Lavern Frank LEMKE

LEMKE, WALLER, GERZEMA, BUCHOLZ, GORDER, KIDNEY, KORNFELD, SUTTON, BRANDT, CAMPBELL, PETERSON, FRYE

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 1/27/2007 at 00:54:28

LaVern F. Lemke, 86, of Hampton, died on Monday, August 21, 2000, at the Extended Care Nursing Facility in Hampton. Funeral services will be held on Thursday, August 24, at 11:00 a.m., at the Morgan United Methodist Church in rural Dows, with the Rev. David Gobeli officiating. Burial will be in the Morgan Township Cemetery, rural Dows. The Elledge Funeral Home of Dows is in charge of the arrangements.

LaVern Frank Lemke was born on January 25, 1914, at his home in Morgan Township, Franklin County, the son of Frank and Bertha Waller Lemke. He attended country school and in 1931 graduated from the Dows High School. For a few years after graduating, he worked for farmers and later began farming on his own near Dows. On November 25, 1937, he was united in marriage to Johanna Gerzema in Des Moines. After their marriage, they raised their family and continued farming near Dows. He retired from farming in 1976 and in 1987 moved to their present home in Hampton. LaVern was a member of the Morgan United Methodist Church where he was baptized and confirmed. He held several offices, taught Sunday School, sang in the church choir, and was a member of the Morgan Quartet. As a young man he often sang solos in church as well as for weddings and funerals.

LaVern is survived by one son, Dennis of Dows; four daughters, Darlene (Mrs. Darold) Bucholz of St. Augustine, Illinois, Judy Gorder of Dows, Linda (Mrs. John) Kidney of Webster City and Nancy (Mrs. Tom) Kornfeld of Greenville, South Carolina; ten grandchildren; one great-grandson; and several nephews and nieces. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Johanna, who died on April 26, 1999; seven brothers, Clarence, Elmer, Arthur, Wesley, Lee, Jesse and Harry; five sisters, Elsie Sutton, Cora Brandt, Esther Campbell, Edna Peterson and Sarah Frye; and one grandson, Mark Bucholz.

August 24, 2000
©Hampton Chronicle 2000