Herman Brockschmidt

Herman John Brockschmidt, 91, passed away January 9, 2018 at Veteran’s Memorial Hospital, CLC Hospice unit at 11:05 pm. He was born September 25, 1926, to Frank and Rosina Brockschmidt in West Bend, Iowa.

Herman is survived by his wife of 56 years, LaVonne (Hurd) and 4 daughters, Michelle (Dennis) Pohlad, Marsha (Noble) Nekvinda, Maureen “Reenie” (Kelly – deceased) Hogan, Mary (Brian) Lohse; six Grandchildren: Jessie, Brock, Austin, Drake, Nicolas and Gracie and three Great Grandchildren, Joey, Alex and Lincoln and two living brothers-in-law, Keven (Judy) Hurd, Jerry (Sandy) Hurd and their families.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Rosina (Dorweiler) Brockschmidt, his mother-in-law, Genevieve “Jenny” Hurd; son-in-law, Kelly Hogan, and Granddaughter, Kellsey Hogan.

Herman grew up in West Bend, Iowa on his grandparent’s property, Dorweiler Park. He shared many memories of the family reunions held there and the work he did for the family business, Dorweiler Sand and Gravel. Notably, as a young boy he and others helped Father Doberstein by carrying buckets of imported rocks to wherever Father was working as he created the shrines at the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, Iowa. At 14 years old he won the Iowa Junior trap shooting competition.

Herman and LaVonne were married in 1961 and relocated to Boone, IA. Herman worked for Hallett Construction for 26 years as a dragline operator and ran a part-time TV/Radio Repair business out of the home. In the late 70’s the family moved to the Carroll area and most recently resided in Bondurant, IA.

Herman Brockschmidt, SGT served honorably in the US Army during the Korean War from 1952-54 and worked on the radios used to communicate between command and troops. He didn’t talk about this a lot, but he was very proud of his service and was a member of the VFW in Lohrville and also the American Legion.

Herman was a devoted husband and father and loved taking his wife and daughters on day trips to many events, and weekend camping trips and vacations. He loved to tease and joke with the grandkids and everyone and he was “tough”, never complaining about his ailments or being in pain. As one of his nurses said, “they don’t make them like that anymore.” He was a good man.

Memorial Donations may be made in care of the family and will be directed to several charities that Herman supported – likely directed towards military service members and animals as well as St. Jude’s and Boys Town.

Services will be held at Hamilton’s near Highland Memory Gardens on Tuesday, Janaury 16, 2018. Visitation will be held from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. with services to begin at noon. Burial will follow at Greenwood Friends Cemetery in Ankeny.

Condolences may be expressed at:
www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com

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