Josephine Marie (Holzmeister) Kuntz, 99, of Quinter, Kansas, passed away on March 28, 2023, at the Gove County Long Term Care in Quinter. Josephine was born on January 23, 1924, on a farm North of Bison, KS to John and Susan (Herman) Holzmeister.
She attended St. Mary’s Catholic School in Loretta, then graduated from high school at Otis, KS. After graduation she attended Salt City Business College in Hutchinson, KS, graduated and moved to Salina, KS where she worked for two years at the Smokey Hill Air Base as a secretary/typist. Her parents then moved from rural Rush County to a farm North of Quinter. She then moved home, and there she met her future husband, Nicholas Kuntz, in 1945, later marrying on October 15, 1946. He preceded her in death on August 7, 2001.
Josephine was a long-time member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Park, KS and the Sacred Heart Altar Society. She will be remembered for her daily devotion to prayer, many times you would see or hear her praying as she worked. Josephine worked alongside her husband on the farm, raised chickens for eggs and butchering, and milked cows for the sale of cream, milk, and butter to area residents most of her adult life. She loved to grow produce to can and feed her large family in the spring and summer. She was a wonderful cook and baker and rarely used recipes. Josephine also shared her love to dance with her husband, they were very well known for leading wedding marches.
She is survived by her six children, four boys, D.Allen (Esta), Michael (Jone), Carlyle, and Charles (Deb), all of Quinter, and two daughters, Kathryn Fossett of Golden, Colorado, and Lois Ann (Philip) McClanahan of Salina, 11 grandchildren, 6 step-grandchildren, 6 great grandchildren, and 14 step-great grandchildren, 4 step-great great grandchildren, one brother, Edwin Holzmeister of Hays, one sister-in-law, Pauline Holzmeister of Salina, and many nieces and nephews.
Josephine is preceded in death by her parents, husband, six brothers, Aaron (Joyce), Sylvester (Geneva), Lawrence (Francis), Hubert (Elenora), Abraham, and Arnold, one sister, Frieda (George) Waldman, brother-in-law, Carl Headrick, and one sister-in-law, Darlene Holzmeister.
Funeral service will be held at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Park on Saturday, April 1, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. Burial will be in the Sacred Heart Cemetery. Visitation will be held at Schmitt Funeral Home, Quinter, on Friday, March 31, 2023, starting at 6:00 p.m. with a vigil following at 7:30 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be given to the Sacred Heart Catholic Altar Society of Park.