.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of Providence, 1 Sisters of Providence Road, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876. †