Obituaries
Mr. Stanton Strickler “Stan” Von Grabill III
08/23/1961 - 08/12/2025
Mr. Stanton Strickler “Stan” von Grabill III (aka Vony), age 63, of Brodnax, passed away peacefully into
God’s graces on Tuesday, August 12, 2025 in VCU Critical Care Hospital (Richmond). Stan is survived by
his mother Mary Margaret von Grabill of South Hill, his sisters Kerry Baker (Hab) of Brodnax and Erin
Sturmer (Alan Springle) of Durham NC, his niece Kathleen Gordon of Winston Salem NC (Sam) and his
nephews Corey Sturmer of Hillsborough NC (Charlee), Ryan Sturmer of Durham NC (Katie) and Collin
Sturmer of Osaka Japan (Naho), as well as four great nieces and seven great nephews. Stan was
preceded in death by his father Stanton Strickler von Grabill Jr.
Stan was a retired long haul truck driver and auto mechanic. He often told stories about driving cross
country recounting the sites he saw and the experiences he had. He was very proud of his Irish heritage
actually spending his high school years in Feakle, Co. Clare Ireland with his maternal grandmother
before she then moved to live in South Hill with the family. Stan studied and loved the Bible and he
loved his country as well as its history. He joined the U. S. Army in the early 80’s, serving two years in
Germany before changing course. Stan loved old country and southern rock music with a very special
love for Irish music. He would love to sing a tune and was musically talented, playing the tin whistle,
accordion, harmonica and spoons by ear. The community might recall hearing Stan frequently on the
local “Tradio” broadcasts wheeling and dealing items with Jimmy Martin, whom he really enjoyed and
respected. Stan loved animals, especially dogs and cats. While in the hospital, the “dogs on call”
program was a great comfort to him during his treatment there.
The family would like to give special thanks to VCU/CM Hospital in South Hill, VCU Critical Care ICU and
the Thomas Palliative Care Unit (Richmond) who extended excellent care to him during the length of his
illness.
A private family service and celebration of life is being planned.
To honor Stan in lieu of flowers the family requests sending donations to The Shepherd’s Chapel Church
P.0. Box 416 Gravette, Arkansas, 72736. Stan was a faithful follower of their ministry.
Online condolences may be sent through our website at www.crowderhitecrews.com. Crowder-Hite-Crews Funeral Home and Crematory is serving the von Grabill family.
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PO Box 422
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South Hill, VA 23970
Local (434) 447-7171
Fax (434) 447-3212
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To the family of Vony
My deepest and most heartfelt condolences for the loss of a son, a brother, an uncle, and a great uncle. During this difficult time, I pray that Erin and the family find comfort in knowing that Vony is in the paradise of heaven that God has been working on for millions of years. He is without pain and suffering, and he knows that you all loved him dearly. May God bless the family. With love, Carlena ❤️
Sincere condolences
Dearest Erin,
There are no words that can truly ease the pain of losing someone so loved, but I want you to know how deeply sorry I am for your loss.
Please know that you and your family are in my thoughts and prayers during this incredibly difficult time. I hope you can find comfort in the love that surrounds you and the strength that Vony left behind in each of you.
Love, Patsy
My Condolences
My dear Erin Alan, and family, my heart breaks for you all for the loss of your beloved Vony. I just loved him and the conversations we had. I know how special and important he was to all of you and how much you will miss him. Duke also sends his love and remembers the good times he had with Vony. May God bless and comfort all of you during this difficult time. Sending lots of love and prayers to all of you!
Relative
I was Vonnys close relative but more importantly I considered Vonny as a friend. He was nonexistant in my life until 2012 when he opened up to me, and I, to him. For me, I will remember Vonny for his conviction, his openness to lesser known truths, his interest in esoteric knowledge and world events, his thoughtfulness about our place in the cosmos, and perhaps most importantly, his devotion to family and doing the right thing. Vonny was a simple, but also complex person who was easy to please, quick to laugh, and someone who took pleasure in the beauty of nature and humanity. What most people never got to know about vonny is that he was very well read and a very deep thinker. I will miss talking to him and will never forget the time he joined me to talk about anything and everything under the sun on my fledgling news cast. Vonny was very convicted about the afterlife, which gives me great comfort in his passing that he is in a better place now. If you ever wanted to know Vonny on a deeper level, I highly recommend you listen to our show with him here. 5 years later the only comment on this video really says it all, and something you could only get in a deep dive with vonny.
“This episode is so chock full of fascinating multi-topic rejoinders and wild theological back and forths. Really interesting”
https://www.youtube.com/live/JUxsbNDvp1U?si=GjNen2nJborfYVFw
Rest in peace Vonney, see you in the dream state bud, sooner rather than later. Love, DD