Vila L. Allen

Vila L. Allen, 83 of St. Joseph, MI and Mission, TX took her Lord’s hand on Tuesday, October 6, 2009, in Joplin, MO. A “Celebration of Life” service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 10, at Trinity Lutheran Church, 619 Market St., St. Joseph, MI. The visitation will be held on Friday, October 9, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph, MI. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Memorial contributions may be directed to Lutheran Women Mission League or Wycliffe Bible Translator. Vila was born to Grover and Clara (Peters) Knuth on April 12, 1926 in Pipestone County, MN. Vila graduated from Pipestone High School in MN. On December 13, 1952, Vila married Paul Allen in Silver Springs, MD. She served our country during the Korean War as a Navy Nurse for 5 years. After the war, she dedicated her life to raising their four daughters and traveling with her Navy husband to many stations here and abroad. In her spare time, she enjoyed volunteering at church and was a member of the Navy Nurse Corps. Assoc. and VFW. She also enjoyed golfing. She is survived by her husband, Paul of St. Joseph, MI and her four daughters, Monica (Patrick) Perin of France, Ruth (David) Snyder of St. Cloud, FL, Anita (John) Meyer of Alto, MI and Cathy (Charles) Kruggel of Stevensville, MI.; five grand children Sarah, Micah, Paul, Luke, and Isaac; three sisters Evelyn (Dick) Weilbaecher of St. Louis, Lucille Gaughan of Minnesota, and Ruth (Willis) VanNewhyzen of Pennsylvania.