Norman 'Red' Speltz, 93
Norman "Red" Speltz, age 93 of Lawler, IA, died Tuesday, October 30, 2018, at his home.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 10:00 a.m. Saturday, November 3, 2018, at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Lawler, with Rev. Aaron Junge and Deacon Jim Zajicek presiding. Bob Huinker will be the organist and Cantor along with Sam Reicks and Deb Speltz, soloists. Mass servers are Josie Speltz, Brady Speltz, and Traejin Kell. Lector for the service is Joe Scally.
Interment will be held at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Cemetery, Lawler with Red's granddaughters serving as pallbearers. Honorary Pallbearers are Jack McKone, Don Blazek Sr., Pat Sheridan, John McEnnany, Ron Dunn and Gary Holst.
Friends may greet the family 3:00 - 7:00 p.m. Friday, November 2, 2018, at Our Lady of Mt Carmel Catholic Church in Lawler. Visitation continues an hour prior to the Mass at the church on Saturday. Hugeback Johnson Funeral Home in Lawler is entrusted with arrangements. Online condolences for Red's family may be left at hugebackfuneralhome.com
Norman "Red" Speltz was born November 11, 1924, in Rudolph, WI, the son of Ben and Marie (Mersch) Speltz. Norman's parents moved back to Iowa in 1930 and sharecropped on a farm five miles south of New Hampton. In 1942 the family moved to a 360-acre farm located five miles south of Lawler. On September 15, 1945, at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Lawler, he married Marie Woods of Lawler. To this union, 11 children were born.
Red started working at the Lawler Hardware Store soon after their marriage. Later his brother Gordon and himself purchased the Hardware Store where they were prominent Lawler businessmen until they retired in 1990.
Red was very involved with the town of Lawler all his life. Town council, parish council, volunteer fire chief, Knights of Columbus, boy scout leader, hot dog nights and fireworks at Junko Park, and "flooding" the Lawler Park in the wintertime for ice skaters. It seemed like his home phone was always ringing with someone in a crisis, and no matter what he was doing, he stopped and came to their aid. Yes, quite often it was a plumbing problem and sometimes Marie wished she could throw the phone out.
He worked hard and played hard, bowling, Lawler softball, hunting, fishing, boating, camping, cheering for the Cubs and Hawkeyes, water skiing, dancing with his beautiful wife, especially at the Inwood in Spillville and while celebrating many wedding anniversaries at Chips in Lawler. But always he came home, kissed his children, and put them to bed with a prayer on the way down the stairs reminding them that God is what is always the most important thing in our lives.
Survivors include his four sons, Steve Speltz, Joe (Mary) Speltz, Jim Speltz, and Tim (Deb) Speltz, all of Lawler; seven daughters, Connie (Paul) Deeny of Charles City, Cathy (John) Lechtenberg of Bettendorf, Norm (Dave) Creighton of Des Moines, Jenny (Bob) Mikota of Sigourney, Mary (Bryan) Mikota of De Pere, WI, Theresa (Brian) Jirak of Piedmont, OK, and Rose (James) Armstrong of Goodyear, AZ; 29 grandchildren, 47 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren; two sisters, Nora (Ray) Vobor of Cresco, Mary (Dennis) Buckendahl of New Hampton; two brothers, Gordon (Vonnie) Speltz of New Hampton, Cyril (Joan) Speltz of Minnesota; two sisters-in-law, Kay Speltz of Cedar Rapids, Corrine Speltz of Palos Verdes, CA.
He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Marie in 2012; three brothers, Ben, Arny, and Len Speltz; sister, Lorraine Ball.
