Eldon Joseph JANSON

JANSON, ENGE, HENDERSON, KELLY, HOLTZBAUER, HENDERSON, LEFFINGWELL, KANE, GOLLHOFER

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 10/2/2006 at 02:33:45

Eldon Joseph Janson was born October 4, 1913, on a farm near Goldfield in Wright County, Iowa, and died April 15, 2000, at St. Francis Hospital in Maryville, Missouri. He was the fifth of 10 children of Hjalmar and Anna Enge Janson. He was proud of his Norwegian heritage. He attended country school through eighth grade and went to high school in Clarion, Iowa. After graduation he worked on several different farms helping his family and saving money to go to college. Out of this particular country school, six of the boys went on to become veterinarians and two of the girls married veterinarians. One of the boys was Eldon, one his brother Harley and three were his first cousins who lived across the road from Eldon's family. Drs. Stewart and Kelly must have had a profound influence on the young people of that community. In 1939 he began his pre-vet work at Kansas State and in 1940 entered veterinary school at Iowa State in Ames, Iowa. He was in the Army 1 1/2 years while at Iowa State and was discharged when he graduated in December 1943. He came to Gravity March 30, 1944, and practiced until 1999. A colleague once asked why he didn't retire and his reply was that he was doing just exactly what he had always wanted to, so why quit?

Eldon was married August 21, 1943, to Helen Lucille Henderson of Seymour, Iowa, and they had five children. Marilyn died at age 1 month in 1944 and Robert Dean died in the service in 1969. Remaining are Dick and his wife Jeanne E. who have homes in Iowa City and Grinnell, Jeanne A. of Mobridge, South Dakota, and Janet Kelly of Lawrence, Kansas. Also, there are six grandchildren. Three foreign students made their home with the family and attended high school.

Doc always enjoyed children and young people and that showed up in many of the things he was active in doing in the community. He was on the Gravity School Board from 1947-1959 and on the reorganized Bedford Community School Board from 1959-1973 and was president of the board many of those years. He was on the Southwestern Community College Board from 1973-1983. He was on the town council many years and served as mayor of Gravity several times over the years, too. He was active in the American Legion and held several offices in the local post where he was always promoting Boys State each year. He was county Legion commander one term. He worked with the Junior Legion Baseball team in the late 40's and early 50's and with the Midget and PeeWee baseball teams here for several years. Doc was chairman of the Taylor County Board of Health when the Public Health Agency was formed in 1972. He was active in St. John's Lutheran Church in Clarinda, Iowa, where he was a member and was chairman of the congregation several times and an elder. Eldon was a lifetime member of both the state and national veterinary medical association. He was a charter member of the county Historical Society. Doc was an active Bedford Lions Club member and a member of the New Market Civic Club. New Market was one of his favorite pitch-playing places along with the Koffe Kup at Gravity. Many men will remember "One more game."

He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers, Tolford and Paul of Clarion; Kenneth and wife June of Eagle Grove, Iowa; and Joel and wife Bernice of Clarion; sisters-in-law Grace Janson of Belmond and Helen Janson of Clear Lake, Iowa; brothers-in-law John Holtzbauer of San Diego, California and Dr. Howard Henderson of Henderson, Iowa. Surviving are Dr. H.A. Janson and wife Harriet of Clear Lake, Iowa; Edgar Janson of Belmond, Iowa; Marjorie Holtzbauer of San Diego, California; Evelyn Leffingwell and husband Bill of Alexandria, Virginia; Anna Elaine Kane and husband Ritchie of Westgate, Iowa; and sister-in-law Sharon Henderson Gollhofer of Charter Oak, Iowa. Funeral services were held Tuesday, April 18, 2000, at St. John's Lutheran Church, Clarinda, with Pastor Gary Jaeckle officiating. Burial will be at a later date at the Norway Township Cemetery north of Clarion, Iowa. Memorials were directed to St. John's Lutheran Scholarship Fund or to the Taylor County Historical Museum. Walker-Merrick Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.