Obituaries
Death of Josephine I. Bewig
Josephine Ilene Glass Cagle Bewig died Wednesday, June 12, 2013 at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. She was born August 20, 1919 in Winfield, KS, to the late Isaac A. Glass and Winona Gray Glass.
Jo, an accomplished spelling bee competitor, attended a country school and vividly recalled the severe difficulties of the Dust Bowl. She worked as a telephone operator in Kansas and in Fayetteville, AR,where she met Lylburn Cagle.
They married in 1940 and moved first to St. Louis, MO, and then to a 17-acre farm in Bunker Hill, IL. Jo worked as a secretary at Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation and as an executive secretary at Alton Box Board in Alton, IL, and at Mallinckrodt Chemical and McDonnell Aircraft Corporation in St. Louis. Lylburn died in 1971, and Jo later began nurse’s training in St. Louis, but quit when she married Earl Bewig in 1975. They lived in St. Louis until Earl’s death in 2005, and Jo then moved to Springfield, IL.
Jo has always been very active at church at Bunker Hill Congregational Church and St. Lucas Church of Christ in St. Louis, where she taught Sunday School and Bible School and loved singing in the choir and being in the bell choir. She took piano and organ lessons in her 60s and 70s and encouraged the love of music in her family.
She traveled to Europe several times to visit her son Tom and his family, and she always took some of the grandchildren on the trips. Known as Mimi to her grandchildren, family and friends have dearly loved her, and she never knew a stranger.
She had a big flower garden in St. Louis and gave away plants to all who wanted their own. She grew hostas in Bunker Hill and took some to St. Louis when she moved there. Those plants have been shared with family and friends in Washington and Alabama, as well as Petersburg and Springfield, IL.
Jo had a very kind and compassionate heart, and by example, she and Lylburn taught their children about caring for other people, a gift that has been passed down the generations to their great-grandchildren.
She is survived by four children, Lylburn S. Cagle Jr. (Sandra) of Lacey, WA; Thomas I. Cagle (Gail Waller) of Montgomery, AL; Jennifer J. Wilhite (Terry) of Springfield, IL; and Nancy J. Scroggins (Randy) of Bunker Hill, IL; ten grandchildren, Kurt Cagle (Anne) of Issaquah, WA; Daren Cagle of Trivoli, IL; Eric Cagle of North Seattle, WA; April Derochers (Glenn) of Winterville, GA; Kathryn Cagle (David Bikman) of Portland, OR; Lauren Cagle (Philip Gennette) of Tampa, FL; Jeffrey Dauksch of Chicago, IL; Sheila Norman (Shannon) of Petersburg, IL; Andrew Scroggins (Heidi Calkins) of Chicago, IL; and Amanda Rawdon (Nick) of Easton, IL; thirteen great-grandchildren, Katherine Cagle, Jennifer Cagle, Samuel Cagle, Carrie Ann Derochers, Jackson Derochers, Sydney Harrison, Kristin Lascelles (Shawn), Caroline Norman, Austin Norman, Allison Norman, Clark Scroggins, Ashlyn Rawdon, and Jordyn Rawdon; many nieces and nephews; and beloved caretakers at River Birch Senior Living in Springfield, IL.
Jo was preceded in death by her parents; her brother Marlin Glass (Maxine), her sister Marie Priest (Arnie), her first husband Lylburn S. Cagle, and her second husband Earl J. Bewig.
A memorial service will be held on August 17. Memorials may be made to First Congregational Church in Bunker Hill, IL, and Lake Springfield Christian Assembly, Eagle Lodge (church camp), in Springfield, IL.
Kravanya Funeral Home in Bunker Hill, IL, is in charge of arrangements.
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Robert Leeroy Blevins, 77 of Litchfield, passed away the evening of Thursday, November 20, 2025, at HSHS St. Francis Hospital in Litchfield. He was born in Litchfield on December 24, 1947, a son of Robert James and Betty Bernadine (Cranford) Blevins.
He graduated from Centralia High School and proudly served in the United States Army during the Vietnam era. He was employed for many years as a cabinet maker with Adenca Manufacturing in Litchfield. Robert enjoyed many outdoor activities including camping, fishing, hunting, mushroom hunting, and looking for buried treasures with his metal detector.
He was a talented musician and played guitar and saxophone. Robert enjoyed watching and listening to all spectator sports and was an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan. He married the former Wanda Kay Large and they later divorced.
Robert is survived by sons, Christopher (fiancée Grace) Blevins and Jason (Jamie) Blevins, all of Litchfield; daughters, Jennifer (Gordon) Fenton of Salem, MO and Shannon Large of Litchfield; brothers, Chesley Blevins of Staunton, Joseph Blevins of Litchfield, Floyd Blevins of Highland, and Fred Blevins of Litchfield; sisters, Barbara (Ray) Schuster of Sorento, Sharon (John) Wickerheim of Chicago, and Pamela Poppenhouse of Litchfield; and several grandchildren and several great grandchildren.
Robert was preceded in death by his parents, Robert J. and Betty B. Blevins.
Funeral services for Mr. Blevins will be held at 12 noon on Tuesday, November 25, 2025, at Plummer Funeral Home in Litchfield. Pastor Gilbert Dealey will officiate. Burial will be in Crabtree Cemetery. Military honors will be at graveside. Visitation will be from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service at the funeral home.
Memorials may be directed to the family of Robert Blevins, c/o Christopher Blevins. Plummer Funeral Home in Litchfield is in charge of arrangements.
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Joyce Carleen Simmons, 83 of Litchfield, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, November 23, 2025. She was born in Pana on May 31, 1942, a daughter of Carl Cornelius and Lucille Romelta (Miller) Brakenhoff.
She was a member of the Litchfield High School graduating class of 1960. She married Raymond “Larry” Simmons on June 6, 1965, at Zion Lutheran Church in Litchfield, and they enjoyed nearly 55 years of marriage until his passing on January 23, 2022.
Joyce was an excellent cook and well known for her beef and noodles, Texas cake, and stew. Joyce’s delicious cooking skills were evident during her 22-year career as manager of Jubelt’s Variety Bakery in Litchfield and as a ten-year cafeteria worker for the Litchfield Community School District #12. She also enjoyed gardening, canning, tending to her fruit trees, and sewing. Joyce enjoyed serving others by teaching Sunday School at Zion Lutheran Church in Litchfield and volunteering for the local Meals on Wheels.
Joyce is survived by her sons, Raymond (Vicki) Simmons of Evansville, IN and David (Jacqueline) Simmons of Haymarket, VA; daughter, Laura Simmons of Edwardsville; brothers, Leslie (Sue) Brakenhoff of Litchfield, Byron (Terry) Brakenhoff of Chattanooga, TN, and Dale (Nancy) Brakenhoff of Litchfield; sisters, Ramona Warman of Charleston, IL and Marilyn (Don) Loptien of Fort Collins, CO; grandchildren, Zachary Simmons, Makenzie (Jeremy) Frazier, Emma Simmons, and William Simmons; and great-grandchildren, Gunnar, Wyatt, Eli and Calla.
Joyce was preceded in death by her parents; husband; brothers, Rev. Larry Brakenhoff and Bernard Brakenhoff; brother-in-law Robert, “Bob” Warman; and niece, Kimberly (Brakenhoff) Bergman.
Funeral services for Joyce will be held at 12:00 noon on Tuesday, December 2, 2025, at Zion Lutheran Church in Litchfield. Burial will follow in Edgewood Cemetery in Litchfield. Visitation will be at the church from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Lutheran Hour Ministries, 660 Mason Ridge Center Road, St. Louis, MO, 63141-8557. Plummer Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
