Augustine, Gerald "Jerry" H. (1931-2007)

AUGUSTINE, SCHILMOELLER, PARKS, HARVISON, WESTHOFF, SCHULTE, GION, MOUSEL, KONZ

Posted By: Mary Holub, volunteer (email)
Date: 3/11/2008 at 09:54:48

From: Le Mars Daily Sentinel, October 3, 2007

Gerald "Jerry" H. Augustine, 76, of Remsen, died Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2007, at his home in Remsen after a lengthy illness.

Gerald H. Augustine was born June 5, 1931, at rural Geddes, S.D., the son of Joseph and Alvina (Schilmoeller) Augustine. Jerry was raised in the Geddes area until the age of 10 when he moved with his family to the Remsen area where he attended St. Mary's Catholic School through the eighth grade. He received his high school education at Holy Name Catholic School in Marcus,from which he graduated in 1949. He was then a farm laborer in the Remsen area.

On Nov. 19, 1952 he entered the U.S. Army and served in Korea during the Korean Conflict and was honorably discharged Nov. 2, 1954. He then returned to Remsen where he was employed at the Farmers Co-Op, where he later became assistant manager.

On Nov. 11, 1961, he married Kay Parks at Le Mars. They made their home in Remsen. In 1965 he went into partnership with his father-in-law, Dean Parks, and they purchased a feed store from Gordon Tritz, which later became the Remsen Roller Mill. He retired on Jan. 1, 1996.

He was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church, of which he was on the advisory board for 11 years, church Everlasting Choir and was a lector and lay distributor. He served on St. Mary's-St. Catherine's Grade School board for three years and was a member of the Knights of Columbus. He was a past board member of the Iowa Feed and Grain. He served on the Remsen City Council for six years, was a Remsen volunteer fireman for 19 years and a member of the Remsen Chamber of Commerce, Lions Club, of which he held the office of president, the Remsen Development Corporation, Octoberfest Central Committee, Octoberfest Choir, Remsen Golf Course Board of which he was a director for three years. He was also a member of Post 3328 V.F.W. of which he was quarter master and a member of the color guard for many years, member of the committee for the Remsen Veterans Memorial. He was also a member of Plymouth County Veterans Administration Board, of which he recently retired because of ill health.

In 1997 he was named Citizen of the Year by the Remsen Chamber of Commerce.

Survivors include his wife, Kay; four daughters, Diane Harvison of Sioux City and her fiance, Blane Smith of Westfield, Mary and her husband Kevin Westhoff of Le Mars, Beth and her husband Greg Schulte and Nancy and her husband Dave Gion, all of West Des Moines; two sons and their wives, Jim and Carla of Sioux City, and Ken and Amy of Shawnee, Kan.; 18 grandchildren; eight brothers, Msgr. Roger J., Richard and his wife Nancy, Daniel and Mary, Michael and Janet, all of Sioux City, Ralph and his wife Cleon, Thomas and his wife Sandy, Wayne and his wife Kathy, all of Remsen, William and his wife JoAnn of Estherville; two sisters and their husbands, Clarice and Dale Mousel and Delores and Peter Konz, all of Alton.

He was preceded in death by his parents; two sisters, Alvina and Lois, both in infancy; father and mother-in-law, Dean and Marge Parks; one sister-in-law, Roberta Augustine.

Funeral services will be at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Remsen. Officiating at the service will be Msgr Roger J. Augustine and concelebrating will be Revs. William McCarthy, Jerome Degen, Timothy Johnson, Msgr. Nicholas J. Ruba and other priest of the Diocese. Burial will be in St. Mary's Cemetery in Remsen.

Friends may call after 2 p.m. Friday. There will be a parish rosary at 3 p.m., a vigil prayer service at 7:30 p.m. and a Knights of Columbus rosary at 8 p.m. all at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Remsen. The Fisch Funeral Home of Remsen is in charge of arrangements.

Casketbearers will be Blane Smith, Carla Augustine, Kevin Westhoff, Greg Schulte, Dave Gion and Amy Augustine.