Orville Rutledge 1915-2010

RUTLEDGE, TRAFTON GRUBER

Posted By: Connie J Swearingen (email)
Date: 2/21/2011 at 20:37:52

Sioux City Journal
12 December 2010

ONAWA, Iowa -- Orville Rutledge, 95, of Onawa passed away Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010, at Pleasant View Care Center in Whiting, Iowa.

Services will be 11 a.m. Monday at First Christian Church in Onawa, with John Sears, minister officiating. Burial will be in Onawa Cemetery. Visitation will be one hour prior to services Monday at the church. Arrangements are under the direction of Rush Family Care Service in Onawa. Condolences may be left online for the family at www.rushfamilycareservice.com.

Orville was born July 28, 1915, in Turin, Iowa, the son of Frederick and Edna Mae (Trafton) Rutledge. He graduated from Onawa High School. Orville was a lifelong Monona County resident and was superintendent of the Onawa Cemetery for 48 years. He also owned and operated Rutledge Monument Company.

Orville and Susannah Gruber were united in marriage in 1936 and three children were blessed to this union. Susannah passed away in June 1971. On Sept. 19, 1972, Orville married Harriett Beckman and the couple made their home in Onawa where Harriett joined Orville in the monument business. Harriett passed away Jan. 5, 2005.

He enjoyed traveling and rated the trips success by the number of miles they covered. He was a great conversationalist with a keen mind of many memories in the area and was always willing to share his knowledge with his many friends. He was a member of First Christian Church and Odd Fellows Lodge.

Survivors include a son and his wife, Norman and Karen Rutledge of Mount Home, Ark.; two daughters and their husbands, Betty and Roger Stender of Blair, Neb., and Bonnie and Gary Kendall of Onawa; a stepson and his wife, Robert and Carol Beckman of Fort Collins, Colo.; eight grandchildren; two stepgrandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; four great-stepgrandchildren; a great-great-grandson; and a sister and her husband, Shirley and Lou Acevedo of Antioch, Calif.

In addition to his wives, he was preceded in death by his parents; an infant brother, Frederick; and two sisters, Wilma Bryan and Dorothy Cartmill.