Grace May Adams, 78, Oskaloosa, died May 5, 2008, at her home after a long illness. She was born July 27, 1929, at Manhattan, the daughter of Orville Israel and Emma Johanna Coltharp Swaim.

She had lived in Oskaloosa since 1969. Grace was a homemaker. She was a member of St. Theresa Catholic Church and the Ladies Altar Society in Perry. She was also active in school activities and as a Cub Scout Den Mother.

She married Robert “Keith” Adams Oct. 30, 1954, at Newton. He survives at home. Also surviving are four sons, Steve Robert Adams, Kevin Adams, and Wade Adams, all Oskaloosa, and Bruce Adams, Hutchinson; five daughters, Pat Cress and Kathy Adams, Topeka, Janette Adams, Oskaloosa, Teresa Holz, Belvue, and Stephanie Parsons, Plano, Texas; a sister, Marjorie Bunting, Burlingame; 27 grandchildren; and 22 great-grandchildren.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m. Thursday (today) at St. Theresa Church in Perry. Burial will follow at Mt. Calvary Cemetery in Perry. Visitation was from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Barnett-Chapel Oaks Funeral Home in Oskaloosa with a Rosary at 7:30 p.m. Memorials can be made to St. Theresa Catholic Church or to Jefferson County Hospice and sent in care of the funeral home, P.O. Box 416, Oskaloosa, 66066.

Imogene Zachariasen

Imogene Fern Zachariasen, 69, Meriden, died April 30, 2008, at her home. She had cancer. She was born Nov. 30, 1938, in Topeka, the daughter of Herman H. and Nellie E. Tobler Stolle.

She worked as a secretary for the Youth Center at Topeka and USD No. 337. She was a member of the Meriden United Methodist Church.

She married Delbert Zachariasen Sept. 9, 1956, in Hoyt. He survives of the home. Also surviving are two sons, Deon Zachariasen and Keith Zachariasen, both of Topeka; three daughters, Royce Schafer, Blue Ridge, Texas, Joy Powell, Hiawatha, and Nancy Hug, Mayetta; a brother, Walter Stolle, Silver Lake; two sisters, Phyllis Schuette, Blaine, and Mildred Plants, Gainesville, Ga.; and nine grandchildren.

Funeral services were May 3 at Penwell-Gabel Parker-Price Chapel, Topeka. Interment was in Meriden Cemetery. Memorial contributions can be made to Heart of America Hospice, 3715 SW 29th Street, Suite 100, Topeka, 66614 or NE Kansas Parkinson’s Assoc., 1631 SE 37th Terr., Topeka, 66609-1501.

Charles Childers

Charles William “Charlie” Childers, 81, Perry, died April 30, 2008, at his home. He was born Oct. 14, 1926, at Mount Ayre, Iowa, the son of Jack and Alta Marguerite Johnson Childers.

Mr. Childers worked as a mechanic for the Hamm Company in Perry.He retired in 1992 after 32 years. He was a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, serving from 1943 to 1945. He was a Seaman First Class. He was a member of the Perry American Legion Post No. 142.

He married Marlene Jo Kester June 1, 1952, at Kansas City. She survives at the home. Also surviving are two sons, Stephen Childers and David Childers, and a daughter, Pam Bateman, all of Perry; four brothers, Jack Childers, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Eugene Childers, Anaheim, Calif., Verle Dean Childers, Oceanside, Calif., and Lenden Childers, Stanton, Calif.; two sisters, Marguerite Henderson, Canton, Texas, and Marlene Williams, Hemet, Calif.; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

Private family inurnment will be at the Buster Cemetery. Memorials can be made to Midland Hospice, 200 SW Frazier Circle, Topeka, 66607 or sent in care of Barnett-Chapel Oaks Funeral Home, P.O. Box 416, Oskaloosa, 66066.

Milton Royer

Milton Lee Royer, 84, Valley Falls, died April 30, 2008, at the Jefferson County Memorial Geriatric Center in Winchester. He was born Nov. 4, 1923, in the Coal Creek community north of Valley Falls, the son of Clark and Orpha Dickey Royer.

He attended Valley Falls High School and served in the U.S. Army Air Corp in North Africa during World War II. Milton was a construction laborer and had been a member of Union Local 142 in Topeka. He also farmed north of Valley Falls. He was a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and a life member of Grahem-Herbers Post 3084, Veterans of Foreign Wars.

He married Joyce Frederick Simonsen June 3, 1971, at Miami, Okla. She survives of the home. He was preceded in death by three brothers, Claude Royer, Kenneth Royer, and Harold Royer. Survivors include a daughter, Barb Raine, Auburn; three stepdaughters, Garlinda Walls, Hattiesburg, Miss., Gloria Blankinship, Oklahoma City, Okla., and Gail Ross, Holton; a brother, Donald Royer, Carbondale; eight grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-granddaughter.

The funeral service was May 3 at Mercer Funeral Home in Valley Falls. Burial was at the Valley Falls Cemetery with military honors conducted by Grahem-Herbers Post 3084. Memorial contributions can be made to Grahem-Herbers Post 3084 or Jefferson County Hospice and sent in care of Mercer Funeral Home, 810 Broadway, Valley Falls, 66088.(mercerfuneralhomes.com)

Francis Renfro

Francis R. “Frank” Renfro, 95, Tecumseh, formerly of Perry, died May 4, 2008, at his home. He was born April 21, 1913, in the Bloomfield community north of Meriden, the son of Francis Edward and Bertha May Matters Renfro.

Mr. Renfro had lived in Newman area, west of Perry for many years. He was a farmer all his life. He also served as a rural mail carrier and assistant mail carrier for many years. He was a member of the Perry United Methodist Church and the Rural Letter Carriers Association.

He married Edna J. Krumery April 12, 1933, at Topeka. She survives of the home. They recently celebrated their 75th anniversary. He is also survived by three daughters, Ladonna Grindol, Berryton, Connie Green, Perry, and Brenda Price, Tecumseh; 10 grandchildren; 29 great-grandchildren; and six great-great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by a daughter, Frankie L. Smith, in 2006, a sister, May Joyce, and a brother, Mark Renfro.

Funeral services were May 7 at Barnett-Chapel Oaks Meriden Chapel. Burial was at the Valley Falls Cemetery. Memorials can be made to Midland Hospice, 200 SW Frazier Circle, Topeka, 66607 or to the Jayhawk Area Council on Aging and sent in care of the funeral chapel, P.O. Box 331, Meriden, 66512.

Martha Ann Swoyer

Martha Ann Truman Swoyer, 89, died April 30, 2008, at her home in Oskaloosa. She was born Jan. 31, 1919, in Hickman Mills, Mo., the daughter of John Vivan and Louella Campbell Truman.

She was President Harry S Truman’s niece. She grew up in Grandview, Mo., on the Truman farm and graduated from Rushkin High School. She graduated from Lindenwood University, St. Charles, Mo., and then attended the University of Missouri at Columbia. She later graduated from the University of Kansas Law School in 1952. She taught business at the Winchester High School and Jefferson County North High School. She later practiced law in Oskaloosa with her husband in the Swoyer and Swoyer Law Firm until November 2006.

She and her late husband also owned and operated the County Seat Variety Store in Oskaloosa from 1981-2003. She was a member of the Oskaloosa United Methodist Church, the Daughters of the Revolution, the Oskaloosa Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, the Kansas Bar Association, and the Kansas National Education Association.

She was married to James F. Swoyer Jr. July 13, 1952, at Hickman Mills, Mo. They lived in Oskaloosa. He preceded her in death Aug. 29, 2004. Survivors include a son, Karl Swoyer, Winchester; two brothers, Harry A. Truman and Gilbert Truman, both of Louisburg; four grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter. Two brothers, J.C. Truman and Fred Truman, and one sister, Callie Truman, preceded her in death.

Funeral services were May 5 at the United Methodist Church, Oskaloosa. Burial was in the Hull Grove Cemetery, Winchester. Memorial contributions are suggested to the Jefferson County Hospice or Shriner’s Children’s Hospital and can be sent in care of the O’Trimble Funeral Home, Nortonville.

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