All Obituaries

Every person has a history. E. C. (Mike) Alft’s began on July 13, 1925, in Chicago, Illinois, and ended 96 years later on November 22, 2021, in West Grove, Pennsylvania.  Raised for the most part in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Mike was a stateside Army veteran.  Following his marriage to Frances Virginia Clark, a college classmate, on August 12, 1950, the couple came to live in Elgin, Illinois for 65 years. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Grinnell College, he earned a master’s...

Joseph Ronald Bruecks, age 79, of West Grove, Pennsylvania, passed away on Sunday November 14, 2021 at the home of his daughter.  He was the husband of the late Joanne Elaine Bruecks, who died in 2009 and with whom he shared 45 years of marriage.  Born in Philadelphia, PA he was the only child of the late Joseph S. Bruecks and the late Beatrice Rivel Bruecks. Joseph graduated from West Catholic For Boys High School and Our Lady of Angels College with a BS in Business. He...

Janet Kay Wilson, age 83, entered her Heavenly Home Sunday November 14, 2021 at her home in Landenberg, Pennsylvania. She was the wife of Roger E. Wilson, with whom she shared 64 years of marriage. Born in Lansing, Michigan, she was a daughter of the late Loy Harper and the late Ada Hoag Harper. Janet graduated from Sexton High School in Lansing MI. Janet served her local church in a variety of ways over the years as a nursery caregiver, Sunday School teacher, and enjoyed camping and hiking...

Philip R. Fling, age 87, of Honey Brook, PA (formerly of Kennett Township), passed away on October 30,2021. He was the widower of Elizabeth (Sandy) A. Nordheim who died December 24, 1976 and Elaine R. Kellogg (Daly) who died May 18, 2016. Phil was born at home in the village of Wawaset, Pocopson Township, of Chester County, PA on August 11, 1934 to Edwin D. Fling and Verda D. McAllister. He attended Unionville School all twelve years. After that, he attended Drexel Institute of Technology...

Esther Sommers Cavanaugh, age 89, died peacefully on October 29, 2021. Prior to her death, she cherished the many family-centric memories that included our predeceased father, Jack, who was her best friend and soulmate for over 55 years. Esther was predeceased by her parents Esther and Winfield Sommers and her sister Earliene Conyers Day. She is survived by her 3 children Esther, Helen and John and their spouses Greg, Raymond and Karen. Her grandchildren, Catie, Ray, Esther, David, and...

Robert Wilson Thorndike, age 70, of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, passed away on Thursday, October 28, 2021, at Chester County Hospital in West Chester, PA. Born in Red Bank, NJ, he was the son of the late Otis Robert Thorndike and the late Helen Joyce Wilson Thorndike Holmes. Bob graduated from the Frankfurt International School and attended Westminster College and Muhlenberg College. While living in Germany, he traveled extensively throughout Europe.  Bob always worked as a...

William C. Brown III, age 87, passed away on Monday October 18, 2021 at Jenners Pond Retirement Community in West Grove PA. Bill is survived by his wife Margie (Johnson) Brown with whom he shared 62 years of marriage; three sons, Doug Brown (Diane), Stuart Brown (Lisa), and Greg Brown (Pamela); and 8 grandchildren.  Bill was predeceased by his parents William and Emma. Bill graduated from Episcopal Academy and Princeton University where he earned his bachelor’s degree in...

Eva Low Verplanck of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, died peacefully at the age of 97 on September 4, 2021. Eva was born and raised in Austria. After emigrating to the U.S., she earned a B.A. at Radcliffe College and a Ph.D. at Yale University. After working at the Academy of Natural Sciences, she became a community volunteer while raising her children. She focused on governance, financial health, and endowment building on numerous non-profit boards, including the YWCA of New Castle County,...

Sharon Ruth (Johnson) Hughes, age 68, of Newark, Delaware, passed away suddenly on Saturday September 25, 2021 at Christiana Hospital in Newark, DE. Born in Newark, DE and raised in Bucks County PA along with her 7 siblings, she was a daughter of the late Kenneth Johnson and the late Virginia Shaw Johnson. Sharon is survived by her daughter, Jennifer L. Tetlow and her husband Raymond of Kennett Square; her son, John Hughes of New Hope, PA; one sister, Judith of Newark, DE; one brother,...

Theodore Neal Brown, age 85, of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, passed away on September 15, 2021 at Brandywine Living at Longwood in Kennett Square, PA.  He was the husband of Rose Marie (Daidone) Brown, with whom he shared 43 years of marriage.  Born in York, PA he was the son of the late Arthur Brown and the late Mabel Love Brown. Ted was a proud graduate from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Economics.  While there he was a member of the University Crew Team...