ERA MERTENS

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Era E. Mertens, 98, died Friday, March 30, 2001, at the Beverly Healthcare Center in Dexter, Mo.

She was born Dec. 11, 1902, at Hazen, Ark., daughter of John Henry and Sara Jessie Wood Owen.

She had been a resident of the Clines Island community since 1949. She was a member of the Center Point Baptist Church at Center Point, Ark.

She and Walter Henry Mertens were married Oct. 17, 1920. He died Oct. 9, 1973.

Survivors include a son, John Joseph Mertens of Beebe, Ark.; two daughters, Ruth Brooks of Essex, Mo., and Sarah Hawkins of Carlise, Ark.; seven grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and five great-great-grandchildren.

A brother and a sister preceded her in death.

Friends may call at Chiles-Cooper Funeral Home in Bloomfield after 11 a.m. Monday.

Funeral will be at 1 p.m. Monday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Walker Cemetery.