Koch, Lucina Barbara

Lucina Barbara Koch, 89, of Marion, Iowa, formerly of Manchester, died Thursday, Jan. 21, 2010, at The Villages Assisted Living in Marion. Mass of Resurrection: 10:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 25, at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Manchester. The Rev. Ken Gehling will officiate as celebrant, with the Rev. Greg Bahl con-celebrant. Friends may call from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday at Leonard-Muller Funeral Home & Crematory in Manchester, where a Scripture service will be held at 6 p.m., and one hour before services Monday at the church. Interment will follow dinner at Calvary Cemetery in Ryan.

She was born March 4, 1920, in Calmar, the daughter of Bernard and Elizabeth (Bullerman) Gehling. Lucina was raised and educated in the area and graduated from Calmar Catholic High School. On Oct. 21, 1946, Lucina was united in marriage to George Koch in Calmar. In 1956, they moved to Ryan and after George retired in 1977, they moved to Manchester. George died April 7, 2003. Lucina moved to the Meadows Assisted Living, where she lived for three years, and then to The Villages in Marion.

Lucina was a homemaker and mother who loved her family, going to daily mass, cooking, and having coffee with the ladies. She was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Manchester, a past member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ryan, and a member of the Ryan American Legion Auxiliary.

Survivors include her six children, Mary Lou (Ward) Welch of Aiken, S.C., Tom (Linda) Koch of Ryan, Bob (Denise) Koch of Anoka, Minn., Kate (Ron) Ehlts of Hopkinton, Sheri (Roger) Dingbaum of Seneca, Wis., and Jim (Sue) Koch of Central City; 10 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

Lucina was preceded in death by her husband, George; her parents; and her three brothers, Roman, Greg and Walter Gehling.

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