Stanley William Kovarna 1920-2010

KOVARNA HARTMAN EDWARDS

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 3/5/2011 at 13:21:27

Soux City Journal
29 November 2010

SIOUX CITY -- Stanley William Kovarna, 90, of Sioux City, formerly of Merrill, Iowa, passed away Saturday, Nov. 27, 2010.

Funeral services will be 7 p.m. Tuesday at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel, with the Rev. Jon Moravec, chaplain of Sunrise Retirement Community officiating. A Masonic service will be 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, conducted by Triangle Lodge 643 A.F. & A.M., at the funeral home. Visitation with the family present will be 5 to 7 p.m., also at the funeral home. A private family burial will be Wednesday in Memorial ParkCemetery, with military honors by the U.S. Naval Reserve. Condolences may be sent online to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

Stan was born Nov. 18, 1920, in Merrill, Iowa, the son of James and Clara (Hartman) Kovarna. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He married Alma Laura Edwards of Elk Point, S.D., in 1946. The couple farmed near Merrill for more than 60 years before moving to Assisted Living at Sunrise Retirement Community.

Stanley never met anyone with whom he couldn't strike up a conversation. He loved family gatherings, taking photographs of building and construction projects from beginning to completion, collecting new quarters and putting them in Memoriam books, slot machines and doing countless word puzzles.

He was an active member of the Abu Bekr Shrine Temple, Triangle Lodge 643, and was involved in their Wrecking Crew Unit of which he was social director in 1980, vice president in 1981 and president in 1982. He was assistant director to the potentate in 1985. Stan was on the Siouxland Honor Flight in October 2009 and visited the World War II Memorial. He was a current member of the American Legion Hinton Post 477 and a past member of Merrill Post 125.

He is survived by his three daughters, Cheryl Hardersen and her husband, Darrel of Onawa, Iowa, Diana Lahrs and her husband, Bruce of Merrill, and Deb Binneboese and her husband, Dennis of Hinton, Iowa; a son, Steve Kovarna and his wife, Mary of Merrill; two sisters, Lois Newberg and her husband, Bedford of Hinton, and Delores Parry of Fountain Valley, Calif; nine grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren and one on the way; two stepgrandchildren; 23 nieces and nephews; numerous great-nieces and great-nephews; and a host of family and friends.

Stan was preceded in death by his loving wife of 63 years, Alma in 2009; his parents; and three brothers, Donald, Robert and Marvin Kovarna, all of rural Merrill.

Pallbearers will be his grandsons, Ryan Lahrs, Jonathan Hardersen, Adam Binneboese, Carl Binneboese and Kyle Kovarna. Honorary pallbearers will be his granddaughters, Jennifer Burress, Missy Hardersen, Beth Trejo and Laura Binneboese.

Memorials may be made in his name to the Abu Bekr Shrine Transportation Fund.