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Orlando Henry Leimer, 91, of Albert City went to be with his Savior on April 1, 2024.
Funeral services were held Monday, April 8, at Zion Lutheran Church in rural Storm Lake. Burial followed in Zion Lutheran Cemetery. Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake was in charge of the arrangements.
Orlando Henry Leimer, son of Henry and Golda (Wascher) Leimer, was born Sept. 6, 1932 in The Grove, Texas. Orlando was baptized at St. Paul Lutheran Church in The Grove, where his father served as a Lutheran school teacher and organist. In 1938, his father accepted a call to teach at a Lutheran school in Hanover, Kan., where Orlando started school. The family moved to rural Storm Lake in 1946, where his father was principal at Zion Lutheran School. Orlando was confirmed at Zion Lutheran Church that spring.
As he grew, Orlando enjoyed music. He started playing scales and chords on the piano at the age of three, and could be heard humming throughout the day. As a teenager, he was also interested in agriculture. He attended high school at nearby Albert City High School and graduated in 1950. After graduation, Olie, as his family and friends called him, worked as a hired hand for a number of area farmers. He also held several construction jobs, the most notable being to help build Zion’s new church building where congregants still worship today.
On Nov. 4, 1952, Olie enlisted in the United States Army. After basic training at Camp Roberts, Calif., Olie attended a secret school on POW camp survival and escape at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, Calif. There, he was trained to be captured and then communicate his location by way of a secret code contained in letters he wrote to a fictitious young woman back in Iowa. After a three-week boat ride across the Pacific, he arrived in Pusan, Korea, in June 1953. By the grace of God, Olie was never captured. After the Armistice was signed, he continued serving in Korea as a Supply Sergeant. He was honorably discharged with the rank of Sergeant First Class on Sept. 18, 1954, and considered his service to his country as a soldier in the Korean War among his most important accomplishments. In 2015, Olie was thrilled to experience the Honor Flight to Washington, D.C.
On Nov. 4, 1956, Olie was united in marriage to Lois Marie Rathke at Zion Lutheran Church. Olie and Lois lived a life of service to others, dedicating themselves to their Lord, their family and their work on the farm. They were blessed with 67 wonderful years together and raised four loving children: Michael, Joni, Julie and Jeffrey.
Olie was a life-long farmer, and studied agronomy in the early 1970s through The University of Missouri. He was an avid conservationist and he worked diligently to preserve the precious soil and water in Buena Vista County. He was recognized with many awards for his efforts including the 2015 Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Award, which was presented to him at the Iowa State Fair.
Olie was a devoted member of Zion Lutheran Church and served in many roles including chairman, treasurer, trustee, choir director and Synodical delegate. The role he is most likely to be remembered for, though, is his 56-year run as church organist. He served in that capacity from July 1967 to October 2023 and delighted in offering beautiful pipe organ music in praise of his Heavenly Father. Olie also served locally on the Farm Bureau board, Truesdale Co-op board and Albert City-Truesdale School Board. He enjoyed playing the tuba for many years in community bands in both Storm Lake and Albert City, and was a member of the Choraliers.
Olie enjoyed traveling and marveled at the beauty of God’s creation in the United States and abroad. He enjoyed playing games and cards with his family, and was a particularly tough opponent when playing his favorite, Sheephead (Schafkopf). He loved to tease, was quick to laugh, never turned down a bowl of ice cream, and often had a twinkle in his eye. He loved spending time with his family. Olie will be missed and remembered as a loving and devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend.
Left to cherish his memory are his wife, Lois of Albert City; children: Michael (Sharon) Leimer of Lee’s Summit, Mo.; Joni (Keith) Boese of Storm Lake; Julie (Douglas) Pals of Waukee; and Jeffrey (Mary) Leimer of Sheldahl; grandchildren: David Leimer, Stephen Leimer (Madison Courtney), Joshua (Hannah) Boese, Jeremy Boese (Carlina Quintero), Madeleine (Peter) Lashier, Elizabeth Pals (Jericho Baker), Violet Leimer and Gabrielle Leimer; great-grandchildren: Clara, Alice and Jacqueline Boese; and many other relatives and friends.
Olie was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Golda Leimer; father-in-law and mother-in-law, Paul and Irene Rathke; his brother Eugene Leimer, sisters-in-law, Lavon Richardson and Linda Leimer; brothers-in-law, Marvin Richardson and Bill Chambers; and nephews: Dennis Leimer, Randy Leimer and Mark Leimer.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be directed to the family, who will distribute financial gifts to their chosen charities.
