Redinger, Charlene Merle (1917-2013)
REDINGER, COOK, LARK, THUMAN, MCCARTY, GEER, JENNINGS, FLETCHALL, BOWEN, WHISLER, MATHIS
Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 6/23/2013 at 16:44:48
Charlene Merle Redinger
(November 2, 1917 - June 1, 2013)Charlene Redinger, age 95, of Lake Mills, Iowa, passed away on Saturday, June 1, 2013, at the Lake Mills Care Center.
Charlene Merle (Cook) Redinger was born on November 2, 1917, on a farm near Eagleville, Harrison County, Missouri, the daughter of Christopher Columbus "Crit" and Nora Edith (Lark) Cook. Next to youngest of eight children, she attended country school and then Eagleville School through the ninth Grade.
Charlene married Kenneth Marlin Redinger on May 17, 1934, in Bethany, Missouri. They began their married life by moving in with another farm family. Kenneth worked as their hired man, and Charlene helped the farmer’s wife. Then, they moved across the state line into Iowa where Kenneth could find jobs as a farmhand during the depression. He, later, had a small farm of his own for a while.
After they had been married for a number of years, their son, Randy, an only child, was born at Clarinda, Iowa. Subsequently, they moved to an apartment in Shenandoah, Iowa, where Kenneth worked as a deputy sheriff while Randy attended elementary school. Afterwards, the family moved to Coin, Iowa, where they bought an abandoned gas station building that they converted into a home. They were happy. As one of Randy's classmates said recently about Charlene, “Although they never had very much, she always had a smile.” Kenneth served as the Constable of Coin (kept the peace, plowed the streets, and performed various other services) and for two years they operated the Coin Café. Charlene was the cook, and Kenneth was the waiter and cashier. Later, she worked seasonally for the J.C. Fields Seed Company, sending out mailings.
Charlene loved horses and rode from a young age. Kenneth raised horses and ponies and ran children's rodeos. For many years, the family was involved in helping with the Sydney Rodeo in Sydney, Iowa.
After Kenneth died, Charlene moved to Lake Mills, Iowa, to live near her son's family. She worked at the Graphic Publishing Company, The Coffee Shop, and The Lake Mills Public Library. She also enjoyed selling her handicrafts and helping with church bazaars. She found her greatest joys in crafting, sewing clothes, quilting, crocheting, reading, visiting with friends, and spending time with her family.
Survivors include her daughter-in-law, Eileen Redinger, of Lake Mills, Iowa; three grandchildren: Aaron Redinger, and his wife, Shanan, of Hanlontown, Iowa, Eric Redinger, and his wife, Jen, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and Graham Redinger, of Lake Mills, Iowa; four great-grandchildren: Samuel and Isabel Redinger, of Hanlontown, Iowa, and Brennan and Peyton Redinger, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri; and one sister, Lois Thuman, of St. Joseph, Missouri; as well as many other relatives and friends.
Charlene was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her son, Randy Redinger; a grandson, Adrian Redinger (1978); her mother- and father-in-law, Gwendolin (Guess) and Claude Redinger; two brothers, Leland and Glen Cook; four sisters: Verda McCarty, Edith Geer, Lillian Jennings, and Louella Fletchall; three sisters-in-law: Elaine Bowen, Zoe Whisler, and Frieda Cook; eight brothers-in-law: Uriel McCarty, Ralph Geer, Mr. Jennings, Dennis Fletchall, Glenn Mathis, Rolland Thuman, Virgil Bowen, and Robert Whisler.
Memorials may be sent to the Asbury Methodist Church Memorial Fund, Asbury Methodist Church Cemetery Fund, or the Fisher Center for Alzheimer's Research (alzinfo.org).
A memorial visitation will be held from 4:00 to 6:00 pm, Saturday, June 8th, 2013, at the Mittelstadt Funeral Home, 902 East Main Street in Lake Mills. Private inurnment will be at Elmwood Cemetery in Coin, Iowa.
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