Sarrah Lenora Marolf Obituary's Obituary
Sarah Lenora Kint Marolf was born to Ira Ralph and Winnie May (Ellis) Kint on June 27, 1920, in Hutchinson, Kansas, where her father was working for the railroad. Lenora passed away on January 25, 2015, at the age of 94 years, 6 months, and 29 days at the Corydon Nursing & Rehab Center. Her faith in God and her desire to help others were her focus throughout her life. After moving with her parents and sister back to Clinton Township in Wayne County, she attended country schools and graduated from Allerton High School in 1938. After her father's accidental death that year, she helped her mother care for her three younger brothers and taught in country schools in southern Wayne County. After World War II started, at the urging of Dr. and Mrs. McCall of Allerton, she enrolled at the Iowa Lutheran Nursing School in Des Moines and graduated in 1944 as a Registered Nurse. In early 1945, after her younger brother Eldon was wounded at Iwo Jima, she cared for him for 18 months at a hospital in San Diego, California. Upon returning to Iowa in 1946, she worked for Dr. Doss at his clinic in Leon. When the new Wayne County Hospital was built in Corydon, she began working there as a RN and continued until her retirement in 1985 after 30 years of service. On April 10, 1949, Lenora married William Dale Marolf at the United Presbyterian Church in Allerton. They purchased a home in Clio where they welcomed their children Ronald Dale, David Mark, and Martha Jane. They were members of the Clio Methodist Church and she was President of the Clio United Methodist Women for many years. She also was a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Wayne County Hospital Auxiliary, the Allerton Alumni Association and she volunteered at the Prairie Trails Museum. Lenora and Dale helped reorganize the Clio Cemetery Association in the 1950's and always had an interest in its care. She was named a 'Good Neighbor of the Month' by the Times Republican. Lenora moved into a Corydon Senior Housing apartment in January 2010 and sold her home in Clio. In November 2010, she became a resident at the Corydon Nursing & Rehab Center. Lenora cared for others all of her life. Her bedside manner and knowledge gave comfort to all she came in contact with. The doctors and staff where she worked respected her abilities and professionalism. She was proud that Martha followed her into nursing. After retiring, she worked diligently through her church helping others, including a trip to Louisiana to help with the recovery from Hurricane Andrew. Even after entering the Care Center, she still felt obligated to help care for other residents. Lenora and Dale enjoyed traveling and after his death she enjoyed several bus tours to different areas of the country with Irene and Karl and made many lasting friends. She loved babysitting for grandchildren and attended many of their activities. She liked to play the piano and was thrilled with her grandchildren's musical talents and disappointed that her children had few. She treasured her classmates from Iowa Lutheran and Allerton High School and stayed in contact with them throughout her life. She liked to quilt and made them for all of her grandchildren. She collected bells from all over the U.S. and beyond, starting with the school bell she used in country school. Lenora always looked forward to family reunions and would work diligently cooking and planning for each one. She liked to bring up that she had 121 first cousins, and she kept in touch with many of them. She was always 'on the go' for something, whether it was for family, friends, or church, or just to go shopping. At 88, she drove her car into the bank and then missed a corner and hit a pallet of fence posts ('The wind must have blown the car over!'). She gave up her keys to her son, but she would still remark 'I would go get it myself, if I had my car!' She was an excellent cook and will be remembered for her noodles that she made for many church and family dinners and for her award winning pies at the Clio Festival. She would fuss over everyone at meals and make sure that her plate was filled last. In her late eighties, she was delighted to teach her granddaughters the secret to making noodles. Lenora was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Dale in 1983; her sister Irene Hursey, her brothers Garold, Eldie and Eldon, her sisters-in-law Betty (Eldie) Kint, Bernice Marolf, Marvel Marolf Myer, Maxine Marolf Lee and Betty (Dean) Marolf; her brother-in-law Karl Hursey; and twin great grandsons Kaydon and Myles Jackson. Lenora is survived by her children Ronnie and wife Pat of Clio, David and wife Heather of Manchester, and Martha Harlan of Marshalltown; grandchildren Melanie and husband Jason Rankin of Merriam, KS; Sarah and husband Marques Jackson of Boynton Beach, FL; Emily and husband Adam Blair of New Virginia, IA; SSgt. Ryan and wife Sgt. Danielle Marolf of Lakewood, WA; Evelyn Marolf of Mumbia, India; Ethan Marolf of Cedar Rapids, IA; Ellen Marolf of Springfield, MO; and Seth Harlan of Corydon; great grandchildren Abby and Mikayla Rankin, Olivia, Avery and Evan Blair, and Donovan Jackson; step great grandchildren Michael and Summer Coogan. She is also survived by one sister-in-law Ruby (Garold) Kint of Ankeny, one brother-in-law Dean Marolf of Lineville, and many nephews and nieces. She is also survived by a special 'grandson', Josh Stiles. He would visit regularly, and they were close to each other. Lenora touched many lives and will be remembered fondly. Book Travel to Services To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Sarrah Lenora Marolf Obituary please visit our Sympathy Store.
What’s your fondest memory of Sarrah?
What’s a lesson you learned from Sarrah?
Share a story where Sarrah's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Sarrah you’ll never forget.
How did Sarrah make you smile?