Lois D. Runnels' Obituary
Lois Custis Runnels of Clinton, Iowa, passed away on October 21, 2012. She was born to Albertina Wilhelmina and Henry Custis on January 1, 1923, in Valley City North Dakota. ( She never liked being a New Year baby.) Her brother Kenneth was 1 ½ years older than she.
When Lois was three, the family moved to Woodward, Iowa, where she graduated high school in 1940. She graduated Buena Vista College in Storm Lake, Iowa, in 1945, after spending one year teaching in Laurens, Iowa, on a war certificate. She then taught in Tipton, Iowa. She came to teach school in Clinton, Iowa, in 1946, after meeting Howard Judd in a class at the University of Iowa. She was the girls’ physical education teacher. Robert Runnels was the boys’ physical education teacher. Robert was a great catch, not only for his personal qualities, but because he had a car. Robert and Lois were married in the First Methodist Church in Clinton on April 2, 1945. It was to be a small wedding before the Easter break, but the students found out and the Church was full of students.
Lois left teaching to raise her family, although she was an active substitute teacher. In 1967, she returned to teach seventh grade English at Gateway Junior High School. Although she was always an active member of Clinton’s volunteer community, she kicked into high gear upon retiring. She was a Red Cross volunteer, delivered mobile meals, delivered library books to shut-ins, organized theater and shopping bus trips to Chicago, and remained an active member of the Methodist Church. She was also a regular visitor to the riverfront, where she rode her bicycle, walked, and fed the ducks.
She is survived by her daughters Dee and Amy, Amy’s husband Bruce, and her beloved grandchildren, Kate, Joe and Jake. She is also survived by her brother Kenneth and his wife N.J., nieces and nephews, and her pug Frank.
Her husband of 61 years preceded her in death, as did two infant children.
Memorials may be made to the First United Methodist Church of Clinton, Iowa, for capital improvements, or to the family for the purchase of a memorial tree and plaque on the Clinton riverfront. Excess donations for the riverfront memorial will be given to the Church.
We will celebrate Lois’s life at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, October 27, 2012, at the First United Methodist Church in Clinton, with a gathering and luncheon following the service. The Clinton Chapel Snell-Zornig Funeral Homes & Crematory is assisting the family.
What’s your fondest memory of Lois?
What’s a lesson you learned from Lois?
Share a story where Lois' kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Lois you’ll never forget.
How did Lois make you smile?