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)
AEMMER, Frederick J., Sr., 86, St. Mary-of-the-Knobs, Floyds Knobs, July 10. Husband of Margaret Aemmer. Father of Janet Davis, Sharon Peay, Sandy Whalen and Fred Aemmer Jr. Grandfather of 10. Great-grandfather of eight.
BALDWIN, Merlin DeLoss, 87, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, June 28. Father of Mary Anne MacMorran. Grandfather of one.
BARRETT, Agnes Patricia, 87, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, June 20. Wife of Clark Barrett. Mother of Pat Graviss, Carol Kerrigan, Ann Smith and Kathy Willard. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of two.
BATTA, Richard B., 86, St. Peter, Franklin County, July 11. Father of Karen Anderson, Mary Jane Fussner, Daniel, David, George, Nicholas and Roger Batta. Brother of Florence Heinrich, Delores Hoffbauer, Ann Suttmiller, Leona Weiler, Viola Westrich, Arnold and Ben Batta. Grandfather of 29. Great-grandfather of 11.
BORCHELT, Mary E., 94, St. Louis, Batesville, July 11. Mother of Deborah Werler, Donna Werner, David, Harry and J. Gregg Borchelt. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of 15.
COMMONS, Helen, 89, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, July 5. Mother of Cathy, Mary Margaret, John and Tim Commons.
COOPER, Garry L., 56, St. Joseph, Indianapolis, July 8. Husband of Kathy Cooper. Father of Megan Bunfield, Meredith Roberts and Breanna Cooper. Stepfather of Eric and Matthew Buck. Son of Helen Cooper. Brother of Laurie Dicus and Nancy Haddix. Grandfather of four.
DAVIS, Agnes, 95, Sacred Heart of Jesus, Terre Haute, July 8. Mother of Carolyn Davis. Sister of Gene Verostko. Grandmother of three. Great-grandmother of two.
DOWLING, Steve, 59, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, June 28. Husband of Tracy Dowling. Father of Barbara and Brennon Dowling. Stepfather of Joshua Paige. Son of Ed and Jean Dowling. Brother of Cathy Conner, Jim, John, Mike and Tom Dowling. Grandfather of three.
DUELL, Margaret Ruth, 94, Holy Name of Jesus, Beech Grove, June 30. Mother of Suzanne Collins, Sheila, John and Michael Duell. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of eight.
EARLY, Charles B., 87, St. Pius X, Indianapolis, March 16. Husband of Ann Early. Father of Joyce Isler, Janet Steele and Dr. William Early. Grandfather of five.
GEISER, Pamela E., 74, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, June 16. Mother of Linda Guajardo, Catherine Hart, Andrew, Mike and Paul Geiser. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of four.
HEAVRIN, Janie Annette, 72, St. Anthony of Padua, Clarksville, July 1. Wife of Rodney L. Heavrin. Mother of Melanie and Tony Heavrin. Sister of Lacy and James Capps. Grandmother of one.
HOWELL, Norbert C., 81, St. Gabriel, Connersville, July 10. Husband of Frances (Moran) Howell. Father of Mike and Thomas Howell. Brother of Joan Miller and Don Howell. Half-brother of Harry Hudson. Grandfather of two.
HRUBAN, Sharon Ann, 65, St. Malachy, Brownsburg, July 11. Mother of Michelle Craney and John Hruban. Sister of Mary Sterrett, Herb and Max Chamberlain. Grandmother of one.
JAMISON, Thomas L., 61, St. Barnabas, Indianapolis, July 3. Husband of Mary Jamison. Father of Matt Durbin, Kerri Fowler, Jodi Jamison, Bret, Brian and Kevin Richards. Brother of Terry Jamison. Grandfather of 11.
JONES, Marcella Mary (Kantner), 85, Our Lady of Lourdes, Indianapolis, July 7. Mother of Cynthia Eckert, Geri Pearson, Mary Zimmerman, Julia, Kathryn, Pamela and John Kantner.
JONES, Willie, 90, St. Mark the Evangelist, Indianapolis, July 1. Father of Wilma Cross and Jennifer Jones. Brother of Lilly Nelson and Arthur Linville. Grandfather of two. Great-grandfather of five.
KELLY, Margaret, 100, St. Luke the Evangelist, Indianapolis, July 2. Mother of Kathie Brezette. Grandmother of seven. Great-grandmother of nine.
KINNEY, Patrick B., 81, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, July 6. Uncle of several.
KRIESE, Maurice A., 87, Sacred Heart of Jesus, Indianapolis, July 14. Father of Joan Bunte, Charles, Fritz, Joseph and Thomas Kriese. Brother of Zeta McKay. Grandfather of 16. Great-grandfather of eight.
MARSHALL, Dr. Frederick J., 87, St. Michael the Archangel, Indianapolis, July 3. Husband of Marcella Frederick. Father of Rita DeLessert, Maureen Doss, Suzanne Elbe, Mary Margaret Foreman, Jane, Frederick III and Timothy Marshall. Grandfather of 16. Great-grandfather of six.
NAGLE, Kathleen Ann, 61, St. Gabriel the Archangel, Indianapolis, June 10. Sister of Ellen Guido, Michael and Richard Nagle II.
SHEETS, James Ross, 74, St. Gabriel the Archangel, Indianapolis, July 8. Husband of Jane (Wire) Sheets. Father of Michelle Hanner, Martin and Paul Sheets. Grandfather of four.
SLATER, Mary J., 91, St. Michael the Archangel, Indianapolis, June 26. Mother of Patricia Gibson and Rev. Dr. Jo Ann Slater. Grandmother of three.
Divine Word Missionary Father John LaBauve served at St. Rita
Divine Word Missionary Father John Nathan LaBauve died on July 15 at Hancock Medical Center in Bay St. Louis, Miss., after a prolonged illness. He was 85.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on July 22 at St. Augustine Chapel in Bay St. Louis. Burial followed at St. Augustine Cemetery.
He was born on March 27, 1923, in Abbeville, La.
He entered St. Augustine’s Minor Seminary in Bay St. Louis in 1938.
In 1942, he went to St. Mary’s Novitiate in Techny, Ill., where he pronounced his first vows as a Divine Word Missionary in 1944.
After completing his college degree in Techny, he returned to Bay St. Louis for his major seminary studies.
He was ordained a priest on June 29, 1951, by Bishop Richard O. Gerow of the Diocese of Natchez-Jackson.
At 6-feet, 3-inches tall, Father LaBauve towered above others and also was prominent as a pastor, preacher and evangelizer.
Father LaBauve ministered in many parishes, including serving as pastor of St. Rita Parish in Indianapolis from Aug. 16, 1973, until July 20, 1980, following the retirement of Father Bernard Strange.
Father LaBauve also served at parishes in Mouton Switch, Cottonport and Lake Charles in Louisiana; Mound Bayou and Hattiesburg in Mississippi; Little Rock, Ark.; St. Louis, Mo.; and Houston, Texas.
For two years, he worked with the Catholic Campaigners for Christ doing street preaching in Pittsburgh, Pa.
In 1993, “Big John,” as he was affectionately called, retired for the first time at St. Augustine’s Parish in Bay St. Louis.
Then he heard the call again and went to “fill in” at St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Galveston, Texas. His temporary assignment became permanent, and he was administrator at the
Co-Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston for almost 10 years.
In early 2008, he retired to Bay St. Louis for a second time.
In early June, he underwent emergency surgery at Gulfport Memorial Hospital for blood accumulation and never recovered.
Divine Word Missionary priests said he will be remembered for many things, but most of all for being a loving, caring pastor to the people he served.
The Knights of Peter Claver named an award in his honor.
Memorial gifts to further the ministries of the Divine Word Missionaries may be sent to the order in care of St. Augustine’s Minor Seminary, 199 Seminary Drive, Bay St. Louis, MS 39620. †