Wilton Lewis

Wilton Fern Lewis, 87, of St. Joseph, MO, formerly of Mt. Pleasant, IA, died Tuesday, October 5, 2010, at Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph. The family will receive friends 5:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M. Sunday, at the Meierhoffer Funeral Home Crematory in St. Joseph. Funeral services will be held at 1:00 P.M. Monday at the Faith United Church in St. Joseph. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, from 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. at the Olson - Powell Memorial Chapel, where a funeral service will follow at 2:00 p.m. A fraternal flag will presented by an honor guard from the Iowa State Patrol. Interment will be in the Salem East Cemetery. The family suggests memorial gifts to the Faith United Church Building Fund. Born on August 23, 1923, Wilton Fern was the son of Wilton Fern Lewis, Sr. and Frances Elota Danford Lewis. He graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School, Council Bluffs, IA in 1941. In June of 1942, he entered the U.S. Navy. He was a plank owner of the USS Card, he also served on the USS Anthedon, USS Cabot, and the USS Albamarle. He volunteered for submarine duty, and went to sub school in Groton, CT. He served on the submarine Kraken. He was in Freemantle Australia, Subic Bay, Casablanca SA and many other places. He was on the Kraken when the war ended in 1945. He was very proud of his service to our country. He attended the International Submarine Veterans of WWII conference in Freemantle, WA in 1995. Upon leaving the service he returned to Council Bluffs, met and married Geraldine Kruger. He worked on the railroad for a year and then joined the Iowa State Patrol in August of 1947 and served in Audubon, Carroll, Emmetsburg and Mount Pleasant, IA. He retired in June 1979. During his marriage to Geraldine, four children were born. Diana Mills, Waldorf, MD, Craig (Mary), Mount Pleasant, IA, Terry (Debra) Grinnell, IA and Vickee (Ted) Donoho, Mission Viejo, CA. Geraldine passed away of cancer in 1969. He married Trudy Smoot on February 14, 1970. In 1979 they moved to St. Joseph, MO due to Trudy's job transfer. He went to work as a special investigator in the Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney's office, and retired from there in May of 1994. Upon his marriage to Trudy, they became a blended family and added Trudy's two children, Joey (Dayna) Brandenburg, Palmyra, MO and Rhonda (Rick) Frandsen, Raytown, MO. There are ten grandchildren, Kellie (Dustin) Luurtsema, Jackie (Christopher) Harbour, Jocelyn (Jim) Jones, Jeffery Lewis, Matthew (Jocelyn) Donoho, Taylor (Michael) Williams, Alex Brandenburg, Abby Brandenburg, Christopher Frandsen and Faith (JR) Godard. There are five great grandchildren, Nicholas Luurtsema, Kayla, Tanner and Brayden Godard and Brynn Williams. He is preceded in death by his parents and his first wife, Geraldine.