Shirley Ann Lamb

Shirley Ann Lamb

Cedar Rapids

Shirley Ann Lamb died unexpectedly on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. She was 92 years old. Mark was with her when she passed away.

She is preceded in death by her two older brothers Duane and Warren Klehfoth, her husband Terry Lamb and daughter Sheri Lamb. She is survived by her son Mark Lamb (Michelle), daughter Lynne Lamb, grandchildren Nicholas Lamb (Joanna) and Natalie Berryman (Trevor).

She was born and raised in Richmond, Indiana, the daughter of Elmer and Clara Klehfoth. Growing up, Shirley treasured the Klehfoth family’s annual summer vacation to sand-bottom Klinger Lake, Michigan, and her beloved Boston Terrier “Jingles”.

After Elmer passed away, Shirley and Clara moved to Cedar Rapids to live with Warren who was working at Collins Radio. She graduated from Franklin High School in Cedar Rapids in 1951 and subsequently received her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from the University of Iowa in 1955. She was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority and an avid Hawkeye sports fan.

After Shirley finished nursing training she moved with two of her classmates, Carol and Ruthie, to Burlingame, a suburb of San Francisco, California. Carol had a friend, Harry, who was an Air Force pilot stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii. On a routine flight to Travis AFB at Fairfield, California, Harry took the opportunity to look up Carol. Before he left, he told the trio that they needed nurses in Hawaii. Shortly thereafter Carol and Shirley boarded a Pan American airliner and flew to Honolulu. At the time they landed, Harry was out on a mission. In Harry’s absence, Shirley and Carol were greeted by two young Air Force pilots who presented each with the traditional Hawaiian flower leis and a kiss. One of the two pilots was Terry Lamb. Shirley married Terry, in a double wedding at the Officer’s Club at Hickam Air Force Base, Honolulu Hawaii on March 23, 1957.

After serving in Hawaii at Hickam AFB for 3 years, Terry was transferred to Strategic Air Command at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas. After he was honorably discharged in October 1958, Shirley and family moved to Ames, Iowa, where they lived in married student housing at Pammel Court. Terry finished his education on the GI Bill at Iowa State with a degree in Electrical Engineering. In the summer of 1960, Terry got a job at Collins Radio in Cedar Rapids and the family temporarily moved back in with Warren.

Shirley and Terry subsequently built a house in Marion, Iowa, in the Linn-Mar school district in 1961. When the children were old enough to take care of themselves, Shirley went back into the workforce and taught Licensed Practical Nursing at St. Luke’s Hospital.

In 1977 Shirley and Terry built their dream home, a passive solar design on some acreage overlooking Lake Macbride in Solon, Iowa. After Sheri’s death, Shirley enrolled at Kirkwood Community College and took several courses in horticulture and landscape architecture. In addition to completing some pro-bono landscape design for the City of Solon, she kept herself busy at home building and maintaining a butterfly garden with a waterfall and small man-made pond.

Shirley enjoyed traveling the world with Terry, baking, cooking, sewing, gardening, but most of all, the annual summer vacation to Potato Lake, Minnesota, with extended family and friends. Shirley has been a member of First Lutheran Church since 1950.

A memorial service will be held at First Lutheran Church, 1000 3rd Avenue SE, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Friday, September 26, at 10:30 AM. Lunch will be served after the memorial. The service will also be live-streamed: https://firstlutherancr.org/. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to one of Shirley’s favorite charities: The Salvation Army or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.