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Merlon P. Kruckenberg
Merlon P. Kruckenberg
Lowden
Merlon P. Kruckenberg, 94, of Lowden, passed away on Thursday, June 23, 2022, at the Clarence Nursing Home. Funeral services will be held on Monday, June 27, at 3 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lowden with Pastor Daniel Redhage officiating. Burial will follow with military honors in Trinity Lutheran Cemetery. Visitation will be held at the church from 2 p.m. until service time.
Merlon was born on July 27, 1927, in Lowden, Iowa, the oldest of seven children of Paul and Selma (Licht) Kruckenberg. He was baptized into the Christian faith on Aug. 21, 1927, and confirmed at Trinity on April 6, 1941, where he was a lifelong member and where he served on various boards. He served as treasurer on the board of directors for the formation and building of the Lutheran Camp Io-Dis-E-Ca near Solon, Iowa. He also served as a district president of the International Walther League and as an agent and president of Wheatland Mutual Insurance Co. Merlon attended Trinity Lutheran School for eight years and graduated from Lowden High School in 1945. He farmed together with his brother Robert until moving to a new home in Lowden in late 2014. He enjoyed traveling and taking pictures, with several visits to Europe and eastern and western U.S. states. In 1951 during the Korean War, he was called to serve in the U.S. Army for two years and served in Korea, where he was attached to a Norwegian hospital unit near the battlefront of some of the most intense fighting of the war. He was a lifetime member of Lillis-Deerberg American Legion Post 366 of Lowden.
Merlon is survived by brother, Robert of Lowden; sister, Lorna (Waldemar) Bergdolt of Perryville, Mo.; 10 nieces and nephews; and 18 great-nieces and -nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Norbert and George; sisters, Roberta and Leanne and her husband, Leonard Sellnau; and Bonnie, wife of brother Norbert.
Memorials in Merlon’s name may be directed to Trinity Lutheran Church in Lowden.
Chapman Funeral Home has Merlon and his family in their care. Memories and condolences may be shared at www.chapmanfh.com.
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