Joseph Greif

JOSEPH GREIF

Coggon

Joseph Paul Greif, 83, of Coggon, passed away Dec. 4, 2014, at his winter home in North Port, Fla., after a long illness. A funeral Mass will be Thursday, Dec. 11, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Stephen's Catholic Church in Central City, with a one-hour visitation before the mass at the church. Burial will be in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Coggon. Friends may call Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 3 to 8 p.m. at Murdoch Funeral Home, Marion, where a vigil Scripture service begins at 2:30 p.m.

Survivors include his wife of 59 years, Jean; seven children: son, James (Sharon) of Monticello, and their children, Peter, Nicholas and Kathleen; son, Jerry of Vinton, and his son, Jonathon Leonard; daughter, Jane Gephart (Donald) of Manchester; son, Joseph Jr. of Coggon, and his children, Adam (Holly), Richard (Breanna), Benjamin, Ross and Josetta; son, William (Cammie) of Monticello, and their children, Brenton (Katie) and Dustin (Kaitlin); son, Robert of Fort Myers, Fla.; and daughter, Debra Zumbach (Louis) of Coggon, and their daughters, Brandy (fiance Michael Meisheid), Taylor, Allison and Rachel; five great-grandchildren, Cody, Kaden, Coulter, Abigail and Ethan; two great-grandchildren on the way; three brothers, Earl (Velda) of Orion, Ill., Arnold (Betty) of Central City and Louis (Marcene) of Cedar Rapids; two sisters, Teresa (Dick) Stevens of Cedar Rapids and Jeanette Freese of Monticello; and four sisters-in-law, Betty Maher (Dick) of Fairfield, Conn., Elodie Greif of Cedar Rapids, Rita Greif of Marion and Lois Greif of Coggon.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Emil and Josephine Greif; stepmother, Renny Greif; in-laws, Walter and Mae Zieser; a son, John Michael; brothers, Robert, Loras, Fay and John; a sister-in-law, Alvina Greif; and two brothers-in-law, John Hollingsworth and Duane Freese.

Joe was born Aug. 29, 1931, in Hopkinton, the son of Emil and Josephine Greif, and graduated from Coggon High School in 1948. He married Jean Zieser on May 25, 1955, at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Winthrop. Joe farmed near Coggon, and was a strong role model for his children and grand-children. He was past president of Linn County Farm Bureau and a Boulder Township trustee.

Joe was a Patz dealer for 30 years. He was a member of St. Stevens Catholic Church, Central City, and a member of the Knights of Columbus. Joe was a boating enthusiast, and created years of memories at their cabin on Lake Delhi. He taught all of his children to waterski, and to work hard and play hard. Joe's greatest joy was spending time with his family.

He loved fishing, hunting, mowing the lawn, attending the Indy 500, traveling and agriculture.

He will be remembered for his passion for life and his strong faith in God.

A memorial fund has been established for the Prairieburg Fire Department and Linn County Fair.

Please share a memory of Joe at www.murdoch funeralhome.com under obituaries.