John P. Onken, 1940-2005

ONKEN

Posted By: Emmet County IAGenWeb Coordinator (email)
Date: 2/28/2009 at 15:26:08

ESTHERVILLE - Funeral Services for John P. Onken, 64,of Estherville will be at 1:30wp.m. on Friday, June 10 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Estherville with Pastor Paul Wiegman officiating. Interment will follow at Oak Hill Cemetery in Estherville. He died Wednesday, June 8, 2005, at his home in Estherville.

Visitation will be from 4 - 8 p.m., Thursday, June 9, at Henry-Olson-Fuhrman Funeral Chapel in Estherville.

John Peter Onken, the son of Peter and Selma (Ross) Onken, was born August 8, 1940, in Sibley, Iowa. He died Wednesday, June 8, 2005, at his home in Estherville, Iowa, at the age of 64 years and 10 months.

He received his education in Viola Township #2 school in the rural Sibley area.

On December 8, 1973, John was united in marriage to Margret Loring in Estherville. After their marriage the couple made their home in Estherville where they lived their entire married life and raised their family. John was employed at Rohlin Construction as a heavy equipment operator and foreman for over forty years. He really enjoyed his work at Rohlin and especially enjoyed operating his road grader. In his leisure time John liked riding motorcycles, watching NASCAR racing on television, and snowmobiling in his younger years. John loved his family and friends deeply and his greatest pleasure in life was spending time with those he loved.

John was baptized and had attended Trinity Reformed Church in Sibley.

Left to cherish John's memory are his wife of thirty-one years, Marge of Estherville; his children, Rhonda Adolph and her husband, Robb of Estherville; Troy Kaufman of Spirit Lake, Iowa; Nicole Petersen and her husband, John of Emmetsburg, Iowa; two grandchildren, Brady and Bailey Adolph of Estherville; one brother, Dale Onken of Pipestone, Minnesota; four sisters, Carol Spiering of Bilouxi, Mississippi; Violet Kramer of Fulda, Minnesota; Mary Jo Meyer of Phoenix, Arizona; Juli Ann Maloney of Minneapolis, Minnesota; many nieces and nephews; and a host of friends.

John has been preceded in death by his parents; one sister, Avis Van Brisen; and two nephews, Kelvyn and Michael.

Source: Estherville Daily News, Estherville, Emmet County, Iowa; June 9, 2005.