Arvilla Marie Keith was born January 26, 1934, to Charles and Lenna
(Green) Keith on the farm near Penokee. She departed this life on
January 28, 2022, at the Sheridan County Long Term Care in Hoxie at the
age of 88.
Arvilla was the youngest of ten children, having six brothers and
three sisters. Her father died when she was only one year old.
On May 17, 1953, Arvilla married the love of her life, Albert Nelson
Bell, at the Presbyterian Church in Hill City. To this union was born
three children, Keith Leon, Lois Ann and Karen Kay. At Albert’s untimely
death, Arvilla was left with teenage daughters to raise along with
cattle, hogs and crops. She worked hard to repair equipment, start
tractors on a cold winter morning, fix fence, calve out heifers and with
it all she came to repeat many times, “I do my best and leave the rest
to God.” She also worked for the Kansas Crop and Livestock Reporting
Service, where she made the extra money needed to make ends meet on the
farm.
Arvilla was united in marriage to the second love of her life,
Harold Raymond Taylor, on May 11, 1979. Grandma ‘Villa always had
grandkids under foot. They learned at an early age how to move
irrigation pipe and drive the pickup to feed the cows.
She was an active member of the Studley United Methodist Church,
helping with Vacation Bible School and Sunday School, and then the Hoxie
United Methodist Church, involved in United Methodist Women. She was a
kind and loving mother and grandmother. Arvilla worked hard to bring
family together and many celebrations were held on the farm west of
Studley.
She was preceded in death by her parents; stepfather, Charles Knouf;
husband, Albert Bell; nine siblings; son, Keith; grandson, Brian Herman
Schulte; great-granddaughter, Mia Grace Schulte; and son-in-law, Guy
Williamson.
She leaves to mourn her passing, husband, Harold; six daughters and
one son; Ione Williamson of St. Augustine, FL; David Taylor and wife,
Sheryl, of Hoxie; Ardath Beringer and husband, Mark, of Bethune, CO;
Ronda Johnson and husband, Roger, of Hoxie; Lois Schulte and husband,
Charles, of Bethune, CO; Carol Farber and husband, Ron; and Karen
Lindenman and husband, Robert, all of Hoxie. Grand-children Taylor
Williamson and wife, Catherine, of St. Augustine, FL; Amy Taylor of
Lincoln, NE; Aaron Taylor and wife, Christy, of Grainfield, KS; Jessica
Lovelady and husband, David, of Springfield, Mo; Curt Beringer and wife,
Christina, of Colby; Heath Johnson and wife, Casey, of Hoxie; Chad
Johnson and wife, Jennifer, of Spokane, WA; Shawn Schulte and wife,
Tawnya, of Vona, CO; Keith Schulte of Flagler, CO; Ryan Schulte and
wife, Malinda, of Flagler, CO; Angie Johnson and husband, Andy, of
Stratton, CO; Alexis Schulte of San Diego, CA; Kimberlie Schulte of
McPherson; Justin Farber and wife, Nicole, of Lexington, NE; Rachel
Farber of Hoxie; Brady Lindenman of Independence, MO; and Mitchell
Lindenman of Norton; 35 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson
and many other family members and friends.
Funeral services will be held at the United Methodist Church in
Hoxie on Tuesday, February 1, 2022, at 11 a.m. Lunch will be served in
the Church Social Hall immediately following the service. At 1:30 p.m.
family and friends will go in a procession to the Morland Cemetery for
the interment. The Interment Service will be at 2:00 p.m. Following
Interment, all friends and family are invited back to the church for
refreshments and visiting. Visitation will be held on January 31, 2022,
from 1p.m. to 7:00 p.m. with family receiving from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00
p.m. Memorials will be to the United Methodist Church and the Sheridan
County Amusement Company and may be sent in care of Mickey-Leopold
Funeral Home, PO Box 987, Hoxie, Kansas 67740.