Pille, Arnold Joseph – 1926-2010

JONES, KNOLL, MCCONEGHEY, NEAL, PILLE, ROBINSON, STROHMAN, TIFFANY

Posted By: JCGS Volunteer
Date: 3/28/2010 at 13:08:58

URBANDALE — Arnold Joseph Pille, 83, passed away peacefully at Ramsey Village in Des Moines, Iowa, on Sunday, March 21, 2010.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11 a.m. Thursday, March 25, 2010, at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 2926 Beaver Ave., Des Moines. Friends are encouraged to visit with the family from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at St. Pius X Catholic Church, 66th and Douglas, Urbandale, where a vigil service will begin at 7:30 p.m. Interment will be at 2:30 p.m. Thursday at Newton Union Cemetery, Newton, Iowa.
Arnold was born May 28, 1926, to Alphonse and Christina (Knoll) Pille in Haverhill, Iowa. He graduated from Newton Senior High School in 1944 and immediately enlisted in the Army. He was wounded in February 1945 in combat in France, earning a Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts before he was 19 years old. After the war, he returned to Newton, where he worked briefly at Montgomery Wards and met his future wife, Eileen McConeghey. Arnie and Eileen were married on June 4, 1947, and moved to Des Moines, where Arnold graduated from the American Institute of Business in 1948. He immediately started work at National Travelers Life Insurance Co., where he enjoyed a productive career until he retired as vice president of systems management from NTL in 1981. After retirement, he accepted a position as auditor with the State of Iowa Insurance Commission, where he worked until 1988, when he and Eileen retired to their lake home at Longville, Minn. In 1998, they returned to Des Moines and made their home in Urbandale.
Arnold was a longtime faithful member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Des Moines and of St. Edward’s Catholic Church in Longville. He was also a long time member of the Knights of Columbus and the Veterans of Foreign Wars and served those and many other organizations as a volunteer or officer.
Arnold is survived by his wife, Eileen; daughter, Laurie (Joseph) Tiffany of LaCrosse, Wis.; sons, Michael (Jane) Pille of Omaha, Neb., Joel (Julie) Pille of West Des Moines and Dana Pille of Des Moines; grandchildren, Nathan (Julie) Robinson, Sarah (Ryan) Robinson Lee, Brian Pille, Karen Pille, Katie Pille and Meg Pille; great-grandchildren, Jackson and Chase Robinson; sisters, Ann Marie Jones of Ankeny, Iowa, and Virginia (Eugene) Strohman of Sigourney, Iowa; brothers, Jerry (Shirley) Pille of Dallas, Texas, and Wilfred Pille of Aurora, Ill., and brother-in-law, William Neal of Cincinnati, Ohio. He was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Joan Neal; and an infant brother, Louis.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be directed to the Greater Iowa Alzheimer’s Association, Iowa Hospice, Ramsey Village or Wesley Acres Adult Daycare. Westover Funeral Home in Des Moines is handling arrangements.
Source: Newton Daily News; Tuesday, March 23, 2010