Elaine Pudenz, age 97, of Carroll, died late Sunday evening, January 10, 2016 at St. Anthony Nursing Home in Carroll.
Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Friday, January 15, 2016 at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Carroll. The Celebrant will be Fr. Brian Feller. Con-Celebrant and Homilist will be Fr. Robert Gralapp. Music will be by Kate Cuddy, All Strings Attached, and St. Lawrence Choir with Jake Gute as cantor. Lector for the funeral mass will be Elaine’s son, Bob Pudenz. Gift Bearers will be Rachael Urban, Heather Merkl, Lauren Pudenz and Tracy Pudenz. Eucharistic Ministers will be Diane Hannasch and Shirley Molitor. Casket Bearers will be: John Pudenz, Ryan Bloomberg, Phillip Bloomberg, Brian Urban, Bradley Merkl, T.R. Pudenz, and Banks Merkl. The St. Anthony Nurses Alumni Association and the St. Anthony Hospital Auxiliary will form an honor guard for the funeral mass. Burial will be in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Carroll.
Friends may call at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll after 4:30 p.m. on Thursday where there will be a rosary at 5 p.m. and a Christian Wake Service at 6:30 p.m.
The casket will be moved to St. Lawrence Church at 9:30 a.m. on Friday where visitation will resume until time of the funeral mass.
Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for Elaine’s family at www.sharpfuneral.com.
Born on February 18, 1918 at rural Audubon, Elaine was the daughter of Walter and Katherine (Larsen) Andersen. She was educated in the Audubon School System and later graduated from St. Anthony School of Nursing.
On July 27, 1943, Elaine was united in marriage to Ervin Pudenz at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Carroll. The couple made their home in Carroll where Elaine was active as a nurse for over 50 years, and until her passing was the oldest living graduate of St. Anthony School of Nursing.
Elaine was active with the St. Anthony Hospital Auxiliary, St. Anthony Nurses Alumni Association, Carroll County Extension Board, as well as St. Lawrence Ladies Guild, and St. Lawrence Parish where she was a member for 55 years. Elaine’s greatest joy was spending time with her family.
Survivors include her son, Robert Pudenz of Carroll; her sister-in-law, Clair Pudenz of Carroll; Tracy Pudenz of Carroll; her grandchildren: John Pudenz, Heather Merkl of Georgia, Jay Pudenz of San Diego, Phillip Bloomberg, Rachael Urban, and Ryan Bloomberg, from the Omaha area; 11 great-grandchildren; as well as several relatives in the Elk Horn and Audubon area.
Elaine was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Ervin (EC), her daughter Barbara Bloomberg and her husband Phillip; her sister Dorothy Andersen; and her brother Walter Andersen.
