Victor E. Cronk

May 13, 2010

Victor E. Cronk, age 85, of Adrian, passed away on Thursday, May 6, 2010, at the Tendercare of Adrian.

A memorial service was held on Tuesday, May 11, in Adrian, Michigan.

Victor was born on April 4, 1925 in Wright County, Iowa, the son of Charles and Ellen (Cleveland) Cronk. During World War II, he served his country four years in the U.S. Navy. On September 18, 1949, Victor married Arlene Hempy in Lansing. Arlene, his wife of over 60 years, survives.

Vic received a Bachelor's Degree in Animal Husbandry from Michigan State University. He represented several different companies selling livestock insurance. He was a livestock judge for the Hudson Fair, the Lenawee County Fair, the Hillsdale Fair and also worked at the State Fair. Victor was well-known as an auctioneer in Lenawee County.

Vic enjoyed bowling and playing golf. An active member of Kiwanis, Vic was honored with their Hixon award.

In addition to his wife, Vic is survived by two brothers, Earl (Deedee) Cronk of Belmond and Kenneth Cronk of Mason; a sister, Nora Leverich of Des Moines; and a very special friend, Bob (Becky) Swift of Grand Rapids and their daughter, Corinne.

Vic was preceded in death by two brothers, Leo Cronk and Ora Cronk; and two sisters, Alice in infancy and Edith Pollenter.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Betty J. Anderson

May 13, 2010

Betty J. Anderson, 85, formerly of Clarion, passed away peacefully on Saturday, May 8, 2010, at the Valley View Village Nursing Home in Des Moines, after an extended illness.

Funeral services were held on Wednesday, May 12, at 1:00 p.m., at the United Church of Christ Congregational, with Pastor Geoffrey White and Stan Watne officiating. Burial was in the Evergreen Cemetery in Clarion.

Joanne Olson was the organist and Jennifer Littlejohn was the vocalist. Bearers were Erik Williams, Sean Williams, J. Hoffman, Cole Hoffman, Curt Hoffman and Gene Keller. Honorary bearers were Denny Hoffman and Andrew Loggins.

Betty was born in Blairsburg, on February 15, 1925, the fourth and youngest daughter of Alva and Lula Denton. She was educated in schools in Hamilton County and was certified as a licensed practical nurse through the Iowa Central Community College in 1973. Betty was married to Frank J. Anderson for approximately 32 years, was a farm wife and lived south of Clarion on a farm designated as a Century Farm until moving to Des Moines in 2006.

She enjoyed family, doing volunteer work at the church, music of all types, dancing, taking care of her lawn and flowers and "wetting a line" fishing. Betty was a member of the Clarion United Church of Christ Congregational for more than 50 years and was also a member of the Eastern Star.

Betty is survived by three children, Clair R. Cramer of West Des Moines, Connie Hoffman of Des Moines and Kim (Scott) Loggins of Cedar Rapids; one sister, Helen Coleman of Webster City; eight grandchildren; and ten great-grandchildren.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; two sisters, Catherine Keller and Ruth Larson; one brother, Robert Denton; and a daughter, Cheri Williams.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Robert Houston Critchfield, 78, passed away on Monday, May 10, 2010, in Fort Worth.

Graveside services, with military honors, were held on Thursday, May 13, in the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery.

Robert was born in Murray, Iowa, to Lyle and Phyllis Critchfield in 1931. He graduated from the Clarion High School and from Drake University in 1957, with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business. In 1966, he graduated from the University of Tulsa College of Law with his Juris Doctor. Robert served his country in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, obtaining the rank of captain.

Robert retired as a corporate attorney for the Tennessee Valley Authority and later as a city Judge in Estill Springs, Tennessee.

Robert is survived by his daughter, Constance E. Miller; son, Robert J. Critchfield; four grandchildren; the mother of his children, Joan Lanier; and sister, Gwen Luppes.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Devin William Resh

May 27, 2010

Devin William Resh, age 19, died on Wednesday, May 19, 2010, in Eagle Grove, at the age of 19 years.

Funeral services were held on Tuesday, May 25, at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Eagle Grove, with Pastor Chris Lang officiating. Burial was in the Glenwood Cemetery, Goldfield.

Devon William Resh, was born July 3, 1990 at the Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames, the son of Dennis and Angie (Luke) Resh, He graduated from the Clarion-Goldfield High School in 2009.

Devin loved hanging out with friends, listening to music, singing, playing guitar, bowling, fishing, drawing, writing poems and playing cards.

Survivors include his parents, Dennis and Angie Resh; a brother, Dillon Resh; grandparents, Bill and Judy Luke, David and Joyce Resh; uncles, Brett Luke, David Resh, Jr., Dan Resh and Doug Resh; aunt, Brenda Konecne; 13 cousins; and great-grandma, Ellen Sheridan.

Devin was preceded in death by his great-grandparents, Robert Sheridan, Roxanne and Elmer Hoag; aunt, Stacey Russell; and cousins, Malachi and Derek Resh.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Oliver V. Boyington

May 27, 2010

Oliver V. Boyington, 85, of Clarion, passed away on Saturday, May 22, 2010, at the Wright Medical Center in Clarion.

A full Masonic Funeral Service will be held on Friday, May 28, at 10:00 a.m., at the United Methodist Church, Clarion. Jay Cole Simser, Past Master of the Arcadia Lodge #249 and Chad Chapman, Secretary of the Cyrene Lodge #325 will officiate over the Masonic Service. Burial will be in the Evergreen Cemetery, Clarion.

Visitation will be held on Friday, one hour prior to the services at the church.

Oliver Verl Boyington, was born on September 9, 1924, the son of Herbert and Tress (McDermott) Boyington on the family farm near Galt. Oliver attended school in Galt and later made a career of military service, serving in both the United States Army and the United States Air Force. Oliver married Janet Fossum on June 15, 1989 at Clear Lake. They spent many years being involved in Lodge activities, traveling to various Lodge Conventions and celebrations. Oliver was Past Master of the Ames Arcadia Lodge Number 249 and the Clarion Cyrene Lodge Number 325, as well as holding many other offices. Oliver was very proud to serve his Lodge brothers in any way he could. It could be said he was responsible for the renewed growth of the Clarion Cyrene Lodge.

Oliver enjoyed vegetable gardening and growing fruit trees and after filling the pantry to the brim with canned vegetables, fruits and jams, he continued to preserve the food to give away to family and friends. Oliver enjoyed sharing his stories of his love for fishing and hunting, especially about his moose hunt in Alaska. No one was a stranger to Oliver for very long, he enjoyed meeting people and making them his friend.

Oliver is survived by his wife Janet of Clarion; a son, Douglas Boyington of Emerson, Iowa; three granddaughters; five great-grandchildren; step-daughter, Jenae (Brian) Lundebrek; and nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and lodge brothers.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and maternal and paternal grandparents.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Raymond F. Gram

May 27, 2010

Raymond Francis Gram, 81, of Hampton, died on Monday, May 24, 2010, at the Franklin General Hospital in Hampton.

A private memorial service will be held for the family on Friday, May 28.

Raymond Gram, was born on September 29, 1928 on a farm near Clarion, the son of Bertel and Edna (Francis) Gram. Raymond was united in marriage to Gertrude Marjorie Perkins on September 15, 1945, at Hampton and to this union four sons were born. Gertrude and Raymond were married for 31 years until her passing in 1976. Raymond and Nadine Mae Freese were married on December 18, 1976 at Nashua and were married for 33 years.

Raymond was educated in Rowan and retired in 1985 after working for 31 years at Maytag in Hampton. He loved Iowa and called it "God's Country". Raymond enjoyed gardening, hunting, fishing, camping and traveling with his family. He had an easy going manner, enjoyed visiting with people and will be missed by many.

He is survived by his wife, Nadine of Hampton; son, Larry (Evonne) Gram of Forest City; four grandchildren; a daughter-in-law, Cherri Gram of Newton; three step-children, Sandy (Chuck) Olk of Latimer, Cathy (Tom) Hensel of Brainerd, Minnesota and Rick Freese of Waverly; seven step-grandchildren; brother, Robert Gram of Belmond; and sister, Shirley (John) Lager of Clarion.

Those preceding Raymond in death are his parents; wife, Gertrude; three sons, Ronald, Roger and Jerry; and a sister, Marion Aldrich.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Herbert "Herb" Janssen

June 3, 2010

Herbert "Herb" Janssen, 85, of Fort Dodge, passed away from complications of lung cancer on Monday, May 24, 2010, at the Paula J. Baber Hospice Home.

Funeral services were held on Thursday, May 27, at the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Fort Dodge, with Pastor Allen Henderson and Pastor Edward Durand officiating. Burial was in the Colfax Township Cemetery in Vincent.

Herb was born in Loda Township, Iroquois Co. Illinois, on July 31, 1924, to Lehnert M. and Verna (Hartke) Janssen. He married Elaine Kinne on December 29, 1963. They lived in the Thor area for 40 years before moving to Fort Dodge in 2005. He was a faithful member of the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Fort Dodge.

Herb enjoyed working and had several occupations during his working years. He farmed in the Buckley area, both for relatives and for himself. He became a general hired hand in a variety of construction jobs before working up to assistant manager of the Buckley Farmer's Elevator. After moving to Iowa, he worked at the Vincent Lumber Yard and then at Eagles Mills in Eagle Grove. Later he became a carpenter and retired from that occupation in 1988. He continued to work at gardening, lawn mowing and many other tasks until his health forced him and his wife to move to Fort Dodge in 2005.

Herbert is survived by his wife, Elaine; children, Sue Janssen of Fort Dodge and Steve (Deb) Janssen of Clarion; two grandchildren; his brother, Gerald (Jan) Janssen of Buckley, Illinois; his sister, Glenda (Bob) Weisenbarn of Buckley; three sisters-in-law; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his daughter, Sherry Janssen; his parents, Lehnert M. Janssen and Verna Hartke Janssen; and his brothers, Clint, Erv and Arno Janssen.
© Wright County Monitor 2010

Andrew Plank

June 3, 2010

Andrew A. Plank, 40, of North Liberty, died on Saturday, May 29, 2010, at his home from complications of ALS.

Funeral services were held at 7:00 p.m., on Wednesday, June 2, at the First United Methodist Church in North Liberty. Family graveside services will be held in the Ridgewood Cemetery in North Liberty.

Andrew Alan Plank, was born on June 20, 1969 in Washington, Iowa, the son of Charles and Connie (Scotton) Plank. Following graduation from the Columbus Community High School in 1987, he graduated with a degree in Computer Science from the University of Iowa in 1991. He was united in marriage to Susan Lynne Boyington on October 11, 1997 in Marshalltown. They were blessed with two children, Zachary in 2000 and Brennan in 2002. The couple lived in Marshalltown where he worked as a computer programmer for MICA. In 2000, the couple and their family moved to the Iowa City area where Andrew worked with the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics as a computer programmer. He continued to work for more than a year after he was diagnosed with ALS in September of 2005.

Andrew enjoyed music, singing and playing guitar. He was a member of the St. Paul's Saturday Night Gospel Singers at the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Tama, while he was living in Marshalltown. Andrew was a life-long baseball enthusiast—he collected baseball cards as a youth and more recently competed in fantasy baseball leagues. He also participated in fantasy football leagues. But most important and dear to his heart was his family—he took pride in his two boys and loved playing with them. He was also devoted to his wife, Susan. He fought the disease boldly and vigorously to be with them as long as he could.

In addition to Susan, Zachary and Brennan; other survivors include his parents, Charles and Connie Plank of Columbus Junction; sister, Jodie Morin of Storm Lake; brother, Shawn (Susan) Plank of Urbandale; Susan's parents, George and Sally Boyington of Clarion; sisters-in-law, Diane (Bruce) Maxwell of Ames and Deb (Tom) Ewing of Lineville; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his brother-in-law, Ben Morin.
© Wright County Monitor 2010