Ruth Joan (Pelz) Freese

Ruth Joan Freese, 86, of Manson, IA passed away early on March 30, 2023 at the Good Samaritan Center.   She was born on April 10, 1936 in Woodford County, IL to William E. and Amelia (Tjaden) Pelz. She married Eldon D. Freese on April 12, 1953 in Manson, IA. He passed away on December 6, 2020 in Manson, Iowa. 

Ruth moved with her family to Iowa when she was nine years old, when her father had the opportunity to farm his sister’s land after her husband passed away.  As young girls, Ruth and her sisters Bette and Shirley often sang together in church.  

On April 12, 1953, Ruth married Eldon Freese and the couple made their home in Manson, raising six children: Doug, Faye, Sandy, Peggy, Shannon, and Jeremy. The family lived in the “Little House,” moved to the “Big House,” then to the “New House,” later to the “Old House,” then “The Farm,” and finally, Ruth and Eldon retired to the “House in Town.”  Favorite pastimes over the years included cooking, baking, sewing, crafting, playing cards, and bird watching. She had a favorite hummingbird that returned each year she named “Flossie.” 

Ruth worked several jobs over the years including at a couple restaurants, the golf bag factory, and the Good Samaritan Nursing Home. Later she started working nights at the Calhoun County Care Facility, where she worked her way up to becoming its Administrator.  In this job she earned her Certified Nursing Assistant qualification, which also involved her getting her GED.  When the Facility closed, she worked for Dr. Paul Underriner in Rockwell City.   

Her biggest job though and most important to her was taking care of her family. Ruth sacrificed a lot for her children.  She spent most of her life caring for siblings first and then for her own family.  She was a member of Augustana Lutheran church.  Surviving are her sons Doug (Mickey) of Foley, MO, Jeremy (Rebecca McDonald) of Palo Alto, CA; daughters Sandy (Jim) Jones of Manson, IA, and Peg Freese of Roland, IA;  seven grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; brother LaVerne Pelz of Manson, IA; and sisters Shirley Ahlrichs of Storden, MN, and Verna Grant and Janet Anderson of Rockwell City, IA.  She was preceded in death by her husband of 67 years Eldon Freese, her parents, sisters Eleanor “Sis” Hess, Mary Meister, Lorene Leman, and Bette Van Gundy; brothers Morris “Bud,” Paul, and Harold Pelz; and daughters Faye Smart and Shannon Freese. 
 
A funeral service will be held on Monday, April 3 at Augustana Lutheran Church in Manson.  Visitation will be held from 4-6 on Sunday, April 2 at Larson-Weishaar Funeral Home in Manson. Interment will be in Rose Hill Cemetery, Manson.  Ruth Joan Freese, 86, of Manson, IA passed away early on March 30, 2023 at the Good Samaritan Center.   She was born on April 10, 1936 in Woodford County, IL to William E. and Amelia (Tjaden) Pelz. She married Eldon D. Freese on April 12, 1953 in Manson, IA. He passed away on December 6, 2020 in Manson, Iowa. 

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