Robert J. Stock
Robert J. Stock, 90, died peacefully Tuesday, April 24, 2018 at Veterans Memorial Hospital, Waukon. Christian burial service was held Friday, April 27 at Zion United Church of Christ in Waukon with Pastor Bill Odermann officiating. Inurnment with military honors was in Oakland Cemetery, Waukon.
Robert James Stock was born April 12, 1928 in Waukon to Harvey Lewellyn and Mabel Geneva (Larson) Stock. He was baptized and confirmed at Zion United Church of Christ and attended grade school at Elk Country School before graduating from Waukon High School in 1945.
Bob enlisted in the U.S. Army and served on active duty from 1953 to 1955. He remained in reserve status until he was honorably discharged as a private first class in September 1961. He was stationed at Fort Bliss, El Paso, TX and maintained target drone aircraft used for testing guided missiles at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.
After serving his country, Bob returned home to the family farm east of Waukon. He married Irene Dorothea Meyer April 27, 1958 at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Caledonia, MN. Bob and Irene farmed together for more than 40 years milking cows and raising registered Chester White hogs and grain. Upon retirement from farming, Bob and Irene moved into Waukon in November 1994 but he maintained his interest in the farm and regularly went there to help with whatever he could.
Bob served on the Allamakee County Fair Board for more than 50 years and was president for a majority of that time. He was a life-long member of Zion UCC as well as a member of Allamakee County Farm Bureau, Pork Producer associations, and the Chester White Swine Records Association. He also served on the local Sesquicentennial committee, helped for many years at the annual Threshing Days events, oversaw the records and care of the rural Ebenezer Cemetery, and spent a lot of time helping with the upkeep and day-to-day operations of the buildings at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds.
Surviving Bob are his wife of 60 years, Irene; three daughters: Joan (Dennis) Behr of Madison, WI, Jane Regan of Harpers Ferry and Kaye Anderson of Rochester, MN; four sons: Lyle (Annette), Lynn (Melanie), Kent (Rhonda) and Mark (Stacy), all of Waukon; 11 grandchildren; seven step-grandchildren, one great-grandchild; two sisters: Ella Mae Dvorak of Waukon and Shirley Colson of Rochester, MN; and many nieces and nephews. Bob was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters, Eleanor Nolting and Marjorie Meyer; and a grandson, Chase Regan.
The family wishes to thank the staff at Thornton Manor, Lansing, who have provided care and support for Bob since March 2017, and the staffs at Veterans Memorial Hospital and Crossing Rivers Health Hospice during his final days.
Online condolences may be left at www.martinfunerals.com.
