Eugene Dean "Gene" Magden 1928 - 2019

MAGDEN, BROWN, PFLANZ

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 9/1/2019 at 22:20:18

Sioux City Journal
1 September 2019

Sioux City

Eugene Dean "Gene" Magden, 91, of Sioux City, passed away Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019, at a local hospital.

Service will be 10:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 6, at Morningside Lutheran Church. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, with a prayer service at 7 p.m., at Meyer Brothers Morningside Chapel. Online condolences may be made to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

Gene was born on July 26, 1928 in Sioux City, to Clarence and Helen (Brown) Magden. He graduated high school and enlisted in the United States Army in September 1946 and served in World War II.

Following his honorable discharge, Gene worked for several businesses around Sioux City. He obtained a 3rd class engineer license and worked at the Army base. He also attended Western Iowa Tech College to get certified as a first class engineer for the railroad. Gene also worked in the post office, as an insurance salesman, as a real estate agent and in the Stockyards.

He was united in marriage to Virginia Pflanz on Oct. 2, 1954, in Coleridge, Neb.

Gene loved to sing. He sang with such greats as Lawrence Welk from 1949 to 1951, Bob Hope in 1952 in Rapid City, S.D., for a polio benefit, and the Lee Williams Orchestra. He could sing anything from gospel to country to pop, singing at various nursing homes, churches and weddings. Gene also enjoyed fishing and was a member of Morningside Lutheran Church.

Those left to honor his memory include his wife, Virginia Magden of Sioux City; children, Dennis Magden of Sioux City, Jeffrey Magden of Sioux City, Lori (Donavan) Bratetic of South Sioux City, and Lisa (Craig) Campbell of Baldwin, Wis.; grandchildren, Cash, Christian, Daniel, Colin and Taylor; and great-grandson, Theodore.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and a brother, Ray.