OBITUARIES

Jan 6, 2024

Mary Coil Barker went with the Lord on January 6, 2024. Mary was born in Gillett, PA. She came to Lakeland in 1972. Worked at Bunker Hill Dodge, and for several years at Publix in retail accounting.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Tracy and Leona Clark, Sr.; husband, Wesley C. Coil; second...

Jan 3, 2024

On the night of January 3rd, 2024, Philip Timothy Lord went to be with his heavenly

Father after a battle with cancer. He went calmly and softly in his sleep surrounded

by his family.

Philip, known to all as Tim, was...

Jan 2, 2024

William (Bill) Verplanck of Lakeland Florida passed away Tuesday morning January 2, 2024. Bill was born January 20, 1950, in Edmore, Michigan where he grew up. He was a graduate of Edmore High School, class of 1968. He was drafted into the army in 1969 during the Vietnam war and served two years in Germany. After the service Bill...

Jan 2, 2024

Frederick Vincent Gifun of Lakeland, FL was born August 11, 1939, and passed away on January 2, 2024, at the age of 84. He succumbed to non-alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver, caused by an inherited auto-immune condition.

Fred lived a full life, starting with humble beginnings in Boston’s Jamaica Plain. He received his BA from...

Dec 28, 2023

Dec 28, 2023

Dec 27, 2023

Dec 25, 2023

Businessman, civic leader, and loving husband, father, and grandfather, James Edward DeLoach, 88, passed away suddenly on Christmas Day 2023, following a morning of delivering gifts and preparing for his family's Christmas gathering at his and his wife's home.

Ed, as everyone knew him, was born on Nov. 23, 1935, in Great Falls, South Carolina,...

Dec 25, 2023

Eleanor B. Oppermann (nee Boehler) of Lakeland, Florida, formerly of Wantagh, New York, passed away on Monday, December 25, 2023.

Ellie was the beloved wife of the late John T. Oppermann (2000), to whom she was married for over 40 years. She leaves behind her beautiful family, son, John Michael Oppermann (Susan Helms) and daughter,...

Dec 24, 2023

Dec 23, 2023

Marian Joan Hoff Lewis, 93, passed away peacefully at her home in Lakeland, Florida, on December 23, 2023. Marian was born on February 20, 1930, in Wishek, North Dakota, the daughter of Nellie Fraser Hoff and William Friedrich Hoff. She grew up in Wishek and Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, lived in San Francisco, California during World War II, and...

Dec 22, 2023

LAKELAND – Mason Carmichael Mays passed away peacefully on December 22, 2023, after a short illness. She was surrounded by her family. In departing this world, she leaves behind a legacy as a devoted wife, beloved mother and grandmother, respected friend, mentor, and community leader.

Her parents, Beulah, and Parks Carmichael preceded her in death....

Dec 21, 2023

Lakeland, FL - Helen Mae Wilkerson, born on October 8, 1940, in Greene, NY, peacefully passed away on December 21, 2023, in Lakeland, FL, surrounded by her loving family. She was predeceased by her first husband, Francis Miller, her second husband, Tony Wilkerson, her beloved firstborn son, Henry Miller, and her dear sister, Irene Willoughby.

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Dec 17, 2023

Andy passed away on December 17, 2023. In his final few weeks, he was surrounded by those who loved him until his last breath.

Andy was preceded in death by his parents Ollie and Lenton, sister Geraldine, brothers Franklin and Wilton.

He is survived by his loving wife Thelma; brothers Bobby and Lawton,...

Dec 16, 2023

Jeri-Anne Polzin, 81, of Lakeland, passed away on December 16th, 2023 at Lakeland Regional Hospital.

She was born on January 9th, 1942 to Thomas & Frances Harwell in Chicago, IL.

Jeri is survived by her granddaughter, Kellie; nephew, Dion (Denise) & niece, Kim.

She’s preceded in death...

Dec 12, 2023

John C. Corrigan III, born July 23, 1939, embarked on his final journey from this world on December 12, 2023, after a brief illness.

Born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, John was the first of six children and grew up in a household where a commitment to education and a strong Catholic upbringing shaped his character....

Dec 11, 2023

Dec 9, 2023

Dec 8, 2023

Stephen (Steve) Roy Solovitz, 76, of Lakeland, FL, died peacefully in his sleep on Friday, December 8th, 2023. Steve was born on November 19, 1947, in St. Louis, MO, to parents Emil and Evangeline Solovitz. Following his college studies at Washington University he moved to Minneapolis, MN with his wife Carol, where they raised a family.

Dec 6, 2023

Wayne H. Wheeler, 93, passed away on December 6th, 2023. Wayne was born September 5th, 1930, in Larned, Kansas to the late Frank Crozier Wheeler and Eleanor Hougland Wheeler, and grew up in the vicinity of Osawatomie, Kansas.

He enlisted in the US Navy as soon as he graduated from Osawatomie HS, Osawatomie Kansas, in...