Obituaries

Mark Anson Jones,75, of Carmi passed away on Tuesday, December 2, 2025 at his residence in Carmi. He was born on March 11, 1950 in Macomb, IL the son of George and Lorraine (Miller) Jones.

Steven Glen Vaupel,71, of Palatine, IL passed away Sunday, November 16, 2025 at his home in Palatine. Steve was born on November 3, 1954 in Fort Riley, Kansas the son of Luther Owen and Mary Frances (Thackrey) Vaupel.

    James S. Harrell, 81, of Norris City, IL passed away on November 16, 2025 at Wabash Christian Village in Carmi, IL. He was born in St. Louis, MO on August 14, 1944 the son of Stephen and Elizabeth "Betty" (Land) Harrell.

Jill Ann Shaw, 64, of Norris City passed away on Sunday, November 30, 2025 at her residence in Norris City. She was born on August 6, 1961 in Carmi the daughter of Leo Ralph and Margaret Ann (McKenzie) Shaw. Jill worked for the Egyptian Health Department until she retired. She also attended Redemption Church in Eldorado. She loved spending her free time with her grandchildren, gardening, and sewing.

Julie Ann (Mallette) Matsel, 68, of Carmi, IL, passed away on Sunday, November 23, 2025, in Evansville, IN. She was born on November 14, 1957, the daughter of Delbert Gene and Wanda Ilene (Dosher) Mallette.

 Francis “Frank” Phillip Speller, 84, of Carmi, IL passed away on Tuesday, November 25, 2025 at Hamilton Memorial Hospital in McLeansboro, IL. He was born on December 20, 1940 in Outer London, England, the son of Francis Albert and Edith (Smith) Speller. Frank married his high school sweetheart, who he reunited with after 40 years, Maureen Allen on June 3, 2005 and they shared over 20 years of marriage together. He worked as an electrical engineer most of his life. He was a member of the St. Mary’s Church of England, King Harold Masonic Lodge in England, and honorary member of Burnt Prairie Lodge #668. Franks’s hobbies included flying, reading, music, walking his dogs, working on old clocks, and electronics.

Mary (Edwards) Little, 100, of Rio Verde, Arizona passed away on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, at her residence. She was born in Omaha, Illinois on August 13, 1925, the daughter of Jesse Floyd and Pearl (Pearce) Edwards. She graduated from Norris City Township High School in 1943. During World War II, she was proud to have worked on the manufacture of PF-47 Thunderbolts.

David Eugene Witherspoon, 95, of Grayville, Illinois passed away peacefully on Saturday, November 22, 2025, surrounded by his family. He was born on Monday, December 23, 1929, in Evansville, Indiana the son of Jesse F. and Amanda (Giannini) Witherspoon. He first married Marilyn Conrad in 1950 ,and they shared 62 years of marriage before her passing on August 20, 2012. He then married Emma Joyce (Hatcher) Winters on December 23, 2014 ,and together they have shared over 10 years of marriage.

Earl Lee Rister, 71, of Carmi, Illinois, passed away on Friday, November 21, 2025 at Hamilton Memorial Hospital in McLeansboro, Illinois. He was born Friday, September 17, 1954, in Carmi, Illinois, the son of Marvin and Maxine (Day) Rister. On June 27, 1975, he married Vanessa Ziegler at the home of his parents in Carmi, and together they shared over fifty years of marriage.

Everett “Deon” Carr, 82, of Carmi, IL passed away on Tuesday, November 18, 2025 at Memorial Hospital East in Shiloh, IL.  He was born on October 21, 1943 in McLeansboro to George Colene Carr & Myrtle (Jacobs) Carr.  On January 9, 1965 he married Naomi Ruth (Rankin) Carr, who preceded him in death on January 26, 2015.