In Memory of Gladys M. Bower

Gladys M. Bower, age 97, of Ida Grove, Iowa passed away on Saturday, November 10, 2018, at the Morningside Healthcare Community of Ida Grove, Iowa.

Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, November 17, 2018, at the First Presbyterian Church of Battle Creek, Iowa. Rev. Kevin J. Freese will officiate. Committal Services will follow in the Mount Hope Cemetery of Battle Creek, Iowa. A Visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Friday, November 16, 2018, at the Christensen-Van Houten Funeral Home of Battle Creek, Iowa. The Christensen -Van Houten Funeral Home of Battle Creek, Iowa is in charge of the funeral arrangements. Condolences may be sent online at www.christensenvanhouten.com

Gladys M. Bower, the daughter of Lee and Nellie (Hawn) Still, was born on September 12, 1921, in Ida Grove, Iowa. She graduated from Ida Grove High School with the class of 1940 and became a teacher at the Garfield Township country school in Ida county, where she met her husband Jay Bower.

Gladys and Jay were united in marriage on December 13, 1942 and celebrated sixty-two years of marriage. They farmed south of Battle Creek, Iowa, until their retirement in 1977.  Gladys was an active member of the First Presbyterian Church of Battle Creek and participated in United Presbyterian Women. She was a co-founder of the annual turkey supper and enjoyed making the turkey dressing every year.

Gladys was an avid gardener and enjoyed serving and giving away the fruits and vegetables from her abundant garden. No one ever left her kitchen hungry. Gladys and Jay enjoyed traveling all across the United States and Mexico in their motor home. They wintered in Texas for over twenty-six years, where they enjoyed golfing, playing cards, and socializing with friends from all over the United States.

She is survived by her two children and their spouses Kenneth and Beverly Bower of Battle Creek, IA and Janice and Steven Lorenzen of Omaha, NE; five grandchildren and nine great grandchildren; brother Marvin (Bette) Still; sister Audrey (Walter) Kent; and sister-in-law Doris Still.  

Gladys was preceded in death by her parents Lee and Nellie Still; husband Jay Bower; son Jim Bower (in 1968); brothers Everett, Howard, Ronald, Raymond, and Glen; sisters June Grieve, Lila (Leroy) Burk, and Doris (Garth) Lacey.