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)
BAILEY, Mary C., 83, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, May 17. Mother of Denise Barnette, Mitzi Martini, Bernard and Kenneth Bailey. Sister of Patricia Chance.
BIR, Edward C., 78, St. Mary (Immaculate Conception), Rushville, May 30. Husband of Carolyn (Ariens) Bir. Father of John and Mark Bir. Brother of Cecelia Collins, Rita Kelly, Mary Agnes Macafee and Tom Bir.
BRANSON, Martha Christine, 71, St. Joseph, Shelbyville, May 27. Mother of Donna Alvey, Debbie Foster, Carmen Stroup, Beth Sturgill, Andy, Danny, David, Jeff and Timothy Branson. Sister of Rita Bradley, Millie Bruner, Mary Harsh, Carrie Sweet, James and Joe Higdon. Grandmother of 11. Great-grandmother of one.
COUGHLIN, Estelle J., 85, St. Monica, Indianapolis, May 31. Mother of Mary Coughlin. Sister of Hedi Milkowski and Lilyan Milkowski. Grandmother of four. Great-grandmother of one.
CRAWFORD, Robert W., 83, Our Lady of the Greenwood, Greenwood, May 31. Father of Cheryl Forslund and Donald Crawford. Stepfather of Brent, Kyle and Scott Andrews. Brother of Constance Wiley. Grandfather of five. Great-grandfather of two.
DOUGLAS, Ozzie, Jr., 72, St. Mary, New Albany, May 29. Husband of Margaret Douglas. Father of Theresa Colman, Rebecca Dixon, Patricia O’Neil, Kathy Swiney, Cecil, Derrick, Douglas, Edwin, Jackie, Ozzie III and Ozzie IV. Grandfather of 15. Great-grandfather of four.
DOYLE, John T., Sr., 83, Christ the King, Indianapolis, May 28. Husband of Mary Jane (Vaughn) Doyle. Father of Patricia Al-Wahaili, Kathleen Gheen, Mary Beth Huddle, Claire Milford, John and Michael Doyle. Brother of Rev. Charles E. Doyle and Thomas Doyle Jr. Grandfather of 12. Great-grandfather of five.
EGER, Bernard W., 85, St. Paul, Tell City, May 25. Husband of Clara (Hanloh) Eger. Father of Diane Bond, Dennis and Donald Eger. Brother of Charlene Brumfield, Lois Doogs, Lorna Garrett, Delores Little and Earl Eger. Grandfather of four. Great-grandfather of one.
FLASPOHLER, William C., 70, St. Mary-of-the-Rock, St. Mary-of-the-Rock, June 2. Husband of Gail Flaspohler. Father of Anna Marie Nobbe and Toni Flaspohler. Stepfather of Kristine Beal, Angela Young, Aaron and Matthew Pulskamp. Brother of Alberta Fecher, Wilma Ripperger, Mary Thornsberry and Kenneth Flaspohler. Grandfather of six. Step-grandfather of six. Great-grandfather of five.
FOWLER, Ellis R., 61, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, April 23. Husband of Barbara Fowler. Father of Deborah Mitchell. Son of Ellis E. Fowler. Brother of Ann Collins, Carol Luken and Katherine Wood.
GANDOLPH, Gerald A., 52, St. Therese of the Infant Jesus (Little Flower), Indianapolis, April 23. Husband of Rebecca Gandolph. Father of Rachel Gough and Jacob Gandolph. Son of Patricia Gandolph. Brother of Carole Kirk, Christine Pressley, Barbara Washburn, Susan, David and Ronald Gandolph.
GILLES, Thomas L., Sr., 61, St. Vincent de Paul, Shelby County, May 31. Father of Kim and Tom Gilles Jr. Brother of Jean Kelsay, Dan, Joe, Ron and Steve Gilles. Grandfather of five.
GODBY, Lawrence L., 90, Holy Spirit, Indianapolis, May 27. Father of Greg Godby. Stepfather of Charles, Michael and Stephen Kaiser. Brother of James Godby. Grandfather of two.
HEAD, Catherine Florence, 77, St. Mark the Evangelist, Indianapolis, June 5. Mother of Jane Hiatt, Nancy Mullins, Angela Seneff, Joan, Bill, Edwin and Kenny Head. Sister of Charlie, Pat and Ralph Yates. Grandmother of 17. Great-grandmother of four.
LATTA, Richard, 59, St. Luke, Indianapolis, May 28. Son of Evelyn (Unruh) Latta. Uncle of one.
RITZI, Clara R., 100, St. Peter, Franklin County, March 6. Mother of Clarence and George Ritzi. Sister of Agnes Kuhn. Grandmother of nine. Great-grandmother of 12.
Providence Sister Francis Eugene
Bussing was a teacher and principal
Providence Sister Francis Eugene Bussing died on June 2 at Mother Theodore Hall at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. She was 87.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on June 6 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception at the motherhouse. Burial followed at the sisters’ cemetery.
The former Marcella Magdalene Bussing was born on Jan. 5, 1920, in Brazil.
She entered the congregation of the Sisters of Providence on Jan. 8, 1938, professed first vows on Aug. 15, 1940, and professed final vows on Aug. 15, 1946.
Sister Francis Eugene ministered as a teacher and principal at Catholic schools staffed by the Sisters of Providence in seven dioceses in Indiana, Illinois, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, California and New Hampshire.
In the archdiocese, Sister Francis Eugene taught at the former St. Ann School in Indianapolis from 1947-56 and the former Annunciation School in Brazil from
1963-67.
Sister Francis Eugene returned to the motherhouse in 1997 and worked at the congregation’s Office of Records until this year.
Surviving are a sister, Providence Sister Richard Bussing of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods; two brothers, Frank Bussing of West Terre Haute and Eugene Bussing of Granada Hills, Calif.; several nieces and nephews; and several grand-nieces and grand-nephews.
Memorial gifts may be sent to the Sisters of Providence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876. †