Lenfred “Lenny” Wilbur John Phelps, 85, of Edgewood (formerly Colesburg), died Friday, August 9.
2024 at the Regional Medical Center in Manchester. He was born on July 21, 1939 on the family farm near
Colesburg, the sixth child of Merton and Bertha (Kauffman) Phelps. Lenny was raised and educated in the area.
graduated from Colesburg High School in 1957. After graduating, Lenny joined the United States Marines.
Corps and was honorably discharged due to a medical injury.
On January 21, 1961, Lenny married Janet Ridenour at the Methodist Church in Colesburg. Two
The couple had children. They lived together in Colesburg until they moved to Edgewood in 2015. Lenny
worked for John Deere in Dubuque, logging with his uncle Billy Walters and then began a 32-year career as a salesman
Insurance for Farm Bureau. His eloquence and love for all people made this a fulfilling job for him until his
Retirement. Lenny was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church and Constellation Lodge #67.
Lenny will be remembered for his quick wit, witty personality and deep love of family. He enjoyed
Watching sports, especially the Chicago Cubs, Iowa Hawkeyes and the Ed-Co Viking softball teams. He loved
Spending time outdoors – fishing, hunting, looking for morels and mowing grass. Most days you could
You can find him doing puzzles, playing cribbage or euchre, or delivering flowers.
monthly lunches with his classmates from 1957, the friends of the Greeley Meal Place and the weekly Sunset Breakfast
The club had a very special place in his heart.
Lenny would do anything for his family and has shown it time and time again. He was his family’s biggest supporter
and cheerleader, and his infectious smile showed his pride.
Survivors include his beloved wife Janet, with whom he was married for 62 years, his daughters and sons-in-law Julie (Bob) Hackbarth of
Colesburg and Shelley (Greg) Snook of Edgewood; grandchildren: Danielle (Adam) Thurn, Allyson and Katie Snook
all of Edgewood, and Tyler (Kristin) Hackbarth of California; great-grandchildren Gavin, Cora, Ace and Colter; one
sister Lila Bushaw of Florida; sisters and brothers-in-law Mary Ann Lov and Jackie (Dean) Sherman, all
Manchester and Patty (Scott) Clark of Strawberry Point; and many nieces and nephews.
Lenny’s parents Merton and Bertha and his parents-in-law Raymond and Virginia predeceased him.
Ridenour; and brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Lyle and Dorothy Phelps, Lillian and Clarence Handke, Leland and
Vivian Phelps, Lowell and Jeannine Phelps, Lois and Jack Hill and Ronald Bushaw.
Online condolences may be sent to www.leonard-mullerfh.com.
Funeral Service: 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, August 13, 2024, at Trinity United Methodist Church in Edgewood, Iowa,
under the leadership of Pastor Mike Jackson.
Visitation: 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., Monday, August 12, 2024, at the Leonard-Muller Funeral Home in Edgewood, Iowa.
Friends may also call the church one hour before the service on Tuesday.
Burial: Zion Cemetery, rural Colesburg, Iowa
