Obituaries

Etta Leffler

C. Etta (Parson) Leffler, 80, of Aviston, Ill., died on April 6, at Memorial Hospital, Belleville, Ill.

Graveside service was held Saturday, April 9, 2016 at Oakland Cemetery, Warsaw, Ill., under the direction of Lamporte-St. Clair Funeral Home of Warsaw, Ill.

Leffler grew up in St. Francisville, Mo., the youngest of Charles and Anna (Toops) Parson nine children, and lived most of her life in Warsaw, Ill., and the tri-state (Missoruri, Illinois and Iowa.) area. She held various clerical jobs over the years, and retired from State Central Bank, Keokuk, Iowa, in 2002. In 2009, she moved to Aviston to be near her son.

Etta was an avid fan of the St. Louis Cardinals and Illini basketball; she enjoyed cooking, baking, gardening, and tending to the birds at her feeder.

She was preceded in death by her husband William J. Leffler, whom she married December 7, 1951, and passed away November 4, 1968; her young son, Michael; her parents; Parson; her sisters, May Trout, Virginia Martin, Ona Neal; and Annabelle Dunlap; and her brothers, Russell, Charles, Ira, and Robert Parson.

Surviving are her daughter, Wanda Jean (Kenneth) Mason of Warsaw, Ill.; son, Randy Charles (Shelly) Leffler of Aviston, Ill.; grandson, William Plowman of Chicago; and grand puppies Sasha and Sable.

Memorial donations are suggested to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

Lawrence Perschbacher

Lawrence M. Perschbacher, 81, of Shiloh, Ill., died April 6, 2016 in his home.

Visitation was held Sunday, April 10 and 11 2016 at Wolfersberger Funeral Home, O’Fallon.

A Mass of Christian Burial at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Shiloh, with the Rev. James Margason, presiding. Interment followed at Lake View Memorial Gardens, Fairview Heights.

Larry had served in the Army Reserves as a young man and had worked as a bookkeeper at Industrial Roller in Smithton. He currently worked at Lockwood Flooring in St. Louis. He was a hard worker and a good husband, father, grandfather and friend.

He was born on Feb. 16, 1935 in Shiloh, Ill. to Arnold and Ida (Rasp) Perschbacher

He was preceded in death by his wife Nancy (Louppe) Perschbacher; his parents; and his sister, Joan Bye.

Surviving are his daughters Susan Drown (the late Donald Drown) of Shiloh and Kathy (Bill) Mills of Barnsboro, N.J.; grandsons Bryan and Mark Drown, Billy (Kari) Mills, and Michael (fianceè Lauren) Mills; and great-granddaughters Addyson and Erianna.

Jeffrey Slaby

Jeffrey Thomas Slaby, 50, of O’Fallon, Ill., died unexpectedly on April 4, 2016, while visiting the family property in Arkansas.

Visitation was held Monday, April 11, 2016 at Wolfersberger Funeral Home, O’Fallon, and on, Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at St. Clare Catholic Church, Shiloh.

Funeral Service was held Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at St. Clare Catholic Church, Shiloh, with the Rev. Jim Deiters officiating.

He was born October 29, 1965, to Walter and Arlene (Nemeth) Slaby in Granite City, Ill.

Jeff grew up in Troy, Ill., graduating from Triad High School in 1983. He earned his Mechanical Engineering degree from the University of Illinois, and was employed at Phillips 66 Refinery in Wood River. Jeff enjoyed woodworking, golfing, boating, hunting, and being outdoors. He was a friendly and likable man, even to strangers, and never left anywhere without making a new friend. He was a loving husband and father and was very proud of his children.

He was preceded in death by his infant son, Thomas; infant sister, Christina, and his parents.

Surviving are his wife and high-school sweetheart Terri Lynn (Unger) Slaby, of O’Fallon; his children, Jacob, Kaitlyn, and Jackson, all of O’Fallon; his sister, Jennifer (Thomas) Weis of Trenton; his mother-in-law, Carol Koepernik of O’Fallon; his father-in-law, Raymond (Dorothy Dalton-Unger) Unger of St. Louis; his brothers-in-law, Tim (Kim) Unger of St. Louis, and Dr. Tom (Dr. Alice) Unger of Troy; nieces and nephews, Hannah and Matthew Weis, Kyle, Paige, and Chase Unger, and Kurt, Drew, and Grant Unger; and a big circle of friends.

Memorial donations are suggested to Shriner’s Hospital for Children or to the family, and will be accepted at the funeral home.

Helen Mooningham

Helen E. (Rasp) Mooningham, 94, of O’Fallon, formerly long-time resident of Shiloh, died on Wednesday, April 13.

Visitation was held Friday, April 15, 2016 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 205 Rasp St., Shiloh.

A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Friday, April 15, 2016 at church with the Rev. Jim Margason presiding.

Burial was in Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery, Shiloh, Ill. Helen was born Sept. 6, 1921 to Victor and Anna (Huber) Rasp.

She was a dietician for many years for the Diocese of Belleville, both at St. John Children’s Home and the Hincke Home for Retired Priests.

She was a long-time faithful parishioner at Corpus Christi Catholic Church and had been a member of the St. Ann Altar Sodality.

Helen was a loving and devoted mother and grandmother with a zest for life. She kept active well into her 90s, with her friends and neighbors at Cambridge House and Corpus Christi parish.

She was preceded in death by her parents ; her infant daughter, Vicky Ann; her brother, Edward “Bud” Rasp; and brother-in-law Henry Schwartz. Surviving are her children Mark Mooningham of Shiloh, Kay Lynn (Fred) Bain of Tucson, Ariz., granddaughter Kristy (James, Jr.) Lynch of Smithton; great-grandchildren Olivia Rose and James Joseph Lynch; sister Patricia “Patsy” Schwartz and nephew Victor Schwartz, both of Fairview Heights, Ill. Memorial donations are suggested to Corpus Christi Catholic Church.

Alain M. Griffin

Retired Lt. Col., USAF, Alain Morris Griffin, 60, of O’Fallon, Ill., died April 8, 2016, with his family at his side.

Visitation was held Friday, April 15, 2016 at Wolfersberger Funeral Home, O’Fallon, and on April 16 at First Baptist Church, O’Fallon.

A funeral service with military honors, was held April 16, 2016, at First Baptist Church in O’Fallon with the Rev. Doug Munton and the Rev. Skip Leininger officiating.

Alain attended University of Virginia and later Webster University. As a young adult, he taught school, coached youth basketball, and worked for a short time as a police officer.

In 1980, he joined the USAF, where he soon became a navigator on the C-130 Hercules. Much of his military career was spent in Policy and Doctrine.

In 2005, he retired from Transportation Command at Scott AFB. He was most recently employed at Scott AFB where he was a dedicated worker and enjoyed working with his colleagues.

Alain valued spending time with his family; he had a great sense of humor and strong work ethic.

A fan of University of Virginia basketball and a history buff, he enjoyed spending time restoring old cars, especially the ’65 fastback Mustang he rebuilt with his dad.

He was preceded in death by his father, Estie Morris Griffin.

Surviving are his wife Judy (Banks) Griffin; daughters, Danielle (Gary) Schultz and Megan (Christopher) Kruse; grandbabies Gabriel Alan Kruse and twins, Max Alexander and Emery Alaina Schultz, all of O’Fallon; his mother, Monique (Pajot) Griffin; and sister, Lynn (Dennie) Perkinson; nephew, John Joseph Pearson; and niece, Ashley Ingle.

Memorial donations are suggested to Heartland Hospice, Cedar Ridge Health & Rehab, or Siteman Cancer Center.

Rudolph Diaz

Rudolph “Rudy” Diaz, 86, of O’Fallon, Ill., died on April 13, 2016, in Maryville, Ill.

Visitation was held on Friday, April 22, 2016, at Schildknecht Funeral Home, O’Fallon, Ill.

Funeral service followed at the funeral home with the Rev. Danny Cox officiating.

Burial was n at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, St. Louis, MO. with full Military Honors

Mr. Diaz was born June 18, 1929 in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Rudy served 28 years in the U.S. Navy as a Machinist Mate, nuclear trained aboard various submarines. He then worked for Monsanto’s W.G. Krummrich Plant where he retired as Maintenance Superintendent. Rudy was a member of the Masonic Temple-St. Andrews Lodge #56 F & A.M. of Portsmouth N.H., Dania Shrine Club, and Scottish Rite Masonic Bodies Valley of Southern, IL, and Ainad Shriners of East St. Louis, Ill.

Rudy was a loving man, who will be missed by all who knew him.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Marion Diaz, (nee McNabb), a daughter, Sharon Kinzel, (nee Diaz), parents, Arthur & Mary Diaz, (nee Jasso), and his brother, Johnny Nesmith.

He is survived by his daughters, Denise (Jim) Fogwell of O’Fallon, IL, Colleen Bennett of O’Fallon, IL, a son Glenn (Charmaine) Diaz of Houston, TX, seven grandchildren, James P. Fogwell, Shanna Kinzel, Serena Hyder, Crystal Taylor, Dustin (Meredith) Hyder, Scott Bennett, and Tonya (William) Ozee, and eleven great grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to Shriner’s Children’s Hospital or Heartland Hospice. Condolences and tributes may be extended to the family online.

David H. Wilkey

David Homer Wilkey, 68, of Denton, Texas, formerly of O’Fallon, Ill., died on April, 14 from complications from long standing health problems.

Visitation was held on Saturday, April 23, at St. Ann Catholic Church in Nashville, Ill.

A funeral service followed at the church with the Rev. Andrew Knopik officiating.

Burial was in St. Ann Catholic Cemetery, Nashville, Ill.

Dave was born on May 3, 1947 in Nashville, Ill., to William and Bernice Eileen Longwell.

He was a loving and generous man who always looked on the lighter side of life regardless of the situation. He will always be remembered for his dedication to his family, his compassion for all of God's creations, his intelligence, and his unwavering sense of humor.

Dave was a devoted husband to Dianne since their marriage on May 3, 1975. They raised three daughters together; Kimberly Antolini, Virginia Cathleen Simmons, and Esther Bernice Bourgeois. Dave and Dianne were honored to have three son-in-laws whom Dave loved and treated like his own; Roger Thomas Antolini, Jeffery David Simmons, and Chad Anthony Bourgeois.

They were blessed with six grandchildren; Sydney Marie Antolini, Romeo William Antolini, Anna Grace Simmons, Gabrielle Virginia Bourgeois, Cora Jane Kimberly Bourgeois, and Augustus David Bourgeois. Dave’s children and grandchildren were his greatest joys in life. His pride in their accomplishments were known to all who met him.

Dave was dedicated to his careers in both higher education and funeral services. His love of education started at McKendree College, where he graduated in 1968. Upon graduation he taught public school before beginning a long career in higher education. He served at Davis and Elkins College from 1978 to 1999 and at Lyon College from 1999 to 2003.

His time in higher education was extremely rewarding to Dave as he was able to do what he loved most; help people. He found great satisfaction with the opportunities he had to guide young people through their college educations and into their adult lives.

Once he retired from higher education in 2003 at the age of 56, he returned to school so that he could begin his second career as a funeral director. During his time at Kriegshauser Brothers Funeral Home and Schildknecht Funeral Home he was able to help people in a different capacity and he was honored to serve countless families.

Dave lived life to the fullest. Despite his numerous health conditions, he continued to live the best life that he could. He spent as much time as possible helping people in his community, spending time with his family, traveling as much as he could, and caring for his beloved dogs.

Memorials may be made to: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Christ the King Catholic High School and Randolph County Humane Society. Condolences and tributes may be extended to the family online.

This story was originally published April 21, 2016 at 2:55 PM with the headline "Obituaries."