CHARLES MCDONALD "CHUCK" WARE SR of Chil-licothe, OH died June 15, 2018 at the age of 91. A third generation funeral director, he was the owner and operator of Ware Funeral Home for over 60 years, which was founded by his grandfather, Carey J. Ware in 1891. He joined the firm in 1950 as a partner with his father, Thomas...
DONALD G. WARD of Hamburg, NY died June 13, 2018 at the age of 89. He was a licensed landscape architect who specialized in cemetery design. In 1955, he joined Earl Grever, a landscape architect who did designs for the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo. In 1959, they partnered to form Grever and Ward in Orchard Park, which is the only...
VALLARI D. BAKER-RAISON of Yeadon, PA died June 10, 2018 at the age of 65. She served her apprenticeship at the Julian V. Hawkins Funeral Home, where she was employed as a licensed funeral director until 1989, when her health began to decline. She graduated from the American Academy McAllister Institute of Mortuary Science in New York.
RACHEL ANN SARVER MINNICH of West Milton, OH died June 9, 2018 at the age of 92. She worked alongside her husband, Carl Sarver in the operating of the Hale-Sarver Funeral Home in West Milton. Following her husband's death, she became a licensed funeral director and continued his legacy by serving the families in Montgomery, Darke and Miami County.
THOMAS I. WISNIEWSKI of Toledo, OH died June 9, 2018 at the age of 69. A licensed funeral director and embalmer, he began employment with his grandfather, Stanley J. Urbanski, at his family's funeral home. He also worked as an EMT with his uncle's company, Urbanski Ambulance Company. In 1984, the combination of the Robert H. Wick and the Thomas...
GARY A. WALKER of Sylvania Township, OH died June 1, 2018 at the age of 74. He joined his father at Walker Funeral Homes, served as president of the company from 1983-1997, and continued to be active in the daily operations of the funeral homes until his retirement in 2017. In 1967, he founded Walker Ambulance Company and served as...
LARRY DEAN SERVIES of Waveland, IN died May 31, 2018 at the age of 84. He owned and operated Machledt & Servies Funeral Home in Servies and Waveland and Morgan Funeral Homes in Ladoga and Roachdale. He graduated from the Indiana College of Mortuary Science in 1952 and was a member of the Indiana Funeral Directors Association.
JUANITA S. STONE of Atlanta, GA died May 30, 2018 at the age of 89. A second generation funeral director, she owned and operated Sellers Brothers Funeral Home Inc of Atlanta for more than 30 years. The funeral home closed around 2008. As a trailblazer in the male-dominated funeral home industry, Stone would often open her funeral home to students...
DONALD L. BARBER of Homer, NY died May 26, 2018 at the age of 75. He established the Donald L. Barber Funeral Home in 1968, which he owned and operated as a licensed funeral director for 50 years. He graduated from the Simmons School of Embalming and Mortuary Science in 1962.
THOMAS E. COLASANTO of Terryville, CT died May 25, 2018 at the age of 79. He was a funeral director and owner of Colasanto Funeral Home until retirement. He received his associate of science degree from the American Academy of Embalming and Mortuary Research in New York City.