John ASKELAND

ASKELAND, BERKENES, MALMIN, SKJAVELAN

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 9/7/2008 at 15:42:17

John Askeland

Visitation:
Friday, October 29, 2004
5:00 PM until 7:00 PM
Garry-Roberts-Murphy-Schaaf Funeral Home
207 Linn Street
Corwith, IA

Visitation:
Saturday, October 30, 2004
9:30 AM until 10:30 AM
St. John's Lutheran Church
Corwith, IA

Service:
Saturday, October 30, 2004
10:30 AM
St. John's Lutheran Church
Corwith, IA

John Askeland, 94, of 2303 160th Street, Corwith, died Tuesday (October 26, 2004) at the Hancock County Memorial Hospital in Britt. A funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, at St. John Lutheran Church in Corwith with the Reverend Kay Wold officiating. Burial will be in the Corwith Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday at the Garry-Roberts-Murphy-Schaaf Funeral Home in Corwith and will continue one hour prior to the service Saturday at the church. Memorials may be directed to St. John Lutheran Church in memory of John Askeland.

Johannes “John” Askeland was born March 19, 1910, near Sandnes, Norway, the eldest child of Bertel and Inga Elisabeth (Malmin) Askeland. He was baptized and confirmed in the Lutheran faith at Hoiland Church. He attended Malmheim School near Sandnes, Norway. In 1929, at the age of 19, he came to the United States of America with his first cousin, Erling Malmin. He was sponsored by and worked for his uncle Ed Askeland on a farm near Humboldt, Iowa. On January 1, 1938 John married Gladys Berkenes at Eagle Grove, Iowa. The first 10 years of their marriage they farmed near Clare, Iowa. In 1951 they moved to a farm near Corwith where they raised their two sons.

John’s love and livelihood was farming. He was blessed with a good mind and health to be able to remain on his farm until recently hospitalized. He was a “jack of all trades” and self-taught man. He enjoyed reading, restoring old tractors and cars, visiting and telling stories, photography and being an interpreter for Norwegian visitors. His pride and joy were his grandchildren, nieces and nephews. John and Gladys enjoyed nine trips to his homeland, Norway, and entertaining family and friends from Norway at their home in the U.S. He was a member of St. John Lutheran Church where he had been active in all aspects of church life from building projects, to ushering and quilting. He was proud of his affiliation with the Sons of Norway Lodge.

John is survived by his sons, Gerald and his wife, Jane, of Mason City and Bernard and his wife, Annette, of Wesley; his grandchildren, Erik of Wake Forest, North Carolina, Bret of West Des Moines, Iowa, Brandon and Krista of Clear Lake, Iowa; a brother-in-law, Art Berkenes and his wife Johanna, of Eagle Grove; many nieces and nephews in Norway and the United States. He was preceded in death by his wife Gladys who passed away December 23, 2003; his parents; and sister, Sigrid Skjavelan.

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