All Obituaries

Steven Mark Breneiser, 52, of Alsace Township, died November 9, 2018 at Tower Health/Reading Hospital, West Reading. He was the husband of Debra Lee (Hartberger) Breneiser, to whom he was married to for 29 years on October 28, 1989. Born November 10, 1965 in Reading, he was a son of Gerald R. Breneiser, Sr., husband of Sande, of Mt. Penn and Patricia Ann (Parton) Yee, wife of Joseph, of Oley Township. Steven was a 1983 graduate of Oley Valley High School. He was employed as a machine...

Verdella A. Bator, 97, of Muhlenberg Township, died in Berks Heim, where she had been a guest since October 4th. She was married June 29, 1940 to William J. Bator, who died December 11, 1970. Born in Hazleton, Luzerne County on July 13, 1921, she was a daughter of the late Ernesto and Nora (Fascinelli) Martini. Verdella was a member of St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Church, Reading. She is survived by a daughter, Joan M. (Bator) Shirk of Muhlenberg Township. Verdella is also survived by two...

Tammy Elizabeth Young-Flores, 55, of Reading, died November 8, 2018 at Hershey Medical Center, surrounded by loved ones.  She was the wife of Adan Flores-Castanéda, to whom she was married October 15, 1999.  They spent 31 years together. Born in Kutztown, she was a daughter of the late Leo George Young and Elizabeth Ada Albright. Tammy was employed as a bus driver with BCIU for over 10 years. She loved spending time with her family. Surviving, in addition to her...

Marie Clara Reinert, 88, of Exeter Twp., died November 6, 2018 in Tower Health / Reading Hospital. She was the wife of Merrill A. Reinert, whom she married July 4, 1950. Marie was born in her Oley Township residence on May 9, 1930 and was a daughter of the late Frederick L. and Sallie G. (Houp) Seidt. She was a member of Salem UCC, Oley, where she enjoyed quilting on Mondays. Marie also enjoyed snowmobiling and spending time at the family cabin in Tioga County. She is also survived by...

It all came down to creative accounting. If you asked Joan Alesi Eckert how she managed to graduate from Kutztown High School in 1949, her answer was always straightforward. And entertaining. With a shrug and a crooked smile, she’d say, “I had Charlie do my books for me.” After all, her commercial education track classmate Charlie Eckert – they met when they were all of 16 – was downright smitten with her. He was happy to help. She was even happier to...

Elizabeth N. “Liz” Sommers, 75, of Summit Hill, passed away November 4, 2018 in St. Luke’s Hospice House, Bethlehem, with her loving family by her side. She was the loving wife of Alexander William Sommers, Sr., who passed away February 21, 2018. Born in Coaldale, PA on April 3, 1943, she was the daughter of the late Joseph and Jean (Bender) Matta. Elizabeth was a graduate of Lansford High School. She was an active member of St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church of the...

Robert O. Hafer, 91 of Oley, died October 29, 2018. He was married April 16, 1955 to Fay (Grim) Hafer, who died February 10, 2018. Born in Exeter Township, PA on September 1, 1927, he was a son of the late Mahlon and Arline (Merkel) Hafer. Robert was a member of Friedens United Church of Christ, Oley. He was an Army Veteran of the Korean Conflict. Robert was employed 39 years as an ironer and stamper with the former Continental Can Corporation, Reading, retiring May 1, 1989. He is survived...

In the great long ago, two co-workers teamed up to play a gag on Charlie Eckert. How funny, they thought, if they were to maneuver an iron hook from the shop ceiling to goose his rear end. They missed. And conked Charlie square in the head. He dropped like a ton of bricks. However, by the time his two friends ran to the shop floor to see if they’d killed him, Charlie was up on his knees, shaking his head and cursing them mightily. From that day forward, Charles Llewellyn Eckert was...

Stephen Mark Kucenski, 57, died October 24, 2018 at Penn State Health - St. Joseph, Bern Township. He was the husband of Christine Anne (Barrett) Kucenski, to whom he was married on July 5, 2014. Born September 3, 1961 in Ridgway, Elk County, PA, he was a son of Nancy (Grandinetti) Kucenski of Ridgway, Elk County and the late Eugene Kucenski. Stephen was a graduate of Ridgway High School and Gannon University. He was a professional musician for over 40 years.  An accomplished...

Albert H. Jacobs III, 76, passed away in his home on October 23, 2018. He is survived by his loving wife of over fifty years, his children, and his grandchildren. He was predeceased by a sister, Muriel. Al was born in the Villanova area on March 14, 1942. He graduated from The Haverford School for boys and The Wharton School, at the University of Pennsylvania. He served in the United States Marine Corp as a sergeant. He had a career in sales and later began his own paper...