ORTH, Mary E. 1924-2011

ORTH

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 11/5/2022 at 17:22:31

Mary Ellen Orth
(June 22, 1924 – January 30, 2011)

Northwood Anchor, Northwood, Iowa, Wed., Feb 9, 2011, p.11)
Mary Ellen Orth, 86, of Ventura, died Sunday, Jan 30, 2011, at a vacation resort in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Services will be held on Saturday, Feb. 12, at 10 a.m. at the United Methodist Church, 1000 First Ave., North in Northwood, with Pastor Wendi Gillan officiating. Burial will take place at Sunset Rest Cemetery at a future time. A visitation with family present will take place at the Connor Colonial Chapel, 1008 First Ave. South, Northwood, from 6 until 8 p.m. on Friday, February 11. In lieu of flowers the family request memorials be directed to the Camp Tanglefoot Girl Scout Camp in Clear Lake or to the United Methodist Church of Northwood in her memory.
Mary Ellen was born in Albert Lea, Minnesota on June 22, 1924, the daughter of John S. and Ilah (Pease) Veenker. She was baptized in the Methodist faith. Mary Ellen lost her mother to pneumonia at the age of four. She attended kindergarten in California while living with her grandmother, Ella Pease. Mary Ellen then returned to Northwood with her father, where she completed grade school and graduated from Northwood High School in May 1942. As a young girl, Mary Ellen was active in girl scouting, chorus, girls glee club and band where she played the baritone. Mary Ellen was crowned Mason City’s North Iowa Band Festival Queen during her senior year of high school. From 1942 to 1944 Mary Ellen attended Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, majoring in Liberal Arts with an Associate of Arts Degree. She transferred to Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. Mary Ellen was employed at the Equitable of Iowa from 1946 to 1947 as Personnel Assistant then as Personal Director at the Des Moines Register and Tribune from 1947 to 1952.
On May 20, 1951, Joseph L. Orth of Des Moines and Mary Ellen Veenker were married at the Methodist Church in Northwood. The couple divorced in 1987. In 1960 Mary Ellen worked for the Iowa Department of Social Services. Later she served as Community Relations and Fund Development Director of the North Iowa Girl Scout Council, retiring in October of 1994. Mary Ellen was active in the community as a volunteer and served on the Board of Directors of the Mental Health Center of North Iowa. She was a member of PEO, Inter Se and Rotary International. She served on the Mason City Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Clear Lake Arts Council and on the North Iowa Ethnic Celebration Committee. She also served as a volunteer with RSVP. Upon her retirement Mary Ellen was awarded the “Thanks Badge” for her service to the North Iowa Girl Scout Council and was inducted into the Association of Girl Scout Executives (AG-SES) Hall of Fame for her 25 years of service [another whole column, not included].
Survivors include three children and their spouses, John (Molly) Orth of Minneapolis, Dr. Frank (Sandra) Orth of Columbus, Ohio, and Gretchen (Russ) Gondek of Sioux City; and two grandchildren, Hannah and Hunter Orth.