Paul F. Urban, age 95, of Victoria, passed away on Saturday, January 6, 2024, at Hays Medical Center in Hays.

He was born February 22, 1928, in Loretto, Kansas, to Alois G. and Anna (Schlitter) Urban. He married Juliana (Braun) in Victoria on August 13, 1951.

Paul was a farmer most of his life, a jack of all trades. He retired from farming in 2001. In his early years, he worked for several drilling companies and also was a pumper. He was a member of The Basilica of St. Fidelis and a 1946 St. Joseph Military Academy graduate.

Roger Eugene Lee of Russell passed away on December 30, 2023, at the Redbud Village in Plainville at the age of 64.

He was born on December 16, 1959, to Kenneth Lee and Helen (Tremblay) Lee Smith in Phillipsburg, Kansas. Roger grew up between the Logan and Damar areas.

He worked in the oil field most of his life and was smart about it. For many years, he worked for Monty Karst.

He loved gardening and outside work. Roger was a great cook and will be remembered for his mashed potato recipe.

Betty Joy (Zweifel) Pruter, 87, of Natoma, passed away Tuesday, January 2, 2024, at her home.

She was born June 26, 1936, on the family farm near Waldo, Kansas. She was one of four children born to Robert and Bernice (Clow) Zweifel. She grew up in the Waldo area and graduated from Waldo High School. She then attended Ft. Hays State University and graduated with a degree in Education.

Donald Dean Keirns, 87, of Loveland, Colorado, passed peacefully on Thursday, December 21, 2023.

He was born to Willis Keirns and Maude Banks on September 22, 1936, in Woodston, Kansas. He graduated from Woodston High School in 1954, and after high school, he started working in residential construction.

In 1957, when work began to slow in Kansas, he moved to Loveland, Colorado. Don liked to frequent the local A&W; it was there where he met a carhop named Wanda Foss. Wanda and Don were married on June 21, 1959, and they raised six children.

Richard 'Rich' Hilgers, 66, passed away Dec. 20, 2023, at his home.

He was born Oct. 13, 1957, in Salina, to James Richard Hilgers and Elizabeth Anne (DeMurry) Hilgers.

Rich was a 1976 graduate of Trego Community High School in WaKeeney. On Feb. 20, 1982, he married Janet Siegrist at the Salem Community Church in rural Nickerson. They shared over 41 years of marriage.

David Leroy Griffin, 88, of Natoma, passed away at Hays Medical Center on December 20, 2023.

He was married to Barbara (Koehler) for 68 years.

He was born on June 4, 1935, at the Laton Family Farm in Rooks County, Kansas, to Melvin and Berniece (Manley) Griffin. He was one of six children.

Former Hays resident Lois Bell Abbott of Ellis passed away at the Hays Medical Center on December 19, 2023, at the age of 87.

She was born on January 25, 1936, to Walter Dixon and Winnie May (Hooper) Johnson in Hollis, Arkansas. She was married to Clarence Abbott on March 24, 1962. They were blessed with four children: Larry, Randy, Susan (Mick), and Bill.

A private family funeral service in Plainville is pending.

Robert J. “Bob” Berens, of Stockton, passed away on December 21, 2023, at the Solomon Valley Manor in Stockton, at the age of 90.

He was born on February 16, 1933, to Mattie Lee Cottrell, in Mobridge, South Dakota.

Bob came to Stockton with the oil field. He also worked for Sheets Paving, laying pavement on our highways and getting several accommodations. In the 1960s, he opened Bob’s Place and eventually added The Red Kitten. He sold Bob’s Place to Rick Lowry in 1990.

A long time ago, on February 15, 1961, in a town far, far away, Raymond E. “Ray” Shetterly III was born on the outer rims of Pittsburgh in a town called North Charleroi, Pennsylvania to Raymond E. and Gayle (Isaho) Shetterly, Jr. He passed away on December 19, 2023, at the Rooks County Health Center in Plainville, at the age of 62.

Kathryn “Kathy” (Forssberg) Cordell of El Dorado, Kansas, died December 14, 2023, at home with family following an extended hospital stay. Kathy was a longtime resident of the Kelso community near Council Grove.