Loraine E. (Schmidt) BERTILSON

SCHMIDT, BERTILSON, OSTENDORF, LITTON, KALDENBERG, NODLAND, SAMPSON, BOELMAN

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 9/13/2012 at 11:28:54

October 15, 1924 --- August 10, 2012

MESERVEY, IA - Loraine E. (Schmidt) Bertilson, 87, of Phoenix, Ariz., passed away in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Friday, Aug. 10, 2012. A retired data expeditor for Honeywell, she was born on Oct. 15, 1924, at her parents' farm near Meservey, Iowa, to John R. and Tena (Ostendorf) Schmidt. Loraine was a graduate of Meservey High School and of Hamilton Business College in Mason City, Iowa. Prior to her marriage, she worked as a cashier and bookkeeper in Meservey and Dows. On June 8, 1947, Loraine married Maynard L. Bertilson of Dows at Meservey's First Reformed Church in a ceremony performed by her uncle, the Rev. Peter Koenen. Maynard and Loraine farmed for the next sixteen years in north-central Iowa, primarily in the vicinity of Clarion, Eagle Grove, and Meservey. In 1963, the family moved permanently to Phoenix, Ariz., working and raising their family there, while maintaining close ties to family and friends in Iowa. Beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Loraine is survived by her four children: Gail (John) Litton, Myra, Carla, and B. Brian (Joyce) Bertilson; four grandchildren, Becky (Joseph), George, Zach, and Daniel; her adored great-grandson, Andrew; two sisters, Arlene Kaldenberg and Frances Groen; brother-in-law, Merle (Sonja) Bertilson, and sister-in-law, Alta Nodland; dear family friend, Billy Sampson; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Maynard (1987), her brother, Ralph Schmidt, and her sister, Esther Boelman. A memorial service will be held for Loraine on Thursday, Sept. 13, at 10:30 a.m. at Meservey's First Reformed Church, 620 2nd Street, Meservey, with interment following at the Meservey Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any memorial donations in her name be made to the American Lung Association, 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20004. Retz Funeral Home.

Mason City Globe Gazette - Iowa
September 12, 2012