Lisa S. Rubenacker

ST. JOSEPH – Lisa S. Rubenacker, 58, of St. Joseph passed away at 3:08 p.m. Tuesday (Feb. 21, 2017) at home.

Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Monday, Feb. 27, 2017, at Freese Funeral Home, Sidney, with the Rev. Robert Lampitt officiating. Visitation will be from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home with rosary at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home. Burial will be at a later date at St. Joseph Cemetery, Bongard.

Mrs. Rubenacker was born Sept. 18, 1958, in Santa Barbara, Calif., a daughter to Robert and Bonita Spires Pfeifer. She married Dan Rubenacker on July 29, 2000, at St. Joseph. He survives.

Also surviving are her children, Matt (Emily) Layer of Albany, Ga., Brenna Pfeifer of Monticello and Andie Pfeifer of St. Joseph; brother, Karl Pfeifer of Urbana; grandchildren, Cole and Cody Layer; and stepparents, Bob Silva and Barbara Pfeifer.

She was preceded in death by her father, Robert Pfeifer, and mother, Bonita Silva.

She was employed at Presence Covenant Medical Center, Urbana.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, memorials may be made to St. Thomas Catholic School, Philo.

Louis Nelson

ST. JOSEPH – Louis J. "Lou" Nelson, 92, of St. Joseph passed away at 10:10 p.m. Thursday (Feb. 16, 2017) at Meadowbrook, Urbana.

Funeral services will be 11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 802 E. Douglas St., St. Joseph, with the Rev. Seth Jersild officiating. Burial will be in Patterson Cemetery, St. Joseph. Visitation will be from 10 to 11 a.m. Tuesday at the church. Freese Funeral Home, 302 E. Grand Ave., St. Joseph, is in charge of arrangements.

Lou was born Sept. 26, 1924, at Waterloo, Iowa, the son of Harold Ejner and Frances M. Lowry Nelson. He married Maxine Edith Ulm on Sept. 26, 1946, at Zion Lutheran Church, Jubilee, Iowa. She survives.

Also survived are his children, James D. Nelson of Brookshire, Texas, Deborah L. Nelson of Houston, Texas, Gregory H. Nelson of Littleton, Colo., Rebecca L. (Jeff) Freese of Summerville, S.C., and Susan (Marty) McLain of St. Joseph; 12 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, one sister, one grandchild and one great-grandchild.

Lou graduated from Jesup Consolidated School, Jesup, Iowa; Naval Air Technical Training Center, Norman, Okla., aviation machinist mate (A school and B school), FM-2 Wildcats; NATTC, Chicago (C school), aircraft carburetor specialist; Junior Bank Officers School at Ball State University, Muncie, Ind.; and Illinois Bankers School, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Lou was employed by the U.S. Navy, Norfolk, Va., aviation machinist mate (3c), and Fentress Field, March 1943 to April 1946; and Naval Reserve, October 1949 to October 1953, aviation machinist mate (3c). After the service, he farmed the home farm in Jesup, Iowa. He was also employed by Consumer Finance, April 1950 to January 1971, retiring from Associates Financial Services as supervisor (AVP); State Bank of St. Joseph, starting in 1971, cashier, executive vice president, president-CEO, trust officer, director and board secretary; and St. Joseph Bankcorp (bank holding company), director, president and board secretary until merger with Busey Bank in August 1989, retiring as Busey vice president on Dec. 31, 1989.

Lou's memberships included past member, Waterloo Lodge 105 AF&AM; past member and past master, St. Joseph Lodge 970 AF&AM; present member, Western Star Lodge 240 AF&AM, Champaign, Scottish Rite AASR, Danville (life member), and Ansar Shrine, Springfield; past member, Mohammed Shrine, Peoria; past member, GAO Grotto, Danville; past member, Moose, Des Moines, Iowa; past member, Elks, Sterling, Ill.; past member, Jaycees, Waterloo, Iowa, and Sterling, Ill.; past member and president, St. Joseph Chamber of Commerece; past president, Champaign County Bankers Association; member and past treasurer and council member, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, St. Joseph; member, Experimental Aircraft Association; member, American Legion, St. Joseph; and past member, American Legion, Jessup, Iowa.

Gregory D. Wells

ST. JOSEPH – Gregory D. "Greg" Wells, 57, of St. Joseph passed away at 7:41 a.m. Saturday (Feb. 11, 2017) at his home.

Funeral services will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, at St. John Lutheran Church, Royal, with the Rev. Chuck Alt officiating. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Freese Funeral Home, 302 E. Grand Ave., St. Joseph.

Greg was born on June 12, 1959, at Urbana, the son of Virgil and Alberta Smith Wells. He married Monica Worley on Jan. 28, 1978, at St. Joseph. She survives.

Also surviving are his children, Justin (Annette) Wells of St. Joseph and Sean (Amy) Wells of Ogden; seven grandchildren, Alexis, Madison, Taylor, Tanner, Emma, Gregory and Jacob; his mother, Alberta Wells of St. Joseph; three brothers, Jerry Wells of St. Joseph, Wayne (Patty) Wells of St. Joseph and Rick (Dianna) Wells of Mansfield; and three sisters, Judy Hester of Windsor, Kathy (Harold) Bush of St. Joseph and Debbie Wells of St. Joseph.

He was preceded in death by his father, Virgil.

His heart was truly for his family and he loved his wife, two sons and his seven grandchildren with all he had. He also had a large number of nieces and nephews who at one time or another were all given a hard time by their Uncle Greg - and that's how he wants to be remembered. He couldn't always say it, but he loved you all very much.

Greg graduated in 1977 from St. Joseph-Ogden High School.

He was an outstanding basketball, football and track athlete and remained friends with many of his classmates his whole life.

Greg worked very hard for his family his entire life, starting at the age of 18 when he learned to drive a semi. He drove for Southland Corporation for 13 years and then for Super Value for six years. When Southland closed and Super Value did away with the fleet, he decided it was time to get off the road. He worked for Kraft/Heinz Foods in Champaign for over 18 years as a line tech. He didn't enjoy the night shift; however, he truly enjoyed working on the machines and he made some very kind and loyal friends. He retired from Kraft in December 2016.

Greg was a mechanic his whole life - a trade he learned from his father. He worked on many cars for family members and friends, and he had a blast putting together stock cars years ago that were driven by himself, his brothers and a few other friends and family.

He enjoyed traveling when he had the chance, movies, researching the purchase of any type of equipment or cars (he has owned 35).

Most of all he loved spending time with his family, especially visiting with his mother the past year. He knew you all loved him and ... he loved you all right back.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, donations may be made to St. John Lutheran Church, Royal.

David Lee Combs

URBANA – David Lee Combs, 82, of Urbana passed away at 9:50 p.m. Friday (Feb. 10, 2017) at Farmer City Rehab and Health Care, Farmer City.

Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at Faith Church, 2111 N. Willow Road, Urbana. Pastor Marsh Jones and Pastor Dennis Skinner will officiate. Entombment will be in Grandview Mausoleum, Champaign.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at Morgan Memorial Home, 1304 Regency Drive West, Savoy.

David was born on April 6, 1934, in Peoria, the son of Russell and Lucille Ellen Moore Combs. Lucille passed away when David was 5 years old. When his dad remarried, David was lovingly raised by Margaret Jones Combs, who was a godly influence in his life.

He married Elizabeth Lou Davis on June 10, 1961, in Danville. She survives.

Also surviving are two sons, Jeff and Jason (Kristi), both of Champaign; and two granddaughters, Olivia and Ashley. He is also survived by one brother, Wayne (Carol) Combs of Newnan, Ga.

He was preceded in death by his parents; two brothers, Don and Richard; and a sister, Carol.

He graduated from SJO High School in 1952. He entered the trade and joined the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 149 (Champaign) on Aug. 13, 1954 - a 62-year member in good standing. He loved his trade and was good at it.

He enjoyed woodworking, restoring antiques, fishing and visiting with friends at various coffee shops.

Those who knew him loved him. He was a unique combination of strength, candor and an undefinable sweetness which was felt by many.

First and foremost, he settled his eternal destiny a long time ago when he accepted Christ as his Savior. He loved his wife and family, and his church. Whether it be attending the service of the church, or being in service for the church, he could be counted on. One could literally trace Dave's spiritual journey through the churches he helped build in his lifetime.

Dave had a heart for mission work, and in later years made trips to Honduras, Brazil and Cameroon. He had a huge love for children in Cameroon, making several trips there to make repairs at an orphanage. He knew that his time was limited for this work so he established a small workshop there with the tools needed for making repairs.

He struggled with a disease called DRPLA - a horrible disease - as gracefully as he could. David would say a big "thank you" to all of his caregivers through the years. He worked hard, loved deeply and finished the race.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, the family requests that memorials be directed to Faith Church, Urbana, to benefit missions or to an organization of the donor's choice.

Joan Johnson

ST. JOSEPH – Joan Johnson, 93, of St. Joseph passed away at 4:24 p.m. Tuesday (Jan. 31, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana.

Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017, at Freese Funeral Home, 302 E. Grand Ave., St. Joseph. Burial will be in Mount Olive Cemetery, Mayview. Visitation will be from 10 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.

Joan was born Nov. 3, 1923, at Urbana, the daughter of John and Mary Combs Royer. She married Lowell Ray Johnson on May 12, 1944. He preceded her in death on Nov. 1, 1986.

She is survived by her daughters; Gayle Whitt of St. Joseph and Lauren Denney of LaPorte, Ind.; grandchildren, Mindy (Josh) Hale, Amy Whitt, Vicki Johnson, Monica (Richard Turner) Markel and Matt (Diana) Denney; and six great-grandchildren, Colton and Connor Hale, Casey Schroeder, Ben and Nick Turner, and Emma Denney.

She was preceded in death by a son, Skip Johnson; five sisters; and a brother.

Joan was a member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Urbana. She enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, doing yard work and riding her John Deere mower going to her great-grandchildren's sporting events. She was a farmer's wife, an avid Cardinals fan and a frustrated Illini fan.

Most of all, she was the most amazing grandmother ever!

Memorials may be made to the St. Joseph American Legion Post.

Sharon K. Gronewald Miller

PHILO — Sharon K. Gronewald Miller, 50, of Philo passed away at 5:25 a.m., Monday (Jan. 30, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana.

Sharon was born Aug. 22, 1966, in Champaign, the daughter of Roger and Betty Peterson Gronewald. She married James Miller on Aug. 29, 1987, at Flatville.

Survivors include her husband, James Miller of Philo; son, Nicholas Miller of Philo; daughter, Hannah Miller of Philo; her parents, Roger and Betty Gronewald of Royal; sister, Susan (James) Cotter of St. Joseph; and many nieces and nephews.

Sharon was preceded in death by her maternal and paternal grandparents.

Sharon’s life was centered around her family and friends, and she found the most enjoyment when spending time with them. She loved being outdoors, whether it be working in her garden, mowing the yard or camping with her family. Sharon was an avid fan of the St. Louis Cardinals. She loved attending craft shows and making DIY projects. Her other hobbies included attending farm shows, tractor pulls and riding around in the family golf cart. Sharon was self-employed.

She will forever be remembered as a selfless, hardworking individual with one of the biggest hearts. Sharon was a loving wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. She will be missed deeply.

Funeral services will be 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 3, 2017, at Freese Funeral Home, Sidney, with Pastor Chris Thorson and the Rev. Robin King officiating. Burial will be at Locust Grove Cemetery, Philo. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Memorials can be made to Mills Breast Cancer Center or family choice.