Frank B. Potter (1927-2021)

POTTER, COVEL, DIETER

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 8/19/2021 at 13:47:13

Frank B. Potter, age 94, of Dubuque and formerly of Zwingle, Iowa, passed away at 12:30 a.m., on Monday, August 16, 2021, at Hawkeye Care Center. To celebrate Frank’s life, family and friends may visit from 2:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m., on Sunday, August 22, 2021, at Behr Funeral Home, 1491 Main Street. To honor Frank’s life, funeral services will be held immediately following the visitation at 5:00 p.m., on Sunday, at Behr Funeral Home with Pastor Mark Dieter officiating. A private burial with military honors will be held at Assumption Cemetery at a later date.

Frank was born on February 2, 1927, in Chulsea, Oklahoma, son of Samuel and Harriet (Covel) Potter. He was a U.S. Army veteran having served in Korea during WWII. In 2014, he was honored to participate in one of the last Honor Flights to leave from Dubuque. He married Darlene J. Dieter on September 7, 1948, at St. Mary’s Church in Vinton, Iowa. She preceded him in death on April 7, 2017. Frank held many jobs over the years; he was a carpenter, auto mechanic, machinist, and a fire fighter with the Dubuque Fire Department, a job he cherished from 1957-1991, serving as an Assistant Chief/Training Officer for many years.

Frank was a devoted family man. He was a caring husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and great-great grandfather. He always made his grandchildren feel special and never missed a chance to hold them when they were babies. Frank was always very generous with his time and talents and was always willing to help anyone with whatever they needed. He and Darlene loved to host extended friends and family from all over the country. Everyone knew they were always welcome at the Potters. Upon retirement, they traveled the United States in their motor home.

Frank had many hobbies. He was a beekeeper, an avid fisherman, and kept an apple orchard and flower gardens. He loved to play games, especially chess, cribbage, pinochle, euchre, and Yahtzee. He enjoyed collecting rocks and polished them for making jewelry and belt buckles. Later in life, he took up bird watching, puzzles and playing bingo.

Those left to cherish Frank’s memory include

3 daughters,
Peggy (Dave) Schuster, Zwingle, IA,
Kathy (Ron) Arensdorf, Dubuque, IA
and Tracy (Dan) Laughlin, LaMotte, IA;

a daughter-in-law,
Barb (Mark) Stone Potter Hogan, Dubuque, IA;

his grandchildren,
Carrie (Randy) Gehl, Jennifer (Bill) Hellman, Dan (Stacy) Schuster, Brenda Burkart, Stacy Schares, Sean Laughlin, Cohl Laughlin, Brianna Laughlin, Josh Potter, Jay Potter and Matt Vogt;

his great grandchildren,
Anna, Lauren, Julia, Claire, Rachel, Ezra, Elovie, Bexli, Kayla, Chase, Gracy, Lilly, Brayden, Will and Gavin;

and a great-great grandson,
Sebastian.

Frank was preceded in death by his parents; his daughter, Mary Ann Potter; a son, James Potter; 2 granddaughters, Melissa Schuster and Kristen Vogt; 2 grandsons, Scott Arensdorf and Jared Potter; his brothers, Orville, Wade, Howard and Harold Potter; and his sisters, Esther and Rachel.

The family would especially like to thank Hawkeye Care Center staff for their loving care of Frank, especially during the pandemic, as well as Mercy Hospital, Cardiac Care Unit, for their support during this difficult time. The family would also like to extend a special thank you to the Dubuque Fire Department for escorting Frank on his final ride.

The family will thankfully receive your support through phone calls, greeting cards and memorials in Frank’s memory which may be mailed to Behr Funeral Home, 1491 Main Street, Dubuque, Iowa 52001, Attn. Frank Potter Family.

Online condolences may be left for the family at www.behrfuneralhome.com