Leona Uptgraft

Leona M. Uptgraft, 83, a resident of Merriam and widow of William A. Uptgraft, passed away at 8:20 a. m. on Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at Indiana University Health Goshen Hospital in Goshen.e Although she had been in declining health, she had only been seriously ill for a short time. Mrs. Uptgraft was born on April 20, 1929 in Perry Township in Allen County, a daughter of Earl and Mary (Harter) Geiger, and was the eldest of their ten children. On October 9, 1948 she was married in Waynedale to William A. Uptgraft, and moved from Ossian to her home in Merriam in 1954. She was a member of St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Churubusco, served as a volunteer with the American Red Cross, and was elected president of the Albion American Legion Ladies Auxiliary Post 246 and Indiana's 4th District in 1987.e She was a devoted homemaker, wife, mother and grandmother, and enjoyed knitting and quilting. Mr. Uptgraft preceded her in death on April 28, 2004. The surviving relatives include her children Shirley VonDerau of Fort Wayne, Mary (Charles) Herman of Cranston, RI, Douglas (Laurie) Uptgraft of Olympia, WA, Russell (Peggy) Uptgraft of Merriam, Mark (Melinda) Uptgraft of Mishawaka, Martha (Joseph) Hubbard of Churubusco; daughters-in-law Ann Uptgraft of Edgar Springs MO and Nancy Uptgraft of North Pole, AK; brothers Paul (Judy) Geiger, Charles (Joyce) Geiger and Harry Geiger, all of Churubusco; sisters Mary Ann Gaerte of Albion,e Bonnie (William) Schirmeyer of Fort Wayne and Pauline (Jerry) Lane of Greenville, TN; 24 grandchildren, 46 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild. In addition to her parents and husband, also deceased are two sons Earl Uptgraft and Thomas Uptgraft; a son-in-law Woody VonDerau; a brother George Geiger; two sisters Helen Bolenbaugh and Claire Nuenthal; a grandson and a great-granddaughter. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a. m. on Monday, February 11, 2013, at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Churubusco with Father Danney Pinto, the celebrant. The family will receive friends at the Sheets & Childs Funeral Home in Churubusco on Sunday from 2 to 5 p. m.e The Holy Rosary will be recited at 5 p. m. Sunday at the funeral home. Interment will be in the Covington Memorial Gardens, Fort Wayne. For those who wish, memorials may be directed to the American Cancer Society. ****************************************