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)
BANET, Rita A., 62, St. Mary-of-the-Knobs,
Floyds Knobs, April 30. Wife of Michael Banet. Mother of Monica Bottorff, Christopher, Jeffrey and Kevin Banet. Sister of Mary Janke. Grandmother of six.
BECKER, Eric L., 44, Our Lady of Lourdes, Indianapolis, April 20. Father of Robbie Becker. Stepfather of Erika Finn. Son of Gloria Becker. Brother of Suzette Hagan, Bart and Michael Becker.
BOWE, George G., Sr., 81, St. Joseph, Clark County, April 18. Husband of Lenora (Davis) Bowe. Father of Beverly and George Bowe Jr. Brother of Thelma Johnson and Valeria Shidler. Grandfather of eight. Great-grandfather of three.
BROWN, Dorothy S., 87, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, April 24. Wife of Charles Brown Sr. Mother of Emily Brown, Marian Culp, Carolyn Wills and C. Matthew Brown Jr. Grandmother of eight.
CORNELIUS, Cecilia, 71, St. Joan of Arc, Indianapolis, April 26. Mother of Cynthia Schassberger, Alice Shelton, Edward and Ted Sherfick. Sister of Carol Hutton, Melissa Mates, Sondra Wellman, David and John Cornelius. Grandmother of eight. Great-grandmother of two.
FLANNERY, Ethel Catherine, 97, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, New Albany, April 26. Mother of Patricia Breeden, Colleen Richardson and Jerry Flannery. Grandmother of 14. Great-grandmother of 28. Great-great-grandmother of 15.
GOEBES, Mary Helen, 64, Sacred Heart of Jesus, Indianapolis, April 24. Sister of Joni Adams, Carole, Alan, Bill, John and Robert Goebes.
HOFFMAN, Mary Gayle, 78, St. Joseph, Corydon, April 17. Mother of Brenda Mosier, Rebecca and John Hoffman. Sister of Olive Brown, Linda Davis and Loren Byrd. Grandmother of four. Great-grandmother of four.
KELLER, John William, Jr., 89, St. Barnabas, Indianapolis, April 27. Husband of Alice Hope (Deaton) Keller. Father of Gregory Keller. Brother of Charles Keller. Grandfather of two. Great-grandfather of two.
LaFONTAINE, Alan J., 72, St. Mary, Navilleton, April 26. Husband of Elaine (Catlin) LaFontaine. Father of Janet Duke, Teresa Ford, Kimberly Martin, Yvonne Thulier and Keith LaFontaine. Brother of Noel LaFontaine. Grandfather of five.
MAGUIRE, Doris J., 83, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, April 22. Mother of Sarah Kercheval, Nancy Snyder, Andrew and Richard Maguire. Grandmother of six.
MATTHEWS, Mary Catherine, 90, St. Jude, Indianapolis, April 28. Mother of Diane Brunner, Pamela Karns, Daniel and William Matthews. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of nine.
NELIS, Donald T., 84, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, April 19. Husband of Patricia Nelis. Father of Julie Burns and Steven Nelis. Grandfather of four. Great-grandfather of one.
PeGAN, John Frederick, 64, St. Lawrence, Lawrenceburg, April 29. Husband of Nicki PeGan. Father of Courtney and Mitchell PeGan. Brother of Mary Buhler, Susan Jaeger, Margaret Hibschweiler, Rita Maloney, Peter, Raymond and Samuel PeGan.
POWELL, Richard Joseph, 69, Christ the King, Indianapolis, April 27. Husband of Norma (Knapp) Powell. Father of Eileen Countryman, Gregory and Jerry Powell. Brother of Dorothy Manka, Edward and John Powell. Grandfather of three.
RENN, Mary Jean (Marsh), 77, St. Joseph, Clark County, April 27. Wife of Mark Renn. Mother of Michelle Sexton, Holli Renn, Dana and Steve Marsh. Sister of Robert Hill. Grandmother of five.
ROSENBERGER, Esther M., 95, Holy Family, New Albany, April 27. Mother of Sharon Grigg and Gary Rosenberger. Grandmother of five. Great-grandmother of 10. Great-great-grandmother of one.
SCHROEDER, Elaine Mary Catherine, 89, St. Louis, Batesville, April 24. Mother of Fraya Moore, Nancy Perdue and Robert Schroeder. Sister of Donald Moorman. Grandmother of several.
SCHROEDER, Patricia, 77, St. Mary, Rushville, April 24. Wife of Ed Schroeder. Mother of Wendy Hoff and Darin Schroeder. Grandmother of four.
SCHOETTMER, Clara, 96, Immaculate Conception, Millhousen, April 30. Mother of Sue Buening, Mary Jane Roberts, Dorothy Snyder, Helen Wagener, Carolyn, Norbert and William Schoettmer. Sister of Rosemary Berkemeier and Frieda Muckerheide. Grandmother of 19. Great-grandmother of 34.
ZAHN, Theresa L., 90, St. Roch, Indianapolis, April 30. Mother of Peggy Kostarides, Dianne Toole, Martin and Robert Zahn. Grandmother of 12. Great-grandmother of three.
Dominican Sister Claretta Heffner taught at Catholic schools in four states
Dominican Sister Claretta Heffner, a member of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, died on March 17 in Jeffersonville. She was 87.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on March 21 at St. Augustine Church in Jeffersonville. Burial followed at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Jeffersonville.
She was born on July 31, 1924, in Louisville, Ky.
On Aug. 15, 1946, Sister Claretta professed her final vows as a member of the former Congregation of St. Catherine of Siena, now the Dominican Sisters of Peace.
She began her ministry in education in 1943 at St. Brendan School in Elkins, W.Va., then ministered at St. Teresa School in Lincoln, Neb., from 1945 to 1953.
From 1954 to 1968, she taught at Catholic schools in Nebraska, Massachusetts and Indiana.
In 1957, Sister Claretta earned a bachelor’s degree in education, chemistry and math at Siena College in Memphis, Tenn.
In 1964, she earned a master’s degree in chemistry, biology and education at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb.
She was also the assistant to the treasurer at Holy Rosary Academy in Louisville.
In 1988, Sister Claretta began ministering to the elderly at SS. Simon and Jude Parish in Louisville. She extended her ministry to the elderly at St. Louis Bertrand Parish in Louisville in 1989.
In September 2003, she began her ministry of prayer and community service at St. Catherine Motherhouse.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Dominican Sisters of Peace, Office of Mission Advancement, 2320 Airport Drive, Columbus, OH 43219-2098 or submitted securely online at www.oppeace.org. †