Carolyn R. Rourk

Carolyn R. Rourk, age 85, a resident of rural Bronaugh, passed away Sunday, Jan. 15, at the Fort Scott Manor in Fort Scott. She was born Dec. 13, 1931, in Fort Scott, the daughter of Lee Charles Middleton and Allie Ethyl Peterson Middleton. Carolyn graduated from the Uniontown High School and then from the Fort Scott Junior College. She married Russell J. Rourk on June 10, 1951, at Petersburg, Kan. Following their marriage, Russell and Carolyn moved to DeSoto, Kan., where they worked at the defense plant. They later returned to the Bronaugh area and Carolyn worked at the Western Insurance Company. Following the birth of their son, Carolyn stayed home to care for her family and help maintain the family farm. She was a member of the Cherry Grove Baptist Church and a past member of the Order of the Eastern Star.

Survivors include her son, Russell L. Rourk and wife, Thaylee, of Bronaugh; two grandchildren, Jennifer Rourk and fiance, Chantel Griffith, of Lincoln, Neb., and Shane Peterson and wife, Lisa, of Albany, Mo.; four great-grandchildren, Emily, October, Tatum and Kutter Peterson; three step-grandchildren, Tim and Anna Smith and Elise McNeil; two step-great-grandchildren, Alyshia Smith and Adrionna Mitchell; a step-great-great-granddaughter, Koralline Mitchell; and two step-great-great-grandsons, Kendell and Kingsley Mitchell. Also surviving are two brothers, Kenneth Middleton, of Uniontown and David Middleton, of Hiattville, Kan.; and three sisters, Carrie Elbrader, of Winfield, Kan., Donna Williams, of Mapleton, Kan., and Lois Cooney, of Pittsburg, Kansas. Her husband, Russell J. Rourk preceded her in death on Jan. 12, 2011. She was also preceded in death by her daughter, Rebecca Bailey and her daughter-in-law, Ellen Rourk.

Pastor Tyler Whipkey will conduct graveside services at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, at the Clarksburg Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the Cheney Witt Chapel on Saturday, from 10 a.m. until leaving for the cemetery at 10:45 a.m. Memorials are suggested to the Cherry Grove Baptist Church and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.