Doonan, Ralph E. (1930 - 2014)

DOONAN, HEILESEN, BOWER, SCOTT, HANSEN, JACOBSEN, DAVEY

Posted By: Denise Wurner (email)
Date: 5/25/2014 at 14:27:43

Name of deceased: Ralph Eugene Doonan

Aged: 84 yrs, 1 mo, 3 days

Residence: Alexandria, MN (formerly of the Audubon - Elk Horn area)

Born: April 2, 1930; Shelby County, IA

Died: May 5, 2014; Alexandria, MN

Funeral services: Monday, May 19, 2014, Pauley Jones Funeral Home, Harlan, IA.

Survived by: Wife, Shirley (nee Heilesen) Doonan of Alexandria, MN; daughter, Becky (spouse, Craig) Bower of Alexandria, MN; 3 grandchildren; 4 great-grandchildren; brothers-in-law, Norman Scott of Botna, IA and Merlyn (spouse, Betty) Heilesen of Kirkman, IA; sister-in-law, Maxine Heilesen of Irwin, IA

Predeceased by: mother, Carrie (nee Hansen) Doonan; father, John Doonan; sister, Edith Scott; brother, Earl Doonan and his wife, Elaine (nee Jacobsen) Doonan; in-laws, Arthur and Mary Heilesen; brother and sister-in-law, Clark and Marjori Davey; brother-in-law, Gaylord Heilesen.

Education: attended country school at Clay No. 3 through Grade 8.

Religious affiliation: baptized into the Christian faith through the Irwin (IA) Church of Christ and later became a member of the Merrill’s Grove Baptist Church in Fiscus, IA.

Military service: drafted into the U. S. Army on Feb. 16, 1953 and served during the Korean War. He returned home after his discharge in Jan. 1955.

Marriage: Shirley Maye Heilesen; Dec. 27, 1952; location not provided

Employment: Farmed for a while in his early married life, and then made the decision to get out of farming. Ralph went to work laying asphalt roads with Western Engineering of Harlan; later, he enjoyed the lively atmosphere of the students at Audubon (IA) High School before retiring from maintenance at the school in 1992.

Hobbies/Interests: Ralph enjoyed restoration projects, which included woodworking and restoring International tractors. He was a member of the Pioneer Power Club for antique tractor preservation and restoration, and he loved the 1945 International Model H that he had restored. Other interests included car races, country music and watching westerns on TV. Mostly, he enjoyed time spent with his grandchildren, either attending their sports and other activities, or working on projects with them in his shop.

Sources: harlanonline.com; kjan.com; knodfm.com; pauleyjones.com