Gene Edward Guetzko 1924-2010

GUETZKO, MEADER, CLIFTON, GOLD, WOOLSTENCROFT, FOWLER

Posted By: cheryl moonen (email)
Date: 9/25/2017 at 22:10:50

EARLVILLE, Iowa - Gene Edward Guetzko, 85, of 1116 Eastmoor Drive, Mason City, formerly of Earlville, died Thursday, April 22, 2010, at Heritage Care Center, Mason City, with his family by his side.

A Celebration of his Life will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday, April 26, at Major-Erickson Funeral Home, Mason City, and From 1 to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 27, at Clifton-Murdoch Funeral Home, Earlville. Burial will be in Fairview Cemetery, Earlville.

He was born on Sept. 1, 1924, in Manchester, the first of four children of Edward and Margie (Meader) Guetzko, on his father's birthday. He graduated from Earlville High School in 1942.

Gene enlisted in the Navy in the spring of 1943 and became a dive-bomber pilot in Air Group 75, assigned aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Franklin D. Roosevelt, going on inactive status in November 1945.

He pursued his education at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and graduated in 1949, with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering, with distinction. Elected to Chi Epsilon and Tau Beta Pi, he was voted the outstanding senior civil engineering graduate in Iowa that year.

He married the love of his life, L. Isabel Clifton, on Nov. 28, 1946, with whom he would have three children and spend the next 56 years of married life; she preceded him in death.

Gene began his career with Harrington & Cortelyou in Kansas City, Mo., in 1949, and worked with the firm until 1953, taking four years away to assist with his father's business, Guetzko Construction in Earlville. From 1957 to 1960, he returned as the resident engineer for the Tule Lake Lift Bridge Project in Corpus Christi, Texas, and worked for the firm in Kansas City until late 1966. He then moved the family to Mason City, where he was chief structural engineer with Wallace, Holland, Kastler and Schmitz, working with the Iowa D.O.T. and designing bridge projects throughout the Midwest, until his retirement in 1994.

Of his many interests, flying was closest to his heart, and he flew private planes for over 25 years in connection with his job as a consulting engineer. He was a member of Mason City Country Club, and loved playing golf with his friends and family. Gene pursued many hobbies over the years, and he and Isabel enjoyed many trips together, traveling west for skiing and riding their Gold Wing through the mountains. After retirement, they enjoyed golfing as winter Texans.

Gene was the consummate engineer and a skilled repairman. He greatly enjoyed fixing, upgrading and/or modifying anything mechanical, wooden or electrical, whether it needed it or not. Most items in their home were recipients of some form of "Guetzko Modification," sometimes morphing them into something barely recognizable from the original. Many of those "GM's" have stories attached, which his family will treasure and enjoy repeating for years to come.

Left to cherish his memory are his children, Carolyn (Paul) Gold and David (Patti) Guetzko, both of Mason City, and Gary (Karen) Guetzko, of Dubuque; eight grandchildren, Adam (Shannon) Gold, of Mason City, Erin Gold, of Ankeny, Dr. Lisa (husband, Will Woolstencroft) Guetzko, of Hemet, Calif., Matt Guetzko and Mark Guetzko, both of Bloomington, Minn., Megan Guetzko, of Ann Arbor, Mich., and Lauren Guetzko and Nathan Guetzko, both of Ames; two great-grandchildren, Alex and Jakob Gold, of Mason City; sisters, Janice Fowler, of Davenport, and Marilyn (Vern) Rosenbery, of Galena, Ill.; special friend, Kay Sloan; and many nieces, nephews, family members and treasured friends.

He also was preceded in death by his father, Edward; mother, Margie; and a brother, Buck.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials to the Gene and Isabel Guetzko Scholarship Fund, which will be established for Mason City students pursuing a degree in engineering and to Hospice of North Iowa.

Telegraph Herald (Dubuque, IA) - Sunday, April 25, 2010