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)
ADRIAN, Philip J., 64,
St. Roch, Indianapolis, June 9.
Brother of Julia Adrian Aumen, Anna Adrian Murphy, Janet Adrian Nixon, George and Mark Adrian. Stepson of Effie Mae Adrian. Uncle and great-uncle of several.
ALVARADO, Jr., Javier, 25, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, April 2. Son of Javier and Carlotta Alvarado. Brother of Ashley Alvarado.
BARRETT, Richard, 81, St. Gabriel, Connersville,
June 10. Husband of Dana Barrett. Father of Rett and Richie Barrett. Brother of Bill and Monte Barrett. Stepbrother of Mike Johnson. Grandfather of eight. Great-grandfather of five.
BIERMAN, Merrel J., 99, St. Mary of the Knobs, Floyd County, June 22. Father of Janice Bezy, Marilyn Francke, Marcia Huth, Theresa Loftus, James, Joe and Tony Bierman. Brother of Franklin Bierman, Sr. Grandfather of 20. Great-grandfather of 29.
BROWN, Melissa M., 74, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, May 11. Wife of Charles Brown. Mother of Matt and Tim Brown. Sister of Mary Dale, Madonna Kastings, Marlene Norton, Marjorie Thomas, Mark and Melvin Winzenread. Grandmother of two.
BURKE, Margaret (MacLeod), 81, St. John Paul II, Sellersburg, June 17. Wife of Larry Burke. Mother of Shannon Rush, Mary Beth Schuckman, Kathleen and Michael Burke. Grandmother of four.
CARRICO, Victor, 91, St. Michael, Cannelton, June 7.
Father of Connie Miller, Jim and Rick Carrico. Brother of Ann Harris. Grandfather of eight.
COLLIER, Joan M., 88, St. Malachy, Brownsburg, June 27. Mother of Kristin Underwood, Theresa Zimmermann, Deacon Daniel, Michael, Scott and Steve Collier. Grandmother of 15. Great-grandmother of 22. Great-great-grandmother of one.
DEAVER, John W., 84, St. Mary of the Knobs, Floyd County, June 15. Husband of Rowena Knasel. Father of Natasha Finn, Andrea, John III, Robert Deaver, Sr., Don and John Knasel. Grandfather of five. Great-grandfather of two.
ECKSTEIN, Maurice, 86, St. Maurice, Napoleon, June 10. Husband of Helen Eckstein. Father of Joan McKamey, Brenda Moster, Gina Seaton, Linda Vannatta, Sharon Wietlisbach, Andy and Ric Eckstein. Brother of Leonard Eckstein. Grandfather of 21. Great-grandfather of four.
ERHART, Anna Mae, 87, St. Anthony of Padua, Morris, June 18. Wife of Ronald Erhart. Mother of Diane Batta, Marilyn Caudill, Brenda Kraus, Carla Prickel, Brian, Kenneth, Kevin and Mark Erhart. Sister of Shirley Doll. Grandmother of 21. Great-grandmother of 19.
FLACK, Margaret F., 79, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, April 16. Sister of David, James, Joseph and Paul Flack. Aunt of several.
GOFFINET, Claris, 94, St. Augustine, Leopold, June 9.
Mother of Theresa Bennett-Lynch, Emma Hoffman, Pat Howell, Rosa Hutchins, Susie Ridener, Charlie, Donald and Gerald Goffinet. Grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother of several.
HARMEYER, Mary Joyce, 90, St. Mary-of-the-Rock, Franklin County, June 6. Mother of Ella, Ted and Tom Harmeyer. Grandmother of six. Great-grandmother of nine.
HENDERSON, Julia A., 60, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Richmond, June 22. Wife of Jerry Henderson. Mother of Sarah King and Arlen Henderson. Daughter of Shelby Kegley. Sister of Brenda Stewart. Grandmother of eight.
HOLMAN, Mary G., 99, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, May 29. Mother of Michelle Tennell and Michael Holman. Sister of Janet Hodson and Robert AmRhein. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of 11.
JOLLIFF, Angela, 58, St. Gabriel, Connersville, June 20. Mother of Brae-Ann and Brenton Jolliff. Daughter of Ronnie Isaacs and Susie Taylor-Risselman. Sister of Amy Fohl, Kim Isaacs and Niki Phelps. Stepsister of Sherrie Alcorn, Heather, Cory, Edward and Shawn Reagan. Grandmother of three.
KOONTZ, Patricia M., 80, St. Malachy, Brownsburg, June 26. Mother of Susie Bates, Ruth Diaz, Janet O’Connor, Carol Reinken, Marjorie Wilkinson, Gary and Keith Koontz. Grandmother of 20. Great-grandmother of 32.
LEAP, Richard S., 72, St. Martin of Tours, Martinsville, June 13. Husband of Cynthia Leap. Brother of Randy Leap. Uncle of several.
MISSI, Barbara A., 80, St. Mary of the Knobs, Floyd County, June 26. Mother of Dianna Foster and Robert Missi, Jr. Grandmother of three.
O’DONNELL, Mary E., 80, St. Matthew the Apostle, Indianapolis, June 16. Mother of Shannon FitzGerald, Molly Jessen and Michael O’Donnell. Sister of Edward, Louis and Robert Ripperger. Grandmother of 10. Great-grandmother of one.
POWERS, Anna R., 91, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis,
May 21. Mother of Kerry and Mark Powers. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of five.
PURICHIA, Doris, 89, St. Michael the Archangel, Indianapolis, June 19. Mother of Rebecca Gilbert, Nula Kelly, Teresa Stinnett, Michael and Vince Purichia. Sister of Shirley Looper, Mary O’Riley and Charles Neff. Grandmother of 22. Great-grandmother of 24.
RAMSEY, Lisa M., 62, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis,
June 3. Sister of Joanne Cassada, Janet Farmer, Lorrie Gruner, Greg and Tim Kuehr. Aunt of several.
SEEWER, Jr., Alfred, 89, St. Mary of the Knobs, Floyd County, June 21. Husband of Milred Seewer. Father of David, Dennis and Steven Seewer. Grandfather of seven. Great-grandfather of seven.
SLINGER, Margaret J., 82, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, June 1. Wife of Charles Slinger. Mother of Valerie Nichols, Penelope Patton, Rebecca Scott and James Redstone. Stepmother of Angela Beghtel, Cindy Smith, David, Gary, Mark and Robert Slinger. Sister of Sharon Landers. Grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother of several.
STEEN, Barbara (Gratzer), 86, St. Pius V, Troy, June 17. Mother of Beth Beach, Julie Fest, Brian and Steve Steen. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of 10.
STILES, Sandra S., 76, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, May 12. Wife of Kenneth Stiles. Mother of Sindy Parker Alexander, Ron Parker and Scott Stiles. Grandmother of several.
STUMLER, Nathan, 37, St. Mary, New Albany, June 8.
Son of Randall Stumler. Stepson of Karen Stumler. Brother of Mary Anne, Sarahjane, Alfie, Henry and Oscar Sumler.
WALSH, Patrick, 92, St. Michael the Archangel, Indianapolis, June 25. Husband of Maria Walsh. Father of Maria Bingham, Elizabeth O’Gara, Christopher, Edward and Thomas Walsh. Brother of Ellen Brengman and John Walsh. Grandfather of 14.
WILHELM, Joan L. (Fox), 89, St. Roch, Indianapolis, June 22. Mother of Beth McMahon, Ben, Chris, Francis and Nicholas Wilhelm. Grandmother of eight. Great-grandmother of two.
WOODS, Margaret, 82, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, May 28. Mother of Greg, Kevin, Mark and Scott Woods. Sister of Mary Beth Malone. Grandmother of 12. Great-grandmother of six.
Providence Sister Mary Roger Madden served in education, as community historian
Providence Sister Mary Roger Madden, a member of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, died on June 24 at Mother Theodore Hall on the campus of her religious community’s motherhouse. She was 102.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on July 6 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception at the motherhouse in St. Mary-of-the-Woods. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Sister Mary Roger was born on Dec. 5, 1920, in Decatur, Ill. She entered the Sisters of Providence on Sept. 16, 1940, and professed final vows on Jan. 23, 1949.
Sister Mary Roger earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and a master’s degree in English at Indiana University in Bloomington.
During her 82 years as a member of the Sisters of Providence, Sister Mary Roger ministered as an educator in Catholic schools for 40 years in California, Illinois, Indiana and Washington, D.C.
At the motherhouse, she served at the community’s House of Prayer from 1969-71. Beginning in 1986, she became her community’s historian and wrote the third volume of its history, covering the period from 1890-1926. From 1998-2007, Sister Mary Roger ministered as pilgrimage coordinator at the community’s Providence Center. She also served as the coordinator of the community’s Blessed Sacrament Chapel from 2006-17.
In the archdiocese, in addition to her service at the motherhouse, Sister Mary Roger ministered at St. Mary School (now part of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School) in Richmond from 1952-54, Our Lady of Providence High School in Clarksville from 1964-65 and at
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College from 1968-69.
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.
Providence Sister Lois Ann Stoiber served in Catholic schools for 55 years
Providence Sister Lois Ann Stoiber, a member of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, died on June 22 at the Gibson Family Center in Terre Haute. She was 96.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on June 29 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception at the motherhouse in St. Mary-of-the-Woods. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
Sister Lois Ann was born on May 6, 1927, in Joliet, Ill. She entered the Sisters of Providence on Feb. 2, 1946, and professed final vows on Aug. 15, 1953.
Sister Lois Ann earned a bachelor’s degree in education at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and a master’s degree in education at Illinois State University in Normal, Ill.
During her 77 years as a member of the Sisters of Providence, Sister Lois Ann ministered as an educator in Catholic schools for 55 years in Illinois and Indiana—38 of them as a teacher, 17 in support roles. After retiring from teaching, she served in Catholic schools as a secretary, clerk and teacher’s aide. In 2020, Sister Lois Ann returned to the motherhouse where she committed herself entirely to prayer.
In the archdiocese, Sister Lois Ann served at the former St. Patrick School in Indianapolis from 1952-53.
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.
Katherine Danda, 67, mother of Father Sean Danda, died on June 20
Katherine A. (Lisak) Danda, the mother of Father Sean Danda, pastor of St. Malachy Parish in Brownsburg, died on June 20. She was 67.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on June 26 at St. Malachy Church in Brownsburg. Burial followed at St. Malachy West Cemetery in Brownsburg.
Born and raised in Michigan City, Ind., Danda married her husband Richard Danda on Dec. 28, 1976. During her life as a wife and mother, she suffered from scleroderma, which caused multiple health issues.
Danda’s Catholic faith, especially praying the rosary daily and other devotional prayers, was the foundation of her hope in the midst of her physical hardships.
Her witness of faith inspired her two children to discern vocations of service in the Church: Father Sean Danda and Society of Our Lady of the Trinity Sister Solanus Casey Danda.
Danda was a member of St. Malachy Parish in Brownsburg and of its Altar Society.
In addition to her husband and children, she is survived by her sister, Susan Grattenthaler, and brothers James and Michael Lisak.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Society of Our Lady of the Trinity Sisters, 1200 Lantana St., Corpus Christi, Texas, 78407. †