Max Miles Soeth 1900-1995

SOETH, HOFFMAN, MCKAY, WARD, PFEIFER

Posted By: Merllene Andre Bendixen (email)
Date: 2/21/2012 at 23:55:03

Max Soeth
Estherville – Funeral services for Max Soeth, 95, of Spirit Lake, formerly of Estherville, will be held Monday at 2 p.m. at the first Presbyterian Church in Estherville with Rev. Neal A. Armstrong officiating. Interment will be in East Side Cemetery in Estherville. He died on Thursday, October 29, 1995 at his home in Spirit Lake.

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. on Sunday at the Henry-Olson-Fuhrman Funeral Home in Estherville. Masonic Service will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home.

He was born on February 26, 1900 in Storm Lake, the son of Martin Soeth and Mary (Ward) Soeth. He attended school in rural Buena Vista County and moved to Emmet County with his parents at the age of 14 where he continued his education. He served in the U.S. Army during WWI.

Following the war he graduated from Buena Vista University in 1923, where he was captain of the football team and played on the basketball team.

In 1924 he married Opal Hoffman in Peterson, IA. Also in 1924 he returned to Emmet County and was active in agriculture and farm management until the present. Opal died in October of 1948. On June 15, 1951, he married Grace McKay in Des Moines. He served in the Iowa Legislature from 1950 to 1953. He then was employed as a field representative for the ASCS and later was appointed Iowa ASCS Chairman. He was employed by the Emmet County State Bank from 1950 to 1973.

Soeth was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Estherville, a charter board member of DEK Rural Electric Cooperative and the American Legion in Wallingford. He was a 50-year member of the Masonic Lodge in Estherville, past Master of the Lodge, a member of ABU BEKR Shrine and the Sioux City Valley of Scottish Rite Masons, in addition to being very active in community affairs, serving on school boards, elevator boards and the Farm Bureau.

Survivors include his wife Grace Soeth of Spirit Lake, a daughter, Shirley Pfeifer of Washington, Ia.; a son, Mark Soeth of Syracuse, NY; nine grandchildren; twenty great grandchildren; two nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his first wife Opal, one daughter, his parents and a brother. (Estherville Daily News, Estherville, IA, October 21, 1995)