March 28, 2024

Eugene Jensen

Creston

Eugene A. Jensen, 89, of Creston, formerly of Fontanelle, died peacefully in his home, Monday, June 1, 2020, just days before what would have been his 90th birthday, with his wife of 64 years, LaVonne, at his side.

Celebration of life graveside services were held 10:30 a.m., Saturday, June 6, 2020, at the Fontanelle Cemetery with military rites. The Steen Funeral Home in Fontanelle is in charge of all arrangements.

Eugene (Gene) Arthur Jensen was born June 14, 1930, in rural Fontanelle to John and Margaret (Jacobs) Jensen. Gene was known to be a soft spoken man with a big heart. He accepted Christ into his life and was a member of the Gospel Chapel in Greenfield.

Eugene grew up on his family farm. He graduated from Fontanelle High School with the class of 1948. During the Korean conflict he was enlisted into the U.S. Army, 1952 and 1953, serving his country in Germany in a tank brigade. Upon returning home he farmed, raised livestock and milked cows. On May 27, 1956, he was united in marriage to LaVonne (Huff) in Greenfield. They settled into married life on a farm north of Fontanelle.

Eugene worked at the Fontanelle Farmers’ Co-op for 27 years, retiring in 1992. After retirement he worked part time at Rolling Hills FS in Canby, pulling anhydrous tanks to and from farm fields and designed a new home and moved to town. His love was rebuilding tractors. Not in the standard way, but in his vision.

He also had a love of building and flying scaled replicas of planes. One of his proudest moments was obtaining his private pilot’s license and joining the ADCO Flying Club, flying Cessna airplanes. He also built a Pietenpol replica airplane that he named “Fred” and donated it to the Iowa Aviation Museum.

Gene also had a way with tools building many clocks, boxes and scaled tractors, airplanes and trucks out of wood. May 21, 2019, Gene took an Honor Flight to Washington D.C. He was amazed by the number of people that came out to cheer them on and the show of flags.

Eugene was preceded in death by his parents John and Margaret Jensen, in-laws Sam Huff and Alice Emory, brothers-in-law Morris Huff and Clifford Huff, grandson Zach Nagengast.

Left to cherish his memory are his wife LaVonne Jensen; son Mark Jensen (Evelyn); daughter Ronda Katzer (Jerry); his brothers Laurence Lakewood, Colorado, Rolan (Marilyn) of Fontanelle, Gary (Lillie) of Des Moines; sister Marjorie Westphal of Fontanelle; brother-in-law Marion Huff; sister-in-law Delorse Huff; eight grandchildren: Jeff Nagengast (Lisa) of Louisville, Kentucky, Chris (Linda) of Killeen, Texas, Elisa (Josh) Peppers of Des Moines, Luke McKinney of Kansas City, Missouri, Nathan (Jennifer) Katzer of Cummings, Sam (Krista) Katzer of Ovid, Michigan, Destiny Jensen of Lynchburg, Virginia and Brian Katzer of West Des Moines; 12 great-grandchildren; extended family Randy and Elaine Hochstatter, family and many other relatives and friends.