VIRGIL M. STEINMETZ

Virgil M. Steinmetz, 87, longtime resident, businessman and community servant of Valley Falls, recently residing at Leawood, died Tuesday, May 5, 2009.
He was born Feb. 28, 1922, north of Ozawkie, the son of Albert R. and Verna McDonald Steinmetz. He graduated from Valley Falls High School in 1940. Virgil served as a Sergeant in the Army Air Force during WW II. He was stationed at Midland, TX and was a Flight Engineer for the B-25 bomber airplane.
He married Irma Stein on Feb. 12, 1945, at the Midland, TX Army Air Force Chapel. They owned and managed Steinmetz Service in Valley Falls from 1951-1992. Virgil was on the Kansas City, KS Advisory Board for the B.F. Goodrich Tire Co. He served on the Delaware Township Fire Dept. for 38 years, including 26 years as Fire Dept. Chief. He received Certificates of Commendation from both the State Fire Marshal and former Governor Mike Hayden. He was a charter member of the Valley Falls Lions Club and a past president of the Valley Falls Chamber of Commerce. He was vice-president of the Valley Falls Cemetery Association and served on the Valley Falls Planning and Zoning Board. He was a member of the Valley Falls Saddle Club and the Jefferson County Selective Service Board. Virgil was a member of St. Mary's Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Valley Falls. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus Council 6671 in Valley Falls and a Fourth Degree Knight of the James W. Gibbons Assembly.
Virgil served on the Jefferson County Memorial Hospital Board, the Valley Falls Medical Arts Building Board and the Riverbend Health Care Board in Atchison. He was member of American Legion Bicentennial Post 225 at Ozawkie and Lodge 555 of the Loyal Order of the Moose in Topeka.
He was preceded in death by two brothers, Leonard Steinmetz and Albert Steinmetz, and a sister Lila Dutton.
Survivors include his beloved wife, Irma, of the home; their son, Fred Steinmetz, and his wife, Diane, Overland Park; two grandchildren, Ryan Steinmetz and Stacey Armenta, and her husband, Stephen; two great-grandchildren, Elizabeth and Daniel Armenta, and a sister, Dorothy Heller, Valley Falls.
A Chalice Service followed by a Rosary will be at 10:00, a.m. Friday, May 8, 2009, at St. Mary's Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Valley Falls. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m. at the church. Burial with military honors conducted by Grahem-Herbers Post 3084, Veterans of Foreign Wars, will be at the Valley Falls Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the Grahem-Herbers Post 3084, V.F.W., or to the Valley Falls Cemetery Association, and sent in care of Mercer Funeral home, 810 Broadway, Valley Falls, KS 66088. Online condolences are at mercerfuneralhomes.com