Marilyn Peterson

Marilyn Marie Juhl was born on February 13, 1931 to Walter and  Linnea (Svensen) Juhl. She had one brother, Eldon Juhl. She was baptized into the Christian faith on April 19, 1931. Marilyn graduated from Dana Consolidated School in 1948 where she was active in basketball and music. She then attended Iowa State College where she was a member of Delta Zeta Sorority and the Iowa State Singers.

On August 25, 1950 she was united in marriage to Harold Martin Peterson at Zion Lutheran Church in Ogden, Iowa.  In rural Dana, they raised two children, Nancy Linnea and Steven Carl. 

In her early adult life as a homemaker, Marilyn kept busy raising her small children, tending to her garden, teaching Sunday School, and helped support Harold’s farming career. When the kids were older, she began working at Krieger’s Greenhouse and later Fudge’s Flowers where her knowledge and love for flowers and gardening continued to grow. If you needed to know anything about flowers, she was the one to ask. 

Over the years, Marilyn enjoyed dancing with Harold, playing bridge with her lifelong friends, sewing, baking (her specialties were cinnamon rolls and her smokey pancakes) and china painting. She had an amazing gift of painting beautiful pieces that she shared with family and friends and sold at local craft shows. She was a lifelong learner and meticulous note taker, always perfecting her skills. She loved to listen to music and sing.  Marilyn and Harold were also avid Cyclone fans attending football and basketball games. 

Marilyn cherished her faith in God and her family most in life. Those were her greatest loves. She supported her family in all that they did, being their biggest cheerleader. She loved to welcome people into her life.  If you were a friend of her family, you were her friend, too. Her faith in God was her truest love.  She kept many Bibles and journals documenting her favorite and most meaningful verses and prayers.  Every meal began with prayer. She was an active member of Trinity Lutheran Church for many years developing a deep connection to her church family. She attended church every Sunday and was a member of LWML.  There is no doubt she was welcomed into Heaven by her Lord and Harold was the first to take her hand and ask her to dance. 

Marilyn passed away on September 10, 2021 at Greene County Medical Center at the age of 90. She was preceded in death by her husband Harold, her parents, and her brother Eldon.  She is survived by her daughter Nancy (Mike) Gardner; son Steve (Cory) Peterson; grandson Andy (Lisa) Gardner; granddaughter Amy (Doug) Timmerman; granddaughter Angie (Matt) Lockey; grandson Tyler (Allie) Peterson; and nine great grandchildren: Lucas and Adam Gardner, Taylor and Spencer Timmerman, Easton and Riley Lockey, and Lennon, Briar and Rell Peterson; other relatives and many friends.

Funeral services were arranged by Slininger-Schroeder Funeral Home in Jefferson on Wednesday, Sept. 15. Honorary bearers were: Andy Gardner, Amy Timmerman, Angie Lockey, Tyler Peterson, Taylor Timmerman, Lucas Gardner,  Adam Gardner, Spencer Timmerman, Lennon Peterson, Easton Lockey, Riley Lockey, Briar Peterson, Rell Peterson