Lorraine A. Koons, 103, passed into God’s loving arms in the Lebanon Valley Home on March 28, 2026. She was preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, Herbert Koons, who died in 2001.
Lorraine was born on May 18, 1922. Her parents were LeRoy and Mary (Kreider) Shaak. She was raised by her grandparents, William and Maggie Kreider, in Cleona, where she was a lifetime resident. Lorraine was a 1940 graduate of Lebanon High School. During WWII, she was a Rosie the Riveter, working at the Middletown Air Depot repairing war-damaged planes. After the war, she worked at the State Capitol in Harrisburg and at Whites Food Market in Cleona.
She was a lifetime member of Hill Lutheran Church and is the oldest member in age and in years of membership. She voted in every election since she was eligible to vote and was inducted into the PA Voters Hall of Fame. She was recognized in Lebanon County Historical Society’s Women in Lebanon County History Exhibit in October 2024 and received her Rosie the Riveter Congressional Gold Medal in December 2024.
Lorraine was preceded in death by her sister, Janis Lerchen; nephew, Mark Lerchen; and “her boys” and special lifelong friends, Kenneth Koch and Ronald (Joe) Koch.
She is survived by her nieces, Karen Lerchen, of Annville, and Ethel Bowman, of Palmyra; nephew, Mark Moyer, of Palmyra; nephew Mark Lerchen’s wife, Deb Lerchen, of Annville; special friends, Bonnie Shank and Mike Thissen, of Lebanon; and many cousins.
Thanks to all the staff at the Lebanon Valley Home for their loving care and to her Hill Lutheran Church Family for their ongoing contact and visits.
A public viewing will be held from 10-11 a.m. on Monday, April 6, 2026, at Hill Lutheran Church, 998 N. Mill St., Lebanon, PA 17046. Funeral services will begin at 11 a.m. on Monday at the Church. Interment will follow in Hill Church Cemetery.
Lorraine was very devoted to and loved her church. One of her final wishes, in lieu of flowers, was for donations in her memory to be made to Hill Lutheran Church, 998 N. Mill St., Lebanon, PA 17046. Kreamer Funeral Home, Annville, is handling arrangements.
