Harvey Guenther
Harvey Guenther
Harvey E. Guenther, 92, of Fredericksburg, died Thursday, March 7, 2019, at Community Memorial Hospital in Sumner.
Funeral services were held 10:30 a.m., Monday, March 11, 2019, at St. Peter Lutheran Church-Richfield, rural Sumner with Rev. Caroline Engelbrecht officiating. Burial followed at Rose Hill Cemetery in Fredericksburg. Visitation was held from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Sunday, March 10th at Becker-Milnes Funeral Home in Sumner and for one hour preceding services at the church on Monday. Memorials may be made in Harvey’s name to Community Memorial Hospital in Sumner or Cedar Valley Hospice. Online condolences may be left at www.beckermilnesrettig.com Harvey Elwood, son of William and Ella (McIntyre) Guenther was born April 3, 1926, at the family’s home, rural Hawkeye. He was baptized at the United Methodist Church in Hawkeye and would later be confirmed at St. John Lutheran Church-Buck Creek, rural Sumner. Harvey graduated from Sumner High School in 1945.
On August 24, 1948, he was united in marriage with Elverna Judisch at St. John Lutheran Church-Buck Creek. To this union two children were born, Darwin and Linda. Harvey worked with his father-in-law, Henry Judisch at Henry’s farm for several years and also assisted at Stanley Donat’s farm. The family would move to an acreage north of Sumner, prior to moving to Fredericksburg in the early 1970’s. Harvey worked for many years at the Fredericksburg Produce (which would later become Fredericksburg Co-Op), before retiring in the late 1980’s. In retirement, he assisted his son-in-law, Wayne Schroeder at Schroeder Feed & Seed. Harvey was a member of St. John Lutheran Church-Buck Creek for many years and has been a member of St. Peter Lutheran Church-Richfield for the last twenty-four years. He enjoyed volunteering his time to helping those in need whether it be driving friends to local Fredericksburg Athletic Events or delivering meals. Harvey also enjoyed fishing, camping, coffee club, playing cards (especially Schafkopf), horse shows (would fill in as a judge at Chuck Wagon Races), the Chicago Cubs, and was an avid Iowa Hawkeyes fan.
Harvey is survived by his two children, Darwin (Jeanne) Guenther of Des Moines and Linda (Wayne) Schroeder of Hawkeye; four grandchildren, Dana (Chris) Steele of Norwalk, Dawn (John) MacGregor of Le Mars, Timothy (Nicole) Guenther of Vinton, and Cary (Josh) Solheim of Cedar Rapids; eight great-grandchildren, Liza and Hayden Steele, Sebastian and Hudson MacGregor, Quinton and Alex Guenther, and Connor and Mason Solheim; sister-in-law, Neoma Guenther of Dundee; and several nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, his wife, Elverna who died August 9, 1995; two brothers, Lester and Robert Guenther; and two sisters, Wilma Guenther and Florence Niedert, preceded him in death.