Inez Ruth Kuestersteffen

Inez Ruth King Kuestersteffen, daughter of Our Lord, quilter, homemaker, wife of Robert, Mother of four daughters and four sons, Grandmother to 13 granddaughters and 13 grandsons, and great-grandmother to 16 great-grandchildren, died peacefully on Friday, March 3, 2017. She had loved with a love beyond telling and had been loved in return with a similar passion. She had been hospitalized for over a month before she passed and had been accompanied by one or more of her clan at her bedside during each hour of that final journey. She was 83 years old on her final birthday. Inez Ruth King was born on May 22nd, 1933, the fifth child out of nine. From the time she was born until she was almost twelve, she lived on a 160-acre farm south and west of Piqua, KS. She attended Plum Creek School, Dist. #26, a one-room country school. At twelve she moved to another farm closer to Piqua where she attended school at the Piqua Grade School. She stayed on the farm for a few years and then, at 16, moved to Yates Center and stayed with a family friend while attending high school. She graduated high school in 1951. In January of 1956, Inez married Robert B. Kuestersteffen. They moved to Yates Center and started a family. Several years later they moved to a farm west of town. Inez spent those years in the home, running youngsters to school functions, taking walks in the country, nursing the sick, spanking the ornery, and hugging those that needed to be hugged. She cooked, she cleaned, she blessed, she prayed, she prodded, she helped, she watched, she encouraged, and in fact did just about anything and everything that a busy mom can be expected to do. But most of all she loved. None of her children ever went lacking for feeling loved. Around the time her youngest were leaning on the door, Inez's good friend Ardath Ross started teaching her to quilt. From then on there was no stopping her. She kept a record of the time spent for most of the quilting projects she completed by hand and they numbered more than 280. Many of her quilts have been featured in quilt shows across Kansas. She was a founding member of the Sunflower Quilt Guild here in Kansas and had two quilts recognized on a national level. As Inez and Bob got closer to retirement, they began to travel and saw much of the United States by car. In addition, they traveled to Medjugorje, Yugoslavia, in 1991 and also made trips to Hawaii, Alaska, and Canada. During all that time in their life, her door remained open to the children, the grandchildren, and eventually, the great-grandchildren. In 1998 they retired to Humboldt, Kansas. She was preceded in death by her parents and her siblings Irene, Fred, Leo, Rita and Zeno. Inez leaves behind her husband, Robert, of the home, her daughters Jeanne (Paul) Falke of Westphalia, Jannet (Rich) Clinesmith of Lakeview, IA, Patricia (Bob) Benignus of Salina, KS, Carol (Matt) Dale of Willits, CA, her sons David (Gail) of Wichita, Richard (Sherra) of Emporia, Michael (Christine) of El Dorado and Matt (Alaine) of Wichita; her 13 granddaughters, her 13 grandsons, and her 16 great-grandchildren; siblings Mildred King of Yates Center, Ralph King of Gardner, and Joyce Foster of Iola. She and Bob had been married 61 years last January. A Rosary for Inez will be held at 9:00 A.M. on Thursday, March 9, 2017 at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Humboldt with the Mass of Christian Burial following at 10:00. Burial will be in St. Joseph Cemetery at Humboldt. Contributions in her memory can be made to St Joseph Catholic Church or Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and left in care of Feuerborn Family Funeral Service of Iola. Condolences can be left for the family at www.feuerbornfuneral.com .