Howard William Best

BEST, VOSS, GROENEVELD, JANSEN, LEIB, SPREE, HARMS, KOLDER, HUBBARD, VAN ZEE, BROUWER

Posted By: dbeier (email)
Date: 7/16/2010 at 15:11:11

Howard William Best, age 82, of Aplington, Iowa, was born August 26, 1926, the son of William J. and Lena Voss Best near Aplington in Butler County, Iowa. He graduated from Aplington High School in 1944.

Howard was united in marriage with June Groeneveld on June 25, 1947, in the home of her parents south of Aplington, Iowa. The couple made their home on her parents’ farm south of Aplington until 1974. They later moved to a farm east of that place where they built a new home. They farmed and raised cattle for 45 years. Howard retired from farming in 1993 when they moved into their current home in Aplington.

Howard was a member of First Presbyterian Church in Aplington where he was active in many ways, serving as a Trustee, an Elder and various other committees through the years. He served as President and on the Board of Trustees for the Okoboji Presbyterian Church Camp for a number of years.

Howard was a member of the Grundy County Cattlemen’s Association, the Farm Bureau and the Aplington Lions Club. He very much enjoyed traveling with June to all 50 states, including Hawaii and Alaska. They were able to take a trip to Europe on a farm tour and visited their foreign exchange student who was with them from 1976 to 1977. They especially enjoyed family vacations every year to Minnesota as well as boating with the family on the river at Greene. Picnics with the family were a highlight for him as were all of the grandchildren’s activities.

Howard died Tuesday, June 16, 2009, at Grundy County Memorial Hospital Long-Term Care Facility in Grundy Center, Iowa, of leukemia. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Howard is survived by his wife of nearly 62 years, June Best, Aplington, Iowa; four daughters, Virginia (Alan) Jansen, Omaha, Nebraska; Carol (Rick) Leib, Ankeny, Iowa; Eileen (Alan) Spree, Parkersburg, Iowa and Sheila (Dennis) Harms, Aplington, Iowa; ten grandchildren, William (Sara) Jansen, Matthew Jansen, Lisa Jansen; Kristin Leib, Aaron Leib; Brooke (Robbie) Kolder, Jenna (Paul) Hubbard; Valerie (Eric) Van Zee, Amanda Harms and Ryan Harms; one brother, Mervin (Verna) Best and one sister, Marian (Wallace) Brouwer, both of Aplington, Iowa and many nieces and nephews.

Funeral Services will be 1:30 p.m., Friday, June 19, 2009, at the First Presbyterian Church with burial in Pleasant View Cemetery, both in Aplington.

Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m., Thursday at the Redman-Schwartz Funeral Chapel in Aplington, and continue for one hour prior to services at the church.

Memorials may be directed to the Family of Howard.