Varner, Lelah Madge (Hanson) -- 1915 - 1999

KEPPLE, HANSON, VARNER, SCHMITT, BINSFIELD

Posted By: IAGenWeb Volunteer
Date: 7/29/2010 at 08:23:15

Decorah Public Opinion, Tuesday, April 20, 1999

Lelah Varner

Lelah M. Varner, 84, of Kaukauna, Wis., and formerly of Decorah, died Wednesday, April 14, 1999, at the St. Paul Home in Kaukauna. She had been a victim of Alzheimer's Disease.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 24, at 11 a.m., at First United Methodist Church in Decorah, with the Rev. Sue Hamly officiating.

Friends may call at the church beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday.The Fjelstul Funeral Home is handling arrangements. Arrangements in Kaukauna were handled by the Boettcher Family Funeral Home. Burial will be at Phelps Cemetery in Decorah.

She was born Jan. 25, 1915, in Milwaukee, Wis., the daughter of Dr. Walter and Madge (Kepple) Hanson.

Lelah spent her childhood in numerous small towns in Iowa, as her father's veterinary practice changed and grew.

She graduated from Cedar Falls High School and from Iowa State Teachers College, with a degree in home economics education.

Lelah worked as a teacher and home economist prior to her marriage to Franklin Clay Varner.

The couple lived in Decorah most of their married life, retiring to Green Valley, Ariz., and then to Kaukauna, Wis.

Lelah lived at a time when lifelong learning was prized and common for educated women who worked at home, and she took full advantage of any opportunity to learn. Not only was she an avid reader, she also was an active member and frequent leader in the many groups she was a part of.

Her groups included the United Methodist Women's Society, PEO, Coterie Club and the American Association of University Women.

She participated in or led many community efforts to improve schools and raise money for charities and cultural offerings.

She also was known for her baking skills.

When the couple retired to Arizona, she seized the opportunity to learn about the culture, plant life and geography of her new home.

Survivors include her husband, Clay of Kaukauna, Wis.; four children, Ruth Schmitt of West Bend, Wis., Stephen of Nashville, Tenn, John and Faye (Edward) Binsfield of Kaukauna, Wis., and William (Patricia) Varner of Minnetonka, Minn.; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

She is further survived by the children of her daughter and son-in-law, Faye and Ed.

Lelah Varner was preceded in death by her parents; a son, John; a son-in-law, John Schmitt; and two sisters.

Transcribed by an IA GenWeb Volunteer from obituaries found in the Howard-Winneshiek Genealogy Society Library, Cresco, Iowa.