Vernon Elmer Groth (1912 - 2014)

Born 30 Apr 1912 in Bushton in Rice County, Kansas, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Leola Clarice (McCreight) Groth — married 26 Nov 1936 in Kansas, USA

Died 19 Feb 2014 at age 101 in Lyons in Rice Co., Kansas, USA

Biography

Vernon was born in 1912. He was the son of Harry Groth and Dola Cassingham. He passed away in 2014.^[1]

LYONS - Vernon Groth, a lifelong resident of Rice County, died Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2014, at the Rice County District Hospital in Lyons. He would have celebrated his 102nd birthday on April 30th of this year.

Vernon was born at his parents’ farm near Bushton in 1912. He grew up on that farm with his parents, Harry and Dola Groth, attended school in a one-room school near the farm during his early years and graduated from Bushton High School. After high school he attended Sterling College and graduated from there with a degree in music in 1934. He met his wife, Leola, in Sterling and they were married in Sterling’s First Presbyterian Church on Thanksgiving Day in 1936. They moved to the farm and Vernon tended that land until he retired. He and Leola then built a home in Lyons and lived there for many years. Music was a large and important part of Vernon’s life. During his college years he sang with a men’s quartet that toured western Kansas and performed regularly in the Sterling area. He was especially interested in the renovation of Cooper Hall at Sterling College a few years ago because he spent much of his college career in that building. In 2012, he was co-Grand Marshall for Sterling College’s Homecoming Parade. Over the years he has sung in church choirs and appeared in operas. He sang with the Hutchinson Salt Miners barbershop group for several years, and in many ways put his music degree to work. He was a member of the Lyons First United Methodist Church choir until he was no longer able to attend rehearsals and services. Vernon served as Rice County Chairman for the South Central Kansas Area Agency on Aging, a 10-county organization, was involved in agricultural stabilization work for the county and worked in the Bushton State Bank for several years. He also taught at Bushton High School. Throughout his life he was a busy and a helpful member of the society in which he lived. For years he has been an avid listener to “good” music on KHCC-FM in Hutchinson.

Vernon was preceded in death by his parents, his brother Raymond in California and his wife Leola who died in 2005. He is survived by a sister, Loma McAtee (also a resident of the Rice County District Hospital in Lyons); his daughter, Alyce Lyn Meredith (Larry) of Gunnison, Colo.; his son, Wayne Groth (Karen) of Danville, Calif.; five grandchildren including: Suzy Meredith-Orr (Denny) of Tulsa, Okla., Greg Meredith (Tina) of Carbondale, Colo., Barbara Groth of San Francisco; Doug Groth (Garnet) of Danville, Calif., Dee Dee Mimran (Ronnie) of Diablo, Calif.; and seven great-grandchildren. Family members will hold a private family graveside service.

A memorial service in Lyons is planned for later in the spring at a date and time to be announced. In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome memorial gifts directed to the Chancel Choir of the Lyons First United Methodist Church or to a memorial of their choice. The family expresses appreciation to Dr. Roger Tobias and the hospital staff for the excellent care of Vernon over the years at Noble Place and in the Swing Bed area of the hospital.

This profile is a collaborative work-in-progress. Can you contribute information or sources?

Sources

• Eureka Township, Rice County, Kansas January 28, 1920 US Census, Sheet No. 7-A (25), Household ID, 127, Family ID 127, Line 39. Click here to see it: [1].

• Eureka Township, Rice County, Kansas April 14, 1930 US Census, Sheet No. 2-A (20), Household ID, 37, Family ID 37, Line 39. Click here to see it: [2].

• Find A Grave Memorial# 138273784. Click here to see it: [3].

Footnotes

1. ↑ Information entered by Dave McNally, Saturday, June 25, 2016.

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Dave McNally for creating Groth-225 on 25 June 2016. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Dave and others.