Orville V. Gerlach (1938-2019)

GERLACH, HOMAN, HERRIG

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 1/20/2019 at 19:04:56

Orville V. Gerlach, 80, of Andrew, Iowa, passed away on Friday evening, January 18, 2019, at Mercy Medical Center in Dubuque, Iowa.

A funeral mass celebrating Orville's life will be held at 11 A.M., Wednesday, January 23, 2019, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Maquoketa, Iowa. Visitation will be held from 9 to 11 A.M. prior to the mass on Wednesday at the church. Burial will be at St. John's Cemetery, Andrew, Iowa.

Orville Vern Gerlach was born on October 8, 1938 on a farm east of Springbrook, Iowa, to Leo and Hilda (Homan) Gerlach. He received his education through the 8th grade at St. Peter & Paul in Springbrook. He later proudly received his GED from Andrew High School by attending evening classes. He married Karen Herrig on October 5, 1963 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Bellevue, Iowa. To this union four children were born, Steve, Sherry, Shelly and Susan.

Orville was a lifelong farmer. His main passion was always farming, however throughout the years he also worked various jobs. Aside from farming, he was passionate about baseball and looked forward to April 1 each year - for both a new planting season and a new season of baseball. Additionally, he enjoyed woodworking, traveling and history. He was an avid fan of the Chicago Cubs and Iowa Hawkeyes. Orville was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Maquoketa.

Those left to honor Orville's memory include his wife, Karen Gerlach of Andrew, IA; children, Steve (Vivian) Gerlach of Geneseo, IL; Sherry (Mark) Meyer of Owatonna, MN; Shelly (Tod) Wiederholt of Green Bay, WI; and Susan Gerlach of Dubuque, IA; 5 grandchildren; sisters, Mary Banowetz of Maquoketa, IA; and Rita Lee of Houston, TX; sisters-in-law, Darlyn (Jim) Weis of Lake Havasu, AZ; Mary Jo (Jerry) Weis of Maquoketa, IA; Cindy (Steve) Helmle of Bellevue, IA; Phyllis (Joe) Wingert of Oelwein, IA; Audrey Conoly of TX; LaVonne Gerlach of Maquoketa, IA; Carol (Steve) Lucke of Andrew, IA; and Heather Gerlach of Papillion, NE; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Leo and Hilda; and five brothers, Donald, Arnold, Roger, Cletus and Richard.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, an Orville V. Gerlach memorial fund has been established.

Online condolences may be left at www.CarsonAndSon.com.