Flugge, Ralph Henry 1926 - 2026
FLUGGE, LUBBERT, MASKARINA, DVORAK, LEBARGE
Posted By: Joy Moore (email)
Date: 3/21/2026 at 12:18:10
Ralph Henry Flugge, 99, of Traer, Iowa, formerly of Cresco, Iowa, passed away on Thursday, February 26, 2026, at Sunrise Hill Care Center in Traer.
Ralph Henry Harry Flugge was born May 26, 1926, in Howard County to Elmer and Elsie (Lubbert) Flugge. He was the 5th child of 15 in the family. Ralph enlisted in the United States Army on April 19, 1946, and served in Kobe and Kyoto, Japan.
He was united in marriage to Helen Mary Maskarina on September 21, 1947, at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa. To this union 6 children were born, Linda, Larry, Susan, Ralph Jr, Randy, and Steven.
Ralph had many different hobbies over his lifetime. He learned his love for draft horses when he went to work at age 9 for a local farmer who used draft horses for field work. Later on in life he was able to take his grandkids on wagon rides with his own horses. While healing from a broken wrist he learned needlepoint and recovered well enough to hand milk cows and shingle and insulate multiple homes and barns, something he was very proud of. He also loved to hunt pheasant and would provide a very tasty meal for everybody.
Ralph was never one to sit idle (except when a big bowl of ice cream was had at the end of a work day). He was always moving and always tinkering with something, whether it was renovating old manure spreaders, helping out at the local sale barn or “helping” his youngest sons with their projects.
Ralph moved to Sunrise Hill Care Center in Traer, Iowa, in November of 2018. The staff and residents became a second family to him. He regaled them with stories and kept the puzzle printing companies busy, making puzzles he put together and shared either on the walls of his room, the hallway or with whomever liked one he made.
Ralph is survived by his children; Linda (Roger) Dvorak, Susan (Gus) Thomas, Ralph Leroy (Mary) Flugge, Randy (Cecilia) Flugge, and Steven (Diane) Flugge; His grandchildren, Sae, Brian, Sheramie, Derek, Jacob, Matthew, Mike, Cody, Colt, Andy, Dean, and Jackie; his great-grandchildren, Kimberly, Kyle, Molly, Layla, Jaden, Jasmine, Carly, Jalissa, Arrabella, Gabe, Wyatt, Crystal, Addison, Aubrey, Sydney, several great-great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews; his siblings Rose Lebarge, Inez Bode, and Roy Flugge.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Helen, his parents, Elmer and Elsie; his brothers, Lloyd, Floyd, Donald, Alden, and Melvin; his sisters, Leona, Helen, Clara, Melinda, Alvina, and Delphine; his son, Larry; his grandson, James and a great grandson, Justin.
A celebration of life will be held on Sunday, April 12, 2026, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Kessel Lodge in Cresco. Inurnment will take place in the Howard Center Township Cemetery, rural Cresco.
Hindt-Hudek Funeral Home in Cresco is assisting the family.
Source: Hindt-Hudek Funeral Home database
Howard Center Cemetery
Howard Obituaries maintained by Constance McDaniel Hall.
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