Vernon A. Groff, 84, of Seneca, KS, died Sunday, January 18, 2004, at the Topeka Veterans Hospital.

He was born June 24, 1919, on a farm at Woodsiding, NE, near Auburn, the son of Aubrey D. and Stella Mae Allen Groff. He attended Locust Grove School there and graduated from Auburn High School in 1936. He worked on the family farm and broke horses. His parents contracted to put on rodeos so Vern was involved with horses at an early age. He became was a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association for 35 years. “Blackie” Groff started out riding steers and then at 16 began riding bucking broncos. In 1938 he moved to Seneca where he worked for Frank Kuckelman for 20 years and also worked at Seneca Implement, where he was a parts man and did mechanical work on farm equipment. He served in the U.S. Army from 1941 to 1944 in the 115th Cavalry.

On October 17, 1941, while stationed with the Army at Fort Lewis, WA, he married Susan Mohlman, of Seneca, at Olympia, WA. They returned to Seneca in 1945. Vern retired from the rodeos in 1947 and began auctioneering. By the 1960s he was running five sale barns a week and working in the four corner states. He worked with Gene Toby for 51 years and auctioned everything from real estate and antiques to commercial items and livestock. In 1951 he started Rail Realty selling real estate in the Seneca area. His last sale was in March of 2001.

He was a member of Sts. Peter & Paul Church, the St. Joseph Society, and the Knights of Columbus, where he had been a past Grand Knight, all in Seneca. He was also a member of the Kansas Real Estate Association and the Seneca Saddle Club.

Survivors are his wife Susan of the home; four sons, Mike and his wife Carolyn of Aurora, IL, David and his wife Jane of Topeka, Dan and his wife Kathy of Bloomington, IL, Kent and his wife Meg of Solsberry, IN; four daughters, Kay Vondenkamp and her husband Tom, and Vicki Haverkamp and her husband Glenn, all of Tecumseh, KS, Judy Strathman and her husband Larry, of Seneca, Michelle Luebbe and her husband Randy, of Topeka; 29 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by two grandchildren, Sherri Strathman on March 27, 1968 and Greg Strathman on July 6, 1975, and a brother, Ralph.

A memorial mass will be offered at 10:30 AM Thursday, January 22, at Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Seneca. Inurnment will be in the church cemetery, with military honors by the Seneca American Legion Post #21 and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #7458. Rosaries will be prayed at 2 & 7 PM Wednesday at Lauer Funeral Home in Seneca.

Memorials may be given for Sts. Peter & Paul School, and sent in care of the family.