Rex 'Tom' Strahmann

On Sunday, December 9th, 2012, Rex Thomas Strahmann reunited with our heavenly Father. Rex, who was affectionately known to most people as Tom, was the son of William and Mary Strahmann. Tom was a quiet, gentle man full of honor, integrity and courage right to the end. Tom was born November 16, 1931, on a farm by Paullina, Iowa, where his Aunt Lil, a nurse, brought him into the world. When Tom was a year old, the family moved south of Sutherland, Iowa, and attended country school for one year until his parents bought a farm adjacent to Larrabee, Iowa in 1940. Tom graduated in 1948 from Larrabee High School where he spent his time helping on the family farm and playing baseball, basketball and track. Following graduation, he worked in the Co-op Service Station in Larrabee until he was drafted into the Korean Conflict. He served from 1952 to 1954 in the Army 2nd Infantry Division. After coming home, he farmed for seven years. In 1962, he worked in the construction trade. He then attended the National School of Meat Cutting in Toledo, Ohio. Tom was a meat cutter in Marcus and Pocahontas, but most of his career was spent at the Cherokee packing plant as a USDA Federal Meat Inspector. He worked there for 30 years and retired in 1994. After retirement Tom and Rosa became 'snowbirds', spending their winters in Padre Island, Texas. Tom's most important jobs and the ones he loved the most were being a husband, father, grandfather and friend. Tom was married to Rosa (Brown) Ford, the love of his life, on December 28, 1963. With this union they were blessed with seven children. Tom loved traveling, especially to visit family in Cheyenne, Colorado, Alaska, Maine and Panama. He was an avid sports fan, following the Cherokee Braves, Iowa Hawkeyes, Texas Spurs and the Colorado Rockies. He enjoyed golfing, fishing and his early morning coffee with friends. Tom was a member of the Knights of Columbus, VFW, the American Legion, and Immaculate Conception Church. He passed away at the Cherokee Regional Medical Center on Sunday, December 9, 2012, at the age of 81. Rex Thomas Strahmann was preceded in death by his parents; one son, Ronald Ford; two brothers, Billy and Bernie; three brothers-in-law, Jim Brown, Mike Brown and Dick Brennan; one sister-in-law, Leonora Strahmann; his mother-in-law and father-in-law, Anna and Victor Brown. He is survived by his wife Rosa; his children, Loretta (Al) Alver, Don Ford, Judi Bolder, Rita (Jeff) Tuttle, Gary (Lora) Strahmann, and Mary (Ed) Schwaigert; ten grandchildren: Heather, Jessica, Jeanele, Jamie, Jim, Danny, Zachiary, Crystal, Billy and Sarah; ten great-grandchildren and one great-great-granddaughter; two sisters, Margaret Nazaryk and Jean Brennan; one brother, Gerald Strahmann; three brothers-in-law, Milt Nazaryk, Darrell Brown and Tom Nauman; three sisters-in-law, Nina Strahmann, Cindy Strahmann and Rita Nauman; his very close cousins, Verlee and Harlee Strahmann, and close friends, Dick Mansfield and Alan Zitzlsperger, along with many other relatives and family friends. IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, THE FAMILY HAS ESTABLISHED A MEMORIAL FUND IN TOM'S NAME.

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