Lenore Ruth (Lortz) Engelbert, 12 Jan 1930 - 27 May 2024

ENGELBERT, LORTZ, GUTSCH, SHOULTZ

Posted By: Sarah Witte (email)
Date: 6/6/2024 at 13:28:05

Lenore Engelbert, 94, of Oskaloosa, passed away Monday, May 27, 2024, at the Mahaska Health Hospice Serenity House in Oskaloosa.

Lenore Engelbert, daughter of Thurman K. and Esther Margaret (Jones) Lortz, was born in Williamsburg, Iowa, on January 12, 1930. She grew up on a farm and didn’t have electricity until she was 12. Her parents were Methodist and poor, yet she and her one brother were never hungry. She grew up in a time when people felt comfortable going on a walk after dark and leaving their houses unlocked. As a youngster, she walked to the country school for her education, about a mile and a half one way. Since she lived in the country and school buses didn’t exist then, she either stayed with her aunt who lived in town or got a ride from one of the neighbors to attend and eventually graduate from Williamsburg High School. She received nurse’s training at Mercy Hospital School of Nursing in Cedar Rapids.

As an adult, she married Tom Engelbert, a teacher and high school administrator, and his different jobs took them to five different Iowa small towns: Villisca, Norwalk, Colfax, Parkersburg, and New Sharon. Shortly after moving to New Sharon in 1974, Lenore began working as a Registered Nurse at the New Sharon Care Center. She worked there for over 25 years, and after she and Tom retired, they moved to Oskaloosa. Though moving was never much fun, Lenore was glad to have met and known so many people over the years. She was thankful to live in Iowa, though she enjoyed summer vacations to other states, a church trip to Alaska, and a few trips to Switzerland. Her favorite place, though, was always her home.
Lenore felt fortunate to have good health, enabling her to enjoy many hobbies, including crocheting, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, and reading, particularly history and personal stories of people not necessarily well known. She also played the piano, though only for her enjoyment, and loved to hear the old hymns, her favorite being “Great is Thy Faithfulness.” She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Oskaloosa.

Lenore was blessed to have seven grandchildren ranging in ages from 11 to 28 and three children who are healthy, well-educated, and married to good people: Heidi (David) Gutsch of Jamison, PA, and their children, Julia, Elizabeth, and Caroline; Amy (Gregg) Shoultz of Iowa City and their children, Sophie and Natalie; and Matthew (Dana) Engelbert of Oxford, MS and their children, Colin and Andrew Engelbert.

In addition to her parents and her husband, Tom, in 1998, Lenore was preceded in death by a brother, Leland Lortz.
Funeral Services for Lenore will be held at 10 a.m., Friday, May 31, 2024, at the First Presbyterian Church with Rev. Dr. Dennis Morey of the Faith Presbyterian Church of Cedar Rapids officiating. The burial will be in Oak Hill Cemetery in Williamsburg. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m., Thursday, at Langkamp Funeral Chapel; the family will greet visitors from 4-6:30 p.m. Memorial contributions can be made to the Mahaska Health Foundation to be directed to the Hospice Serenity House or The First Presbyterian Church of Oskaloosa.

Published in The Hometown Current on June 5, 2024.