Irene (CORNELISON) RICE

CORNELISON, RICE, BENSON, FAHR, MARSHALL, GRAHAM, ANDERSON, BERIGAN, PETERSON, STANDISH, BYERLY

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 11/19/2010 at 14:09:21

OBITUARY - IRENE (CORNELISON) RICE

Funeral services for Irene RICE, age 100, of Corning, who died Sunday, November 8, 2009, at the Corning Nursing & Rehab Center, were held Thursday, November 12, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. at the Roland-Ritchie Funeral Home in Corning. Visitation were Wednesday from 3 to 7 with the family greeting friends from 5 to 7. Interment were held in the Nevinville Cemetery at 9:30 a.m. prior to services. Memorials can be directed to the Corning Public Library or the Retinitis-Pigmentosa Association. Memories can be shared with the family at www.ritchiefuneralhome.com. Arrangements were entrusted to Roland-Ritchie Funeral Home of Corning.

Irene (CORNELISON) RICE was born May 5, 1909, seven miles south of Creston on the Hy and Dry Road, the daughter of Clyde Joseph and Cora (BENSON) CORNELISON. She grew up attending rural school in Platte Township though the eight grade. She attended the Platte Center Church during her youth, where she was the Sunday School pianist for a while and also taught Bible School for one summer. She graduated from Creston Junior College where she graduated with the second graduating Class of that college in 1929. She went on to teach rural schools in Ringgold and Union Counties for two years and ten teaching the middle grades in the Nevinville Consolidated District for three years.

Irene met Max RICE on a blind date in the fall of 1930. The couple continued seeing each other for the next few years, while Irene continued to teach and Max was getting his farming business started. On June 13, 1934, the couple were united in marriage at the Presbyterian Parsonage in Kent by Reverend HUTCHINSON.

Max and Irene made their first home on the Jim KOSAR acreage in the west end of Nevinville, where they lived for ten years before moving to the John RICE farm in Nevinville, which they eventually purchased from Max's father. Max and Irene spent their entire married life of 55 years living in Nevinville, until the fall of 1988 when they purchased a property in Corning to live closer to their daughter and her family, Margaret and Whitey FAHR and Sonia.

Max and Irene were the parents of three daughters, Marijo MARSHALL of Griswold, Iowa; Sandra Jane GRAHAM ANDERSON of Eatonville, Washington, and Margaret Ruth FAHR of Corning.

Irene was a good seamstress and loved to sew. She was also a good cook and enjoyed baking goodies, especially cookies to share with her grandchildren. She especially enjoyed the pheasant hunters who came every fall to hunt.

During the years she lived in Nevinville, Irene was a faithful member of the Nevinville Methodist Church and the Ladies Aid Society until the church closed, and then transferred membership to the Orient Methodist Church. Upon their move into Corning she attended the Presbyterian Church. Irene continued worshiping there until her health no longer permitted her to attend.

After Irene moved to Corning she continued to go back to Nevinville to quilt with the Nevin Quilters and enjoy the good pot-luck dinners every Thursday. This is something she continued to do until she could no longer drive her car by herself. She truly enjoyed her quilting friends and their time spent together. She was also a member of the XYZ Club when it first organized and later joined the Jolly Neighbor Club.

Left to cherish Irene's memory are her three daughters, Marijo MARSHALL and husband Richard of Griswold, Iowa; Sandra Jane GRAHAM ANDERSON and her husband Karl of Eatonville, Washington; and Margaret FAHR and husband Whitey of Corning; seven grandchildren, Richard (Connie) MARSHALL of Pleasant Hill, Iowa; LeeAnn (Bill) BERIGAN of Blaine, Minnesota; John MARSHALL and Mike (Tracy) MARSHALL all of Lewis, Iowa; Sonia FAHR of Des Moines, Iowa; Joe GRAHAM and Ken GRAHAM, both of Eatonville, Washington; and Jeri Lyn GRAHAM PETERSON of Neilton, Washington; eleven great-grandchildren, Kristin and Daniel MARSHALL; Laura and Lisa BERIGAN; Kayla, Casey and Jessica MARSHALL; Nancy, Lindy and Harry PETERSON; Keith (Cheyenne) STANDISH; Chloe Ann GRAHAM; one great-great-grandson, Miles STANDISH; she also leaves a sister Helen SHADON of Richmond, Virginia and a sister-in-law Grace CORNELISON of Creston, Iowa; along with several nieces, nephews, friends and Lucille EYERLY, a 101 year old cousin.

Preceding Irene in death are her parents Clyde and Cora CORNELISON; two brothers John and George CORNELISON; her loving husband Max who died in 1989; a son-in-law Jerry GRAHAM; a granddaughter Sandra Kay GRAHAM; and a grandson-in-law, Harry PETERSON.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, November of 2010