Martha Elizabeth Durey (Johnson)
October 11, 1916 — August 11, 2009
Martha E. Durey, 92, of Manchester died Tuesday, August 11, 2009 at home following a brief illness.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at the Manchester United Methodist Church by Rev. Roger Henry. Friends may call from 4:00 p.m. - 8 :00 p.m. Monday at the Bohnenkamp-Murdoch Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Manchester, Iowa and one hour before service at the church.
Inurnment will be at a later date at the Grandview Cemetery in Fayette, Iowa.
Martha was born October 11, 1916 in Charles City, Iowa to James Conrad and Ina Lydia (Werk) Johnson. She was raised in Fayette, Iowa and graduated from Fayette High School in 1935. She took Normal training and attended Greeley State College (now University of Northern Colorado) in Greeley, Colorado and Upper Iowa University in Fayette. From the late thirties on she taught elementary school in McCallsburg, and Greene, and after moving to Delaware County was a frequent substitute teacher in Manchester. On December 28, 1943, Martha was united in marriage to Forrest E. Durey, Sr. in West Union, Iowa. In 1950 they moved to the family farm west of Manchester where they continued to live until their passing. Forrest preceded her in death December 2, 2006.
Martha was a member of the Manchester United Methodist Church, where she was Sunday School Superintendent, active in the United Methodist Women, and could be relied on to prepare and present a program for any function. Decorating the sanctuary for Christmas was a source of joy. She would enlist Forrest to get boughs of greens from Harold & Gladys Childs and Herb & Dorothy Schram to create the desired affect.
Martha helped organize and was the first President of the then Delaware County Memorial Hospital Auxiliary and volunteered countless hours managing the gift shop and organizing the Candy Cane Carnival. One should little doubt her influenced on Forrest’s decision to volunteer to hang the Christmas lights on the big spruce on the hospital lawn for several decades. She was on the board of Christians Concerned, Operation New View and started the Crop Walk. Martha was also the secretary of the Courty of the Republican party and worked the election polls in Masonville. Visiting and reading to the residents of the Good Neighbor Home was a weekly occurrence. She was a 50 year member of the Fayette PEO. She and Forrest shared their raspberries, blackberries and asparagus with any and all and until she finally obtained her driver’s license in her fifties, Forrest was tasked to deliver her bread and cinnamon rolls to friends, for holidays and just because. Martha's dinner rolls and deviled eggs occupied a prominent position on the table at the annual Johnson family gathering on the 4th of July. (I was trying to think of a funny way of saying that as a result they were also a continuing source of frustration. Forrest never managed the art of on time delivery, so the family waited and Martha fumed at the once again late arrival of her culinary works of art. All was forgiven and forgotten after the first bite.)
When things were tough on the farm and cash a rare commodity, she always found others who were less fortunate and sent husband and children on personal relief missions bearing loaves of her bread and jars of home canned produce, cookies and candy. One of her treasures was her wry and dry sense of humor, and she never surrendered it, even when failed knees and a pacemaker confined her to a wheeled chair.
Martha is survived by three children, Forrest E. (Fuzzy) Durey, Jr., Manchester, Stan H. Durey, Doylestown, PA, Donna (David) Kunde, Manchester, eight grandchildren, Steven Durey, Manchester, IA, Forrest Durey, Benjamin Durey, and Abigail Durey, Doylestown, PA, Jennifer (David) Zumbach, Hopkinton, IA, Carrie (Jason) Steele, Lockridge, IA, Michael Kunde and Daniel Kunde, Manchester, IA three step-grandchildren Adam Murray of Philadelphia, PA, Shane Burbridge, Manchester and Shannon Styer of North Carolina; one great granddaughter, Briana Steele, Lockridge, IA, one sister, Esther Obrecht of Clarion and sister-in-law Irma Johnson, Decorah. She is also survived by Forrest’s two brothers Darin Durey and George Durey and five sisters, Arlene Noble, Eloise Kaltenbach, Lorna Zupke, Shirley Thrall and JoAnn Strawn.
Martha was preceded in death by her husband, Forrest Durey, her parents, James and Ina Johnson; and six siblings, June Johnson Bany, Harold Johnson, Howard Johnson, Eugene Johnson, Warren Johnson and Theodore Johnson; Forrest’s parents; his siblings, Charlotte Fawcett, Margaret Downing, Marian Stewart, Carol and Dale Durey (in infancy), Howard, Lucius, and Paul Durey.
Please sign the online guestbook for Martha at www.murdochfuneralhome.com under obituaries.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at the Manchester United Methodist Church by Rev. Roger Henry. Friends may call from 4:00 p.m. - 8 :00 p.m. Monday at the Bohnenkamp-Murdoch Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Manchester, Iowa and one hour before service at the church.
Inurnment will be at a later date at the Grandview Cemetery in Fayette, Iowa.
Martha was born October 11, 1916 in Charles City, Iowa to James Conrad and Ina Lydia (Werk) Johnson. She was raised in Fayette, Iowa and graduated from Fayette High School in 1935. She took Normal training and attended Greeley State College (now University of Northern Colorado) in Greeley, Colorado and Upper Iowa University in Fayette. From the late thirties on she taught elementary school in McCallsburg, and Greene, and after moving to Delaware County was a frequent substitute teacher in Manchester. On December 28, 1943, Martha was united in marriage to Forrest E. Durey, Sr. in West Union, Iowa. In 1950 they moved to the family farm west of Manchester where they continued to live until their passing. Forrest preceded her in death December 2, 2006.
Martha was a member of the Manchester United Methodist Church, where she was Sunday School Superintendent, active in the United Methodist Women, and could be relied on to prepare and present a program for any function. Decorating the sanctuary for Christmas was a source of joy. She would enlist Forrest to get boughs of greens from Harold & Gladys Childs and Herb & Dorothy Schram to create the desired affect.
Martha helped organize and was the first President of the then Delaware County Memorial Hospital Auxiliary and volunteered countless hours managing the gift shop and organizing the Candy Cane Carnival. One should little doubt her influenced on Forrest’s decision to volunteer to hang the Christmas lights on the big spruce on the hospital lawn for several decades. She was on the board of Christians Concerned, Operation New View and started the Crop Walk. Martha was also the secretary of the Courty of the Republican party and worked the election polls in Masonville. Visiting and reading to the residents of the Good Neighbor Home was a weekly occurrence. She was a 50 year member of the Fayette PEO. She and Forrest shared their raspberries, blackberries and asparagus with any and all and until she finally obtained her driver’s license in her fifties, Forrest was tasked to deliver her bread and cinnamon rolls to friends, for holidays and just because. Martha's dinner rolls and deviled eggs occupied a prominent position on the table at the annual Johnson family gathering on the 4th of July. (I was trying to think of a funny way of saying that as a result they were also a continuing source of frustration. Forrest never managed the art of on time delivery, so the family waited and Martha fumed at the once again late arrival of her culinary works of art. All was forgiven and forgotten after the first bite.)
When things were tough on the farm and cash a rare commodity, she always found others who were less fortunate and sent husband and children on personal relief missions bearing loaves of her bread and jars of home canned produce, cookies and candy. One of her treasures was her wry and dry sense of humor, and she never surrendered it, even when failed knees and a pacemaker confined her to a wheeled chair.
Martha is survived by three children, Forrest E. (Fuzzy) Durey, Jr., Manchester, Stan H. Durey, Doylestown, PA, Donna (David) Kunde, Manchester, eight grandchildren, Steven Durey, Manchester, IA, Forrest Durey, Benjamin Durey, and Abigail Durey, Doylestown, PA, Jennifer (David) Zumbach, Hopkinton, IA, Carrie (Jason) Steele, Lockridge, IA, Michael Kunde and Daniel Kunde, Manchester, IA three step-grandchildren Adam Murray of Philadelphia, PA, Shane Burbridge, Manchester and Shannon Styer of North Carolina; one great granddaughter, Briana Steele, Lockridge, IA, one sister, Esther Obrecht of Clarion and sister-in-law Irma Johnson, Decorah. She is also survived by Forrest’s two brothers Darin Durey and George Durey and five sisters, Arlene Noble, Eloise Kaltenbach, Lorna Zupke, Shirley Thrall and JoAnn Strawn.
Martha was preceded in death by her husband, Forrest Durey, her parents, James and Ina Johnson; and six siblings, June Johnson Bany, Harold Johnson, Howard Johnson, Eugene Johnson, Warren Johnson and Theodore Johnson; Forrest’s parents; his siblings, Charlotte Fawcett, Margaret Downing, Marian Stewart, Carol and Dale Durey (in infancy), Howard, Lucius, and Paul Durey.
Please sign the online guestbook for Martha at www.murdochfuneralhome.com under obituaries.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Martha Elizabeth Durey (Johnson), please visit our flower store.