Obituary

Bernard T. Meiners, 95 of Coon Rapids, died Monday, September 1, 2025 at Thomas Rest Haven in Coon Rapids surrounded by his family.

Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m., Friday, September 5, 2025 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Dedham. The Celebrant will be Fr. Patrick Behm, assisted by Deacon Louis Meiners. Music will be by Jane Heithoff and the St. Joseph’s Choir. Lector for the Funeral Mass will be Jill Klein. Gift Bearers will be Talina Haskins, Caitlin ThongVahn, and Amanda Meiners. Casket Bearers will be Brian Meiners, Ben Meiners, Aaron Meiners, Lucas Meiners, Jason Nees, Mike Nees, Ryan Schultes, Tyler Schultes, Jordan Schultes, Justin Meiners, and Trenton Meiners. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Dedham with military honors conducted by the Dedham American Legion.

A visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll with a rosary at 7 p.m. The casket will be moved to St. Joseph’s Church on Friday morning where additional visitation will be from 9:30-10:15 a.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be left at the funeral home or the church for a later designation.

Funeral arrangements are under the guidance of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for Bernard’s family at www.sharpfuneral.com.

Denis Alspach, age 86, formerly of Carroll, died Sunday, September 10, 2023 at Perry Lutheran Home – Kings Garden Campus in Perry, Iowa.

A Memorial Service will be held at Noon on Wednesday, September 27, 2023 at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll. Burial will follow in the Merle Hay Memorial Cemetery in Glidden, Iowa.

Visitation will begin at 11 a.m. and continue until the time of the memorial service.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Perry Lutheran Homes. A non-profit senior facility where Denny resided the final months of his life to be closer to his children. In his heart, the Carroll area was always his home.

Funeral arrangements are under the guidance of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for Denny’s family at www.sharpfuneral.com.

On March 6, 1937, Denis “Denny” Alspach was born at St Anthony hospital, in Carroll IA. Denny was the second son of Joseph and Ruth (Toms) Alspach. He left us on September 10, 2023 at the age of 86.
In 1960, Denny was united in marriage to Dorothy Billmeier and from this union, he was blessed with 4 children. He loved family gatherings which almost always included some type of game whether shooting clay pigeons, Farkle, or most recently, his favorite game, Connect Four.

Denny built a reputation in the Carroll area for his honest, dedicated work ethic. He worked as head mechanic at Bill Burgess Motors and was in charge of the dealership service floor until he made the decision to open “Denny’s Phillips 66”, a full service gas station, in the late 1960’s. Juergens Produce was a regular customer and offered him a position as their own, fulltime mechanic. The maintenance shop was built for him and he continued to maintain their fleet until he retired. Never being able to sit still, he could be seen playing bingo or volunteering at New Hope Village Bargain Shoppe.

Denny is survived by his four children (and spouses): Sheila (Tom) Mahan, Connie Brock, Pam (Pete) Peterson, and Ron (Jill) Alspach; ten grandchildren: Beth Bailey, Joshua Prine, Kristin Prine, Amanda Bartheld, Andrew Brock, Dylan Lawler, Kenny Hansen, Jared Hansen, Bliss Weitl, Alex Gilland and two step-grandchildren: Katie Carson and Colton Carson; and twenty-six great grandchildren.

Denny is also survived by his siblings; Lea (Lyle) Hoffman, Jeanette Heilman, George Alspach, John Alspach, Carolyn Alspach, Nancy (Daryl) Heckathorn, Peter Alspach, and Jerry (Jean) Alspach; dozens of nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, his twin brother (at birth), brothers Joseph (Bud) Alspach, William (Bill) Dorman, and sister Marilyn Stone; in-laws and nephews/nieces.

Church Service

Friday, September 5, 2025 10:30 a.m.
St. Joseph’s Catholic Church
420 3rd Ave, Dedham, IA 51440

Burial

Sharp Funeral Home ~ Carroll, Iowa

226 W. 8th St., Carroll, IA, 51401

712-792-4301

[email protected]

https://www.sharpfuneral.com

Church Service

Thursday, September 4, 2025
5:00 – 7:00 p.m. – Rosary at 7:00 p.m.
Sharp Funeral Home – Carroll
226 W. 8th St, Carroll, IA 50401

Friday, September 5, 2025
9:30 – 10:15 a.m.
St. Joseph’s Catholic Church
420 3rd Ave, Dedham, IA 51440

Obituary

Born March 31, 1930, he was the son of Bernard and Catherine (Rotert) Meiners. He grew up in the Dedham-Willey area and graduated from St. Mary’s School in Willey in 1943. He entered the U.S. Army July 8, 1953 and was stationed at Wurzburg, Germany. He was discharged on May 20, 1955.

Bernard married Dolores S. Halbur on January 24, 1956 at St. Augustine Catholic Church in Halbur. After being married Bernard and Dolores lived 3 miles north of Dedham for two years. In 1958, they moved to the farm they purchased four miles east of Dedham. They were the parents of six children: Daniel, Dale, David, Cathleen, Christine, and Gary. Dolores passed away January 21, 1978.

On August 9, 1980, Bernard married Marita Eickman at Annunciation Catholic Church in Coon Rapids. In May 2011, Bernard and Marita moved off the farm into the town of Coon Rapids, Iowa. They made their home there for 14 years. In April 2025, they moved to Parkview Assisted Living in Coon Rapids, Iowa.

During Bernard’s lifetime, he farmed, had a dairy operation, had a cow/calf operation, and raised hogs. He retired in 1992. He is a current member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church of Dedham, a member of the Dedham American Legion Post #20, and a member of the Manning VFW. In July 2001 Bernard, being a Korean Veteran, had the privilege to go on the Military Honor Flight to Washington DC. Just recently he was presented with a Quilt of Valor at Thomas Rest Haven, and at the age of 95 he still enjoyed attending the Legion meetings.

Bernard loved spending time with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Holiday gatherings were a treat for him to get to see most of them at one time. In his spare time Bernard enjoyed gathering black walnuts in the fall and kept busy shelling the walnuts during the winter. Family and friends benefited from the fruits of his labor.

Bernard is survived by his wife of 45 years, Marita Meiners; his children, Dale (Mary) Meiners of Carroll, David (Jane) Meiners of Varna, IL, Cathleen (Larry) Nees of Coon Rapids, Christine (Mark) Schultes of Dedham, and Gary (Barb) Meiners of Manson; 19 grandchildren; 32 great grandchildren with 2 more coming in October; a brother Anthony (Colleen) Meiners of Carroll; 2 sisters, Catherine Wittrock of Carroll and Marcella Naberhaus of Carroll; his sisters-in-laws, Margaret (Tom) Denker of Manning, and Pat (Joe) Goblirsch of Jesup. He is also survived by Marita’s children, Richard (Sandy) Eickman of Omaha, NE, James (Joni) Eickman of Dyer, TN, Dave (Joan) Eickman of Macungie, PA, Randy (Rose) Eickman of Coon Rapids, Nancy Eickman and Jim Springer of Warren, NJ, and Karen Heck of Delano, MN, and many nieces and nephews.

Bernard was preceded in death by his first wife Dolores S. Meiners; a son Daniel J. Meiners; Marita’s son Bill Eickman; his parents Bernard and Catherine Meiners; his brothers John (Margaret) Meiners, Albert (Frances) Meiners; his brothers-in-law Clarence Wittrock, Norbert Naberhaus, Cletus (Emaline) Halbur, Norman (Inez) Halbur, Larry (JoAnn) Halbur; his brother-in-law, William (Marie) Halbur; Dolores’ parents, William and Frances Halbur, and stepmother-in-law, Josephine Halbur.

To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Bernard T. Meiners, please visit our Sympathy Store.

Tribute Wall

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Lit a candle in memory of Denis Alspach

Patty Trucke – September 14 2023 at 3:33 PM

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Sending our deepest condolences to Uncle Dennis’s family. We will keep you in our thoughts and prayers. Love, Debra Blackburn-Siegrist

Debra Siegrist – September 14 2023 at 6:49 PM

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