Spies, Leland G. 1910-1995

SPIES, BLECKER, PETERSEN

Posted By: Linda Ziemann, volunteer (email)
Date: 1/18/2009 at 21:14:40

LELAND G. SPIES

MERRILL, Iowa—Leland G. “Shorty” Spies, 84, of Merrill, died Thursday, Feb. 9, 1995, at a Sioux City hospital following a lengthy illness.

Services will be 1:30 p.m. Monday at St. John Lutheran Church in Merrill with the Rev. Keith Sievers, the Rev. Frank Philipp and the Rev. Donna Newendorp officiating. Burial will be in Hillside Cemetery in Merrill. Visitation will be after 2 p.m. Sunday, with a prayer service at 7 p.m., at the Mauer-Johnson Funeral Home in LeMars, Iowa.

He was born May 24, 1910, on the family farm near Merrill, the son of George F. and Katherine (Blecker) Spies. He attended school in the Merrill area. He married Ella Petersen Feb. 16, 1935, in Sioux City. They farmed southwest of Merrill for 37 years, retiring in 1972 and moving to town.

Mr. Spies was a longtime member of the St. John Lutheran Church and a past member of the Merrill Community Club and a member of the Farm Bureau. He enjoyed woodworking and gardening.

Survivors include his wife; a sister-in-law, Margaret Spies of Merrill, and nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by two brothers, Earl and Dwight, and a sister, Fern.

~Source: The Sioux City Journal, February 1995—part of the Darrell E. Obituary Collection