Vernon Lampe

Vernon Lampe age 88 of Lawler, Iowa died Sunday, September 6, 2020, at MercyOne in New Hampton. Funeral services will be held 11:00 a.m Friday, September 11, 2020, at St. John Lutheran Church, Frederika, with Rev. Megan Graves presiding. Interment will be in the church cemetery. Friends may greet the family 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Thursday, September 10, 2020, at the Hugeback Johnson Funeral Home and Crematory in New Hampton. Visitation continues an hour prior to the services at the church on Friday. Vernon Conrad Lampe was born August 14, 1932, in Waverly, Iowa, the son of Herman and Esther (Peirsdorf) Lampe. He grew up on farms in the Lawler, Frederika, Plainfield and Waverly areas and attended country schools through the eighth grade. After he completed his education, he continued helping his family on the farm. In the early 1950s, Vernon enlisted in the U.S. Army, but he was smitten with his girl back home, and on Dec. 28, 1953, at St. John Lutheran Church in Frederika, he married Joanne Parson. They began their married life in Virginia, where Vernon was stationed with the Army, but when he received his honorable discharge, they moved back to Iowa. The family first lived on a farm near Lawler, moved to a farm in rural Fredericksburg and then moved back to Lawler after Vernon retired about 20 years ago. Vernon and Joanne had three children — Bruce, Barbara and Brenda — and they grew up in a family that had a hard-working, but fun, dad. Vernon was a child of the Great Depression, and from an early age, he learned the value of hard work and the importance of not wasting anything. His children had especially fond memories of the family’s fishing trips to Minnesota. After he retired from farming — let’s face it, Vernon and “retirement” didn’t go together — the Lampes delivered Winnebago motorhomes throughout the country and he also worked at nursing homes in New Hampton. Vernon and Joanne loved exploring new places when they delivered the motorhomes, and Vernon also was a big fan of tractor pulls. It was a pretty good day for him when he could sit in the stands and listen to the roar of the engines. In March 2016, his beloved Joanne passed away, and it hit Vernon hard; after all, they had been partners in a marriage that lasted more than 63 years. His passing saddens his family and friends, yet, they also find comfort in the fact that Vernon and Joanne are once again reunited. Survivors include one son, Bruce (Betty) Lampe; one daughter, Brenda (Arthur) Havens, all of Ionia; son-in-law, Ray Blong of Waucoma; four grandchildren, Gary Lampe, Cindy Lampe, Julie Zeien, Artie Havens; three great-grandchildren, Mackenzie, Abigail and Parker Zeien; one sister, Donna Mae Meyer of Fredericksburg. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife in 2016 and a daughter, Barbara Blong.