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Obituaries

Death Notices: Batavia Remembers Longtime City Employee Allen Ritchason, Many Others

Remembrances and links to the obituaries from Batavia, Geneva and St. Charles funeral homes, for the week prior to Jan. 7, 2014.

Click on the links of each highlighted name for more information about funeral arrangements.


Malone Funeral Home



  • Morton H. “Mort” Haffey, 67, of Kaneville Township, owned and operated several farms in Kane County and truly loved his work. He was a train enthusiast, a loving father, grandfather and brother and will be missed by all those whose lives he touched.

Yurs Funeral Home


  • Gabriel J. Castro, 41, of Elgin, died Friday, Jan. 3, 2014 at Little Angels Home, where his was a resident for more than 33 years. He is survived by his parents, niece, Sammantha Allen, his paternal grandfather, Juan Castro of Rockford, maternal grandfather, Ronald Bell of Libertyville, several uncles, aunts and cousins. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Little Angels, 1435 Summit St., Elgin, IL 60120. 
  • Jerry Fikar, 70, of West Chicago died Dec. 31, 2013, at home surrounded by his loving family. He was born to Edward and Estelle Fikar in Chicago, IL. He is survived by his loving wife Susan, devoted daughters, Jill (Rick) Assad, of Winfield, Beth Fikar Hintz, of Wheaton, two adoring grandchildren Dale and Abe Assad, sister Judy Smetters, nieces and nephews, Dawn Greeby, Scott Smetters, Jennifer Hunt, and Jeff Munson.

Moss Funeral Home



  • John R. Loftus, 87, of Geneva, served in the U.S. Navy in World War II in the Pacific. Before and after the war, he attended the University of Notre Dame, graduating in 1949. He married Julia “Julie” Marloth on Jan. 11, 1947 and together they raised six children, moving to St. Charles in 1954. He and Julie resided there until they moved to Geneva six years ago. John was real estate developer and the owner of a general contracting company specializing in industrial and commercial construction, a long-time member of St. Patrick Church. He was a steadfast supporter of the University of Notre Dame, played basketball for the Fighting Irish and was a member of the Monogram Club. He later served on the University’s Business Advisory Council.
  • Allen G. Ritchason, 93, of Geneva, formerly of Batavia, served in the Pacific with the U.S. Army as a corporal during World War II. After the war, he was united in marriage to Virginia L. Summers, and they moved to Batavia in 1948, where he worked for the city of Batavia for the Waste Water Department for 25 years, prior to his retirement in 1982. As a devoted family man, he enjoyed watching his sons participate in school sports. He was instrumental in organizing the Batavia Youth Baseball Program. For many years, he attended Bethel Baptist Church in St. Charles where he served as a deacon. He was a member of the Batavia VFW Post #1197.
  • Jerry E. Pagliuca “Pagli,” 76, of Batavia, formerly of Park Ridge, died Dec. 29, 2013 at Delnor Community Hospital in Geneva. He is survived by his wife, Doranne; three children, Laura Eavery, Daryl, and Randy; two step-children, Jennifer and Christopher; and six grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Jerry’s memory may be directed to the Aplastic Anemia & MDS International Foundation, 100 Park Avenue, Suite 108, Rockville, MD 20850 or www.AAMDS.org.

Patch Funeral Home Guide


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