The funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 28, at the Grace United Methodist Church in Paynesville. Rev. Ric Koehn will officiate. Interment will be in the Paynesville Cemetery with military honors provided by the Paynesville American Legion Post #271.

Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 27, at the Johnson Funeral Home in Paynesville.

Bill was born April 9, 1942, in Paynesville, to Helmut and Hildegard (Liestman) Drager. He graduated from Paynesville High School in 1960 and Alexandria Technical College in 1973.

Bill served his country in the U.S. Navy from 1960 to 1962 during the Cuban Conflict and then in the U.S. Naval Reserves from 1963 to 1965.

On May 22, 1965, he married Susan Madsen in Willmar. Following their marriage they lived in Paynesville where Bill worked for Paynesville Culligan.

Following his education in Alexandria, Bill became a police officer for the Paynesville Police Department. In 1993, he became the chief of police. During this time Bill founded and directed the Paynesville Explorers, a local organization for students interested in law enforcement. In 1997 he retired from the police department and began working part time at A and C Farm Service.

Bill enjoyed wood working, gardening and fishing. He also enjoyed traveling with his wife on bus tours.

Bill is survived by his wife Susan of Paynesville; daughters, Lisa (Eric) Setrum of Willmar and Andrea (and fiance Stan) Urbanski of St. Paul; three grandchildren; and a sister, Addie (David) Holtz of Hawick.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Bob Kotten, 63, Brainerd
Bob Kotten, 63, died at his home on Camp Lake near Brainerd on Sunday, Oct. 17, 2004.

Services were on Wednesday, Oct. 20, at 11 a.m. at Holy Family Church on Bull Dog Lake. Rev. Dr. Paul Fruth officiated. Burial was in the Dykeman Cemetery.

Bob was born on Oct. 8, 1941, to Leona and Joe Kotten. He grew up on a farm by Regal. He graduated in 1959 from Belgrade High School and from the University of Minnesota with a degree in social work.

He worked for NE Neighbor House in Minneapolis, where he was a community organizer and liaison for boys ages 8-18; the Crow Wing Social Services, where he licensed group homes, day care providers, and adoptions; and for 20 years the Department of Human Services, servicing persons with physical and mental disabilities.

He had been the clerk of Roosevelt Township for 29 years and participated with the Brainerd Coalition for Peace. He was also instrumental in organizing a support group in Brainerd for families of mentally or physically disabled persons.

Bob is survived by his wife Marge of Brainerd; children, Joe (Tammy) Kotten of Grafton, Ill., Kristine (Bryan) Sessions of Bend, Ore., and Rebecca Barnes of Robbinsdale, Minn.; three grandchildren; his mother Leona of Paynesville; and brothers and sisters, Donna Liebl, Tom, Dennis, Jack, and Steve, all of the Paynesville area, Jerry of White Bear Lake, Minn., Ron of St. Michael, Minn., and Camp Lake, Joan Yenter of St. Peter, Minn., and Mary Feneis and Betty of New Richland, Wis.

He was preceded in death by his father, Joe, and an infant brother and sister.

James Binnebose, 47, Spicer
James Craig Binnebose, 47 ,of Spicer, died on Thursday, Oct. 14, 2004, at Glen Oaks Care Center in New London.

Funeral services were at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18, at Vinje Lutheran Church. Rev. Barbara Johnson officiated. Interment was at Fairview Cemetery.

Jim was born on Sept. 17, 1957, the son of Armin and Myrtle (Anderson) Binnebose. He grew up in the Willmar area attending Willmar schools for his education.

Jim worked at Jennie-O-Foods for 24 years, until May of this year, when due to his health he had to retire.

He was baptized and confirmed at Vinje Lutheran Church, where he was a member at the time of his death.

He is survived by his sisters, June Liedman of Paynesville and Ruth Binnebose (friend Wesley Norby) of Brooten; five nieces and nephews; a great-niece; two aunts, Ione (Harley) Swenson, and Laura Han; and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Tom Spanier, 68, Lake Henry
Tom M. Spanier, 68, of Lake Henry, died on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2004, at the Assumption Home in Cold Spring.

Mass of Christian Burial was at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 11, at St. Margaret's Catholic Church in Lake Henry. Burial took place in the parish cemetery with full military honors provided by the Lake Henry American Legion Post 612.

Tom was born March 18, 1936, in Lake Henry, to Alfred and Lidwina (Mehr) Spanier. He served in the U. S. Marine Corps. He was a lifelong resident of the Lake Henry area.

He was a member of St. Margaret's Parish, Lake Henry American Legion, St. Margaret's Catholic Aid Association and a faithful member of AA for 16 years.

Tom is survived by brothers and sisters, Fran (Arnie) Simon of Minneapolis, Wally (LaVonne) Spanier of Lake Henry, Joan (Tom) Cebulla of Andover, and Charles of Lake Henry; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and a sister, Eileen Schleper.

Warren Rud, 86, Fergus Falls
Warren Rud, 86, of Fergus Falls, died on Thursday, Oct. 7, 2004, at the Broen Memorial Home.

The funeral service was held at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 11, at the First Baptist Church in Fergus Falls. Rev. Ned Eerdmans officiated. Burial was in Oak Grove Cemetery.

Warren was born to Paul and Cecelia Rud of Irving Township, near Paynesville, on May 4, 1918. He grew up in that area and attended school in District 24. At the age of about 12, Warren was stricken with polio. After hospitalization and recovery he returned home to work on the family farm until adulthood when he completed a correspondence course in radio and television technology through the National Radio Institute out of Washington, D.C.

On June 10, 1944, he married Clarice Mae Haagenson, also of Irving Township, at her parent's home. The couple made their first home together in Willmar, where Warren was employed by Lloyd's Radio Service. In 1948 they moved to Fergus Falls where they purchased a radio service that in time became Warren's Radio and TV. After selling the business in 1975, Warren returned to work for two years at Jenoff Company in Fergus Falls.

In 1960 Warren and Clarice bought wooded property at Ottertail Lake. It soon became Ottertail Lake Campgrounds where the family lived and worked every summer until 1966. Clarice's brother, Russ Haagenson, was a partner in both the store and campground.

After retirement they enjoyed traveling throughout the country in the 1948 Greyhound bus he rebuilt and converted into a motor home. They spent many winters in the Mesa, Ariz., area.

He was a member of Fergus Falls Baptist Church for many years where he served on the deacon board, trustee board and as church treasurer. When a new church was built, he designed and installed the sound system.

He is survived by his wife, Clarice; daughters, Cathy (Don) Peterson of Fergus Falls, Mary (Richard) Beck of Plymouth, Minn., JoAnne (Daryl) Rademacher of Foxholm, N.D., and Jan (Brad) Vigen of Princeton, Minn.; one son, Mark (Carolyn) Rud of Fergus Falls; 12 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; a brother, Philip (Virginia) Rud of Paynesville; and other relatives, including many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers, five sisters and a granddaughter.

Anthony Welle Jr., 58, Spring Hill
Anthony "Junior" G. Welle, 58, of Spring Hill, died Sunday, Oct. 3, 2004, at his home after a long battle with cancer.

Mass of Christian Burial was held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at St. Michael's Catholic Church in Spring Hill. Rev. Leo Leisen officiated. Interment was in the parish cemetery.

Anthony was born on Oct. 29, 1945, in Melrose, Minn., to Anthony and Mildred (Ebensteiner) Welle. He was united in marriage to Dorothy Lieser on Nov. 5, 1966 in St. Martin. The couple farmed until 1990 when they sold the cows and remained living on the farm.

He was a member of St. Michael's Catholic Church in Spring Hill, St. Michael's Catholic Aid, St. Michael's Men's Society and Knights of Columbus.

Anthony is survived by his wife, Dorothy Welle of Spring Hill; children, Bob (Lisa) Welle of Becker, Pam (Steve) Bertram of Becker, and Kay (Greg) Van Beck of Greenwald; eight grandchildren; sisters and brother, Donna (Maynard) Nathe of Cold Spring, Gene (Jane) Welle of Cold Spring, Sandi (Paul) Feldewerd of New Munich, and Lou (Jerry) Spanier of Spring Hill; and many sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Serving as casket bearers will be Donna and Maynard Nathe, Gene and Jane Welle, Sandi and Paul Feldewerd, Lou and Jerry Spanier. Jeremy Welle will be cross bearer and Kaitlin Bertram will be the scripture bearer. Gift bearers will be his children, Bob, Pam and Kay.

Judith Cromwell, 76, Paynesville
Judith Carolyn Cromwell, 76, of Paynesville, died on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2004, at the St. Cloud Hospital.

Funeral services were at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 4, at Paynesville Luth-eran Church. Burial was in the Ripley Cemetery at Litchfield, Minn. Pastor Jeff Bergman and Pastor David Nelson officiated.

Judith was born on May 21, 1928, to Carl E. and Ruth F. (Schmidt) Warren in rural Grove City, Minn. She graduated from Litchfield High School in May 1946.

She was married to Willard E. Allen on Jan. 6, 1951. Willard was killed in a construction accident on Dec. 1, 1955. Judith later married George Cromwell, Sr. on Dec. 18, 1958. George died on March 19, 1994. Judith then moved to 700 Stearns Avenue in Paynesville.

She attended the Lutheran Bible Institute from 1956 to 1958 and took classes at Gustavus Adolphus College.

She was a Shaklee dealer in Paynesville for over 25 years and a member of Paynesville Lutheran Church where she was a Sunday school, confirmation and Vacation Bible school teacher. She enjoyed sewing and did many sewing for charitable projects.

She is survived by one son, George (Shirley) Cromwell, Jr.; one daughter, Gwen (Boyd) Thomas; six grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and one brother, James Warren.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her two husbands; two sisters, Lois Warren and Dorothy Blad; one granddaughter; and one great- granddaughter.