Dan Humphreys, a broadcaster and salesman at WPFB radio in Middletown for 60 years, passed away March 3 in Tampa, Fla. He was 87.
Gerri Humphreys, his wife until they divorced in 1980, said Dan loved life, people and most of all, Middletown.
“He never wanted to leave,” she said. “He was totally Middletown. He had no desire to go outside of Middletown.”
Humphreys graduated from Middletown High School in 1945, where he was a basketball manager on the boys basketball team that was state runner-up. He attended Miami University and began his career at WPFB radio. He worked there from 1950 until the station was sold. While at WPFB, Humphreys announced high school and college games with the late Warren Johnson and sold advertising.
Middletown great Jerry Lucas, who led the Middies to back-to-back state championships, compared Johnson and Humphreys to Laurel and Hardy and Abbott and Costello.
“Those two just went together, Warren and Dan,” Lucas said. “They were very much the fabric of Middletown. If you played for the Middies, you knew those two.”
Dr. Robert Flagel
Dr. Robert Flagel, a life-long Middletown resident who practiced optometry for 50 years, died April 15 at his home. He was 75.
“I think for me, he taught me how to be a good human being, to treat everyone equally, having a strong work ethic, appreciating life and being thankful for what you have,” said Shelly Flagel, the youngest daughter.
Laurie Flagel, who worked for her father for the past 13 years, recalled how much he truly cared about his patients.
“He loved going to work,” she said. “He loved his work and he taught us to love our work. He loved seeing his patients and probably never really retired.
Dr. Flagel was a 1957 graduate of Middletown High School and had graduated from The Ohio State University’s College of Optometry in 1963. He was involved in the Middletown community and served in a number of organizations. Dr. Flagel served as president of the Middletown Community Foundation; president of the Noon Optimist Club; president of Temple Beth Sholom; chairman of All American Weekend; and committee member of the Pigskin Roundball Spectacular.
Rochelle “Shelly” Burch
The wife of a Middletown pastor and her mother were killed in a crash May 13 in Indiana.
Rochelle "Shelly" Burch, 54, of Franklin and Linda Dykstra, 77, of Wayland, Mich., died in the accident near Interstate 69. Burch's vehicle was hit by a semi after crossing two lanes of traffic, knocking it off the road.
Burch was the wife of Mitchell Burch, pastor of Towne Boulevard Church of God in Middletown. The couple was married for 36 years.
On his Facebook page, Burch wrote: “My beautiful bride of 36 years met Jesus today face to face … Please pray for my family. Rest in His loving arms sweet love as you Celebrate being home … I’ll see you over on the other side but until then, we will be Embraced by His mercy.”
Candice Keller, executive director of the Community Pregnancy Center, said Towne Boulevard Church has supported the center for the last 20 years, and during the last seven or eight years, she has become friends with the Burch family. She said the death of Shelly was especially difficult because she was in the “prime of her life” and she was a proud mother of two grown children and four grandchildren.
“She was a very positive person,” Keller said. “She gave of herself.”
Burch was the church pianist and singer in a quartet.
Fred Sennet
When Dana Sennet found a ranch home in Trenton for sale, her husband, Fred Sennet, didn't want to move.
“He loved Middletown,” she said. “Man, did he love Middletown.”
That love was evident throughout his adult life as Sennet, who died June 9 at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, served as a Middletown school board member, city commission member, newspaper reporter and owner of the Fairfield Times. He was 81.
Sennet also served as commission chairman and mayor for a short time.
Les Landen, the city’s law director, praised Sennet for his contributions to the Middletown community. He said Sennet was a giving person and cared about the city and its residents.
“It’s always hard when you lose someone who served the public,” Landen said. “He will be truly missed by the city and the community.”
Robert “Bob” Miller
Robert "Bob" Miller, a World War II veteran and Armco retiree, died Aug. 14 at his Middletown home. He was 92.
Pauline Miller felt lost without her late husband, whom she married seven years ago.
“I’ve been calling out his name all morning,” Miller said the day after his death. “Every morning he said, ‘I love you,’ and every night he said, ‘I love you sweetheart.’”
Miller retired from Armco Steel Corp in 1982. He was in the United States Marine Corp. during World War II and served 27½ months in the South and Central Pacific and earned the combat action ribbon.
Two years ago, on his 90th birthday, Miller made news when he skydived with Team Fastrax at Hook Field.
Vaden Fitton
Vaden Fitton, 87, a local businessman and community leader who helped to establish the Great Miami Valley YMCA's first two branches, died Oct. 30.
He was the former senior officer, first vice president of First National Bank and bank director. In 1968, he co-chaired a capital campaign to establish the first two Great Miami Valley YMCA branches — the Hamilton West and Fairfield branches — which opened in August of 1970, according to Paul Otten, chairman of the YMCA’s Board of Trustees.
“We at the YMCA are deeply saddened at the passing of Vaden Fitton,” Otten said. “Vaden once stated in a YMCA Campaign brochure, ‘When we say community, we mean it in the broadest sense. The ‘Y’ is an asset that can be shared by all … The qualities of leadership and pride that grow with the individual ‘Y’ members are certainly invaluable factors in the future of this area and the entire country.’ “
Vaden served on the YMCA’s Board of Trustees from 1962-1982 and remained an Honorary Board member until his death.
The Hamilton West YMCA was renamed the Don W. and Nannie V. Fitton Family YMCA in 2003, after Fitton’s parents, recognizing the family for their five generations of leadership and dedication to the mission of the YMCA, according to Otten.
Linda Ebbing
Former Journal-News education reporter Linda Ebbing, of Camden, died Nov. 5 after a stroke.
Ebbing, 64, who grew up in Hamilton and went to Taft High School, retired from the newspaper in 2009. Co-workers and residents in Butler County and southern Preble County remember her as a “gem” with a sympathetic ear and a booming laugh.
“Linda had the most infectious laugh. Sometimes she would be on the telephone interviewing someone for a story she was working on and she would break into a laugh at something they said. I would start laughing also; not even knowing what caused her to laugh in the first place,” said Mary Lolli, a former Journal-News reporter who worked with Ebbing. “Linda also always looked for the good in people, no matter what.”
Mandy Gambrell, former editor for the Journal-News, remembered Ebbing in her role as a journalist and colleague.
“Linda was bold and never was afraid to step on toes when it came to interviewing. A group of us who worked closely with her in the Journal-News building on Court Street recently reminisced about when she once called up the White House and asked to speak directly to the president to get a quote for a story. She entertained us,” Gambrell said.
Joni Copas, Hamilton City Schools spokeswoman, described Ebbing as a gem and a real friend.
“Linda was always fair in her reporting and loved nothing better than to go into our schools to talk to students and to share their stories with our community. She had a special way that made everyone comfortable speaking to her,” Copas said.
Dr. William “Doc” Jones
Dr. William "Doc" Jones, Butler County's 2015 Veteran of the Year, died Dec. 15. He was 91. He was a resident in Colonial's Westover Retirement Community, where he had lived since 2009.
Jones served in World War II and the Korean War as a third-class quartermaster while on board the USS LST 735 and the USS LST 1025. He survived eight invasions during World War II in the Philippines.
Jones spent his life serving his country. After the Korean War, he studied medicine and worked at the former Hughes Hospital and also Fort Hamilton for 31 years. He served as a commissioner with the Butler County Veterans Service Commission, and for the past two years he was commander of the local American Legion Post 138.
Barry Thiel
A longtime Liberty Twp. volunteer died Dec. 6 after a scuba diving incident in the US Virgin Islands.
Barry Thiel, 49, senior managing director at 13D Research, had a fatal heart attack in St. Thomas, where the investment firm is headquartered.
Thiel was appointed by township trustees for two consecutive five-year terms on the Liberty Twp. Board of Zoning Appeals in 2007 and 2012, and recently was elected president of the Liberty Twp. Parks Committee, where he had served since 2007.
“We lost a man who had a rare blend of empathy for others, married with a keen analytic insight, a results-driven ability to make our township a much better place to live,” said Kurt Feldmann, who served on the parks committee with Thiel. “He was a pretty modest guy who accomplished a lot of things in his life.”
Thiel served as partner with Tri-State Habitat for Humanity and served on the Butler County Republican Party Executive Committee. He also served for nine years as leader of Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s Fathers Group, which has a special focus to widows and other vulnerable populations, Feldmann said.
Edward Karwacki
A World War II veteran and former commander of the American Legion Post 218 died Dec. 17 at Atrium Medical Center.
Edward “Ed” Karwacki, 96, was an Army veteran serving during WWII, a 45-year member of the American Legion Post 218 where he served as commander and on the honor guard. He was a chemist working for Continental Oil and Formica.
He was a member of Holy Family Parish, Knights of Columbus, the Elk’s Lodge 257 and an avid sports fan including Notre Dame and the Baltimore Orioles.
Michael Shanks
Well-known attorney Michael Shanks, 69, died Dec. 19 at his Hamilton home.
The Hamilton native had been practicing law since 1976 when he graduated from University of Cincinnati College of Law after graduating from Miami University and serving in the United States Marine Corps in Vietnam.
“It is a big loss to the legal community and a bigger loss of him as a man,” said attorney David Washington. “We all loved him.”
His career included practicing law with the firms Wood & Lamping; Holbrock & Jonson; and Bressler, Shanks & Gedling before opening his own criminal law practice in Hamilton.
In 2009, Shanks teamed up with attorney Chris Pagan to defend Dr. Mark Blankenburg, who along with his twin brother, Scott, were convicted on a multitude of charges involving sex, drugs and illicit photos of young patients in their pediatric practice.
Shanks and attorney Greg Howard defended Jose Trinidad Loza, who is now on death row after being convicted of murdering his girlfriend’s mother, his girlfriend’s brother and girlfriend’s sisters, in their Middletown home.
This article contains previous reporting by staff writers Lauren Pack and Eric Schwartzberg.
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