OBITUARIES

Marlene Pandil, 91 of Humboldt, passed away Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, at the Long Term Care Unit of the Humboldt County Memorial Hospital in Humboldt. A celebration of life and inurnment will be held later this spring. Services have been entrusted to Lentz Funeral Home of Humboldt. www.lentzfuneralhome.com

Marjorie A. Whipple, 99, of Humboldt, passed away on Friday, Jan. 3, 2025 at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines.

Mavis Bowden, 95 of Humboldt, passed away Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, at the Humboldt County Memorial Hospital in Humboldt. Funeral Services were held on Saturday, January 11, 2025, at LifeGate Fellowship Church in Humboldt. Private family burial took place at Mt. Hope Cemetery in Humboldt. Services have been entrusted to Lentz Funeral Home of Humboldt. www.lentzfuneralhome.com
Mavis Jane Law Bowden, daughter of Bert and Grace (Hansen) Law, was born Jan. 21, 1929, near Mallard. Mavis graduated from Gilmore City High School where she was captain of the girls’ basketball team. Mavis was united in marriage to James Franklin Bowden on Dec. 31, 1950, at the Methodist Church in Gilmore City.

Janice Olson, age 90, formerly of Bode and Humboldt, passed away on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 at West Bend Health and Rehabilitation. A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Lentz Funeral Home of Humboldt is assisting the family.
Janice Louise Olson, the daughter of Earl Raymond and Aldean (Jacobson) Olson, was born Sept. 13, 1934 on a farm between Bode and Livermore. She graduated from Bode Community Schools in 1952. On Nov. 19, 1951, Janice was united in marriage to Marlyn Pflibsen with whom she had three children. Marlyn passed away Feb. 5, 1993. She married Ronald Parker Nov. 8, 1997.
Janice was a member of the St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Bode. She enjoyed travel which included riding her bike across the United States and traveling to all seven continents. She was known as the Lefse lady having made thousands of lefse. She skydived for her 60th and 80th birthdays. She was an avid quilter making numerous quilts and wall hangings.

Phyllis Louise (Tillman) Brinkman was born July 13, 1927, on a farm southwest of Clarion to Vera Mechem and Ray Tillman. Phyllis died Dec. 9, 2024, at the Meadows Assisted Senior Living Community in Clarion, at the age of 97. There were nine children in the Tillman family. Her sister Bonnie and brother Burgess survive her. Phyllis’ world view was shaped by the Great Depression, and she was a proud member of the Greatest Generation.
Phyllis graduated from Dows High School and attended Ellsworth College earning her teaching credentials. She taught in rural schools, including one-room schoolhouses, for six years. She substitute-taught or worked as a teacher’s aide in surrounding grade schools for decades.

Johnna Lee Lowder Friesth passed away at the age of 94 on New Year’s Day, 2025 after a short stay in the Simpson Health Center at Friendship Haven, Fort Dodge.
Services were held Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, at the Tompkins Celebration Center at Friendship Haven with Chaplin Denise Halverson officiating. Burial was in the North Lawn Cemetery. The Gunderson Funeral Home & Cremation Services are in charge of arrangements.
Johnna was preceded in death by her husband, Elliott; her parents, LeRoy and Grace (Schroeder) Lowder; and her siblings Mary Lowder Odell and William Lowder; great-grandson, Hayden Hellman (Rachel and Spencer Hellman). She is survived by her children Robert Friesth of Des Moines; Martha Butzier of San Jose, CA; Anne Starr (Bart) Clive; and Grant Friesth (Diane) West Des Moines. She is also survived by nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. She loved her family and enjoyed spending time with them.

Sandra Rae (Sayre) Osborn, 75, of Renwick, Iowa, passed away on Dec. 24, 2024, at the Iowa Specialty Hospital in Clarion. She had been a resident at Clarion Wellness and Rehabilitation Center in Clarion, since March of 2024.
Sandy was born to James and Phyllis Sayre on Feb. 23, 1949, in Tacoma, WA and was the third of what would become a family of 13 children. The family moved to the San Francisco Bay area, then El Paso Texas, and to Las Cruces, NM before settling at the farm in rural Boone, (just a few miles West of Ames). Being one of the older children in the family, Sandy helped to raise her younger siblings and had strong bonds with all of them throughout her life.

The funeral service for Marvin Nielsen was held on Monday, Dec. 30, 2024 at the United Methodist Church in Renwick. Burial followed the service at Swiss Cemetery in Renwick.
Marvin Ray ‘Marv’ Nielsen was born March 8, 1954 in Fort Dodge; the son of Earl and Shirley (Shelgren) Nielsen. He grew up in Gilmore City and graduated from Gilmore City-Bradgate High school in 1973.
Following high school, he began a career as a mechanic assistant at Eggrich Chevrolet in Humboldt before moving on to Dekalb Seed and eventually spending 35 years with Pioneer/Corteva in Renwick, from which he retired in 2020. In addition to his work, beginning in high school, Marv dedicated a significant amount of time to his Sunday paper route, very seldom missing his weekly route, diligently serving the community until his route ended in 2020.

It has pleased Almighty God to call from this vale of tears to Himself in Heaven, the soul of Ricky Lee “Rick” Hacker of Omaha, and formally of Humboldt, who died peacefully on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, at the Josie Harper Hospice House in Omaha, with his family by his side, after a courageous battle with kidney cancer that metastasized to his bones. He was 70 years young and full of life!
Rick’s visitation was held Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024 at Heafey Hoffman Dworak Cutler Mortuaries in Omaha, with entombment on Friday, Dec. 13 in Omaha National Cemetery, with Military Honors provided by Benson VFW Post 2503, Omaha. Funeral service followed at Lutheran Church of the Master (East Campus) in Omaha, with Pastor Chris Andersen, officiating. Congregational Hymns were, “The Strife Is Over, the Battle Done,” and “Eternal Father, Strong to Save,” (The Navy Hymn.) Pastor Kip Tyler sang, “The Lord’s Prayer,” with Becky Hallberg as Organist.

Betty A. Dyvig, 98, of Humboldt, passed away peacefully on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024, at the Rotary Senior Living nursing home in Eagle Grove. She is now very alive with her loving Savior Jesus Christ. A private family service will be held at a later date.
She is survived by her children, Dennis (Susan) Dyvig of Nairobi Kenya; Wayne (Renee) Dyvig and Ed (Sara) Dyvig of Humboldt; grandchildren, Jodie, Jeremy, Joshua, Hannah, and Jonah; nine great-grandchildren; brother James (Marilyn) Fevold; sisters-in-law Ardis Sansgaard and Mary Fevold; and many dear nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her husband Merlin; parents Bertin and Florence (Saboe) Fevold; brothers Lowell, Ardell, Robert, Rolland and David Fevold; and sisters Charlene (Bert Cran, Emmett Wiegert) and Mary (Kenny) Barrett.