Obituary of John Henry Kruse

John H. Kruse, 76, of Petersburg, Iowa died Sunday, January 31, 2010 at Mercy Medical Center, Dyersville, Iowa. Friends may call from 1 - 9 p.m. Friday, February 5, 2010, at Kramer Funeral Home in Dyersville, Iowa where a parish scripture service will be held at 4 p.m. and a Knights of Columbus Rosary will be recited at 7 p.m. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, February 6, 2010 at SS. Peter & Paul Catholic Church, Petersburg, Iowa with burial in the church cemetery. Officiating will be Rev. Phil Kruse with Rev. John O'Connor concelebrating. John was born on April 22, 1933, in Petersburg, Iowa, the son of Elmer and Louise (Loecke) Kruse. He married Donna Weber on June 14, 1955, in Colesburg, Iowa. Together they loved farming near Petersburg on the Kruse home farm. They were awarded the Distinguished Family Farmer of the Year by the Delaware County Dairy Association in 2007. Second to his family and his faith, farming was his passion. John loved to work the land and take care of livestock. He was the President of K&K Dairy, Inc., an enterprise he shared with his wife, son and daughter-in-law. He loved to dance and listen to Polka music every Sunday. He loved his grandchildren and made them laugh and smile. Playing cards and visiting with the neighbors were his favorite pastimes. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus Council 1734. Survivors include his, wife, Donna, 8 children: Barbara (Martin) Pape of Olathe, KS, Sharon (Kerry) Ungs of Clearwater, FL, Phyllis (Dave) Blech of Bellevue, IA, Ellen (Neil) Kramer of New Vienna, IA, Amy (Matt) Mescher of Dyersville, IA, Jill (Paul) Manternach of Clear Lake, IA, Lisa (Mike) Krapfl of Dubuque, IA and Rob (Karla) Kruse of Petersburg, IA, and 29 grandchildren; 1 brother: Ken (Mona) Kruse of Milan, IL; brothers-and-sisters-in-law: Catherine Westhoff, Joan (Ray) Nurre, Joe (Betty) Weber, Connie Weber, Angeline (Dick) Haupert, Jim (Mary) Weber, John (Deb) Weber and Charlie Nurre. He was preceded in death by his parents, 1 brother, Arnold Kruse and 1 sister, Armella (Gilbert) Ries. Brothers-and-sisters-in-law: Alice Nurre and Roland Westhoff.