Obituaries

Deborah Ann Kent Miller of Emporia died of Covid on Wednesday, February 2, 2022 at Newman Regional Health. She was 73.

Darlene Marie Armstrong (Medcalf, Frazier) was the second born to Thomas Edward and Mary Ellen Medcalf in Iola, Kansas on June 2nd, 1952. She lived most of her childhood in Osawatomie, KS graduating high school there and remaining close with many of her class and schoolmates for over 50 years. After completing college at Emporia State University, she moved to the Kansas City area, began a 27-year career working for Social Security, and started her family. In 1987, Darlene and her family moved outside of Ottawa, Kansas. She passed away October 9th, 2021.

Susan (Ames) Duckworth passed away peacefully surrounded by family on January 7, 2022 after a courageous battle against cancer. She was small in stature, mighty in her personality and sugar coated nothing when telling you how it was. She was a supportive mom, daughter, sister and friend who demonstrated what it meant to be loving and compassionate toward others. She was a small business owner who took that leadership mentality and converted it into being a self-identified house manager for her daughters. She loved road trips, stopping along her route to read the historical markers then sharing those tidbits of information with anyone who would listen. Later in life she became the google queen, it didn’t matter how small or how big the issue was, if anything needed to be researched, she was your go to person. She loved to cook and could spend hours looking up various recipes online, however her homemade chicken and noodles were a crowd favorite. She was an amazing woman who will be missed forever. Susan was proceeded in death by her father Raymond, her mother Vera and her sisters Ellen and Vera. She is survived by her daughter Tracy and her family, her daughter Susan and her wife Debbie, her granddaughter Cori, her sister Judy, her brother Danny and her nieces and nephews. She requested that there not be any formal services, instead she wanted others to simply celebrate the memories of her life.

Martha Kay Keller, 80, of Overland Park, Kansas, formerly of Ottawa, Kansas, passed away Tuesday, February 8, 2022. She was born on February 16, 1941, in Ransom Memorial Hospital, Ottawa, Kansas, to John and Letha Keller. She was a lifelong resident of Franklin County until she moved to an Alzheimer’s facility in Overland Park, Kansas, in November, 2021.

Donald LeRoy Leadbetter, 79, of Ottawa, KS passed away February 6, 2022, at Olathe Medical Center, Olathe, KS. Don was born in Luverne, ND on October 21, 1942 the son of Edward Leadbetter and Josephine (Anderson) Leadbetter. Don grew up in Luverne, ND and graduated from Luverne High School with the class of 1960. He then graduated from Bottineau School of Forestry and Valley State Teachers College.

Ralph Dana “Bud” Gage Jr., 80, a longtime newspaper executive with the Lawrence Journal- World and a member of the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame, died suddenly Jan. 30, 2022, at home. Private family burial will be in Highland Cemetery, Ottawa, Kan. A public memorial service and reception for friends are pending.

Frankie Jane Derhammer, 75, of Wellsville, Kansas, passed away at her home on Friday, January 28, 2022. Family will meet with friends from 3:00 P.M. to 5:00 P.M., Saturday, February 12, 2022, at Dengel & Son Mortuary, Ottawa.

Randy L. Briar of Emporia died on Thursday, January 27, 2022 at his home. He was 54. Randy was born on December 10, 1967 in Newton, Kansas, the son of Gary and Donnia Baucom Briar. He married Debbie Gerety on October 8, 1993 in Emporia, Kansas. Randy and Debbie made their home on an acreage between Emporia and Lebo.

John Franklin Winters was born on March 25, 1941 in Princeton, Kansas. Died on January 25,2022 in Denver, Colorado. John was preceded in death by his parents Howard & Edith Winters, Sister Nina Boyer & Nephew Ronnie Boyer.