Month: December 2021

Deb Crouch, 65, of New London, died Sunday, December 12, 2021 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics following a courageous battle with cancer. She was born January 30, 1956 in Parnell, Iowa to Wayne and Marjorie Suppel Gingerich. She was a 1974 graduate of Williamsburg High School and graduated from Kirkwood Community College. On September 18, 1976, she married Jerry Crouch in Holbrook, Iowa.
Deb worked in production at Motorola until it’s closing, then graduated from Southeastern Community College with a Graphic Design degree. She then worked as a graphic ad designer for the Mt. Pleasant News. She was of the Catholic faith; was a Girl Scout leader, Cub Scout leader and on the Boy Scout District Committee; served on the New London little league board; was head of Red Caboose Gift Shop at Midwest Central Railroad; and she enjoyed reading romance novels on her Kindle and doing cross stitch.
Survivors include her husband of New London; two sons, Joe of New London and Josh of Albany, Georgia; brothers Mike Gingerich of Riverside and Mark (Lynn) Gingerich of Chattanooga, Tennessee; and one sister Susie (Terry) Jones of Williamsburg. She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother Scott.
According to her wishes, her body has been cremated and inurnment will be held at a later date. A funeral mass will be held at 10:30 am, Tuesday, December 21, 2021 at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Mt. Pleasant with Father Paul Connolly officiating. Visitation will begin at noon on Monday at Elliott Chapel, New London with the family present to greet friends from 5:00 – 7:00 pm. Memorials have been established for the American Cancer Society and Midwest Central Railroad. Online condolences may be left at www.elliottfuneralchapel.com.

Wanda G. McPheron, 89, of New London, died Sunday, December 19, 2021 at her home.

Arrangements are pending at Elliott Chapel, New London.

Jane A. Graf, 74, of Kirksville, Missouri, died at 11:50 p.m., Friday, Dec. 17, 2021, at the Schuyler County Nursing Home in Queen City, Missouri. She’d courageously battled kidney cancer since 2018.

Jane was born Nov. 6, 1947 in Ottumwa to Murl and Madelyn Elsensohn Carr. She grew up on a small dairy farm near Douds and married Richard C. Graf Dec. 18, 1966 in Douds.

She graduated from Van Buren High School in 1965 and enrolled at Northeast Missouri State Teachers College in Kirksville. She transferred to Parsons College in Fairfield after marriage and graduated in 1968.

In addition to her family, Jane’s passion in life was teaching. She first taught at Pence Elementary in Fairfield and later at schools in Birmingham, Stockport, and Douds, where she had also attended school. She retired in 2011 but later resumed teaching at Faith Lutheran School in Kirksville. All told, she spent five decades in classrooms in Iowa and Missouri, teaching hundreds of students. In addition to her love of teaching, she took joy in helping mentor young teachers.

Her hobbies included reading, quilting, cooking, gardening, and watching sports, primarily college football and NASCAR.

She was preceded in death by her parents; a brother, Jerry Carr; and an infant sister, Judith Kay Carr.  Surviving are her husband and two sons, Mike of Leon, Iowa; Scott (Kelly) of Eagle, Idaho; seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Jane’s body has been cremated. Services are planned in 2022 in Douds and Kirksville and will be announced at a later date.  Pedrick Funeral Home, Keosauqua is in charge of arrangements. Memorials can be made to Hospice of Northeast Missouri or St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital may be mailed to the family at 2810 East Patterson, Kirksville, MO 63501.  Online condolences may be left at www.cranstonfamilyfuneralhome.com.

The family would like to thank the doctors and nurses who cared for Jane, including Dr. Scott Miller at Mercy Iowa City Cancer Care; Dr. Robert Floyd and the infusion nurses at Davis County Hospitals and Clinics and the staff at the Schuyler County Nursing Home.