1966-2025

Shelley Renae Hayes, 58, daughter of Darrell and Ida Gayle (Freeman) Kromrie, was born June 22, 1966, at the Guthrie County Hospital, Guthrie Center. She gained her eternal freedom from pain on Monday, March 31, 2025, at Iowa Lutheran Hospital, Des Moines.

Shelley grew up in Guthrie Center and graduated from Guthrie Center High School in 1985. She worked many jobs in the community: a CNA at the New Homestead in Guthrie Center, in-home day care, and, finally, as a teacher associate at the Guthrie Center High School.

Although Shelley had many jobs and accomplishments over the years, her proudest was her family. Shelley was the oldest of Gayle’s four children. As soon as her little siblings, Terry, Mary and Mike, started making their debuts, Shelley became their biggest protectors. This was a lifelong badge Shelley wore with honor. Shelley has always spoken loudly and proudly of her family.

In 1986, Shelley was especially proud to welcome her twin girls, Ashlee and Alison — “the Chickee Birds.” These girls were the light of her life. The bond shared between them was a testament of the amount of love they had for each other. In 1994, she married Wayne Hayes, and they made their home in Guthrie Center. With this union, she gained Eric and Valarie.

Once her grandbabies started being added to the family, another light was lit in her heart. Her girls were so thankful to have such a present mom with their children. Shelley continued the tradition of attending as many of her grandkid’s activities as possible, just like she did for her girls, always beaming with pride. She loved spending time with her grandchildren, whether that was coming up with recipes and baking or sending out a daily Snapchat summarizing the day with goofy shoutouts. Her grandbabies always knew they had a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen, or a big squeeze when they needed a hug.

Shelley shared a special bond with her younger siblings. She spent the last few years living as Buck’s (Terry’s) neighbor. Buck regularly popped through the door with a “whattaya doing” or “what’s for dinner?” Even though he sometimes was met with a sassy comment from Shelley, she loved having him there. Shelley was first to proudly let people know that was her brother, Terry. She was so grateful for his presence in her life and the heart he has.

She was very close to her sister, Mary. She regularly told people her sister was actually older because the gray hair came quickly for her. I’m sure this had to do with Mary’s three children: Breanne, Peyton and Haeleigh. The three had a second home and a second mom with Shelley. She and Breanne were partners in crime. They were always getting into some type of shenanigans together. When Haeleigh and Peyton came along, they became her “babies.” Well into their twenties, she still referred to them as her babies. Shelley’s great nephew and niece, Axl and Frankie, also played a special role in Shelley’s life. They loved her and always looked forward to going to Aunt Shelley’s.

Shelley’s youngest brother, Mike, also was very special to her. She regularly talked about how he was her “little Mikey,” even though he has grayed and is a grandpa himself. Regardless of anything, he was always her “baby brother,” and all those around knew about it. Shelley held a special place with all her siblings and was so proud to have them. Her favorite part of having her siblings was knowing it was them against the world. She took on a role as a mama bear to them. In a close second, being an aunt to their kids was another proud title she carried. Shelley had an undying love for all of her nieces and nephews.

Shelley accepted anyone and everyone into her circle. She didn’t know a stranger. She had the title of “Mom,” “Aunt Shelley” and “Grandma Shelley” to many people even outside her family. This included her children’s friends, her nieces and nephews’ friends, her babysitting kids over the years, and, more recently, her grandchildren’s friends.

Shelley was known for her cooking and baking. If you were close with Shelley at all, she fed you at one point or another. Whether that was her famous mints, beautifully put-together Christmas candy platters, or the type of home cooking that made you have to wear sweatpants afterwards. She loved cooking for her grandchildren and making sure their friends and teammates were fed, too.

Shelley’s existence was a privilege to this world. Regardless of any hardship she endured, her heart was pure. She was never hardened by anything she went through. She was kind, compassionate and full of love to give. She loved to joke with everyone and was known for giving people a run for their money. She will be deeply missed by her family and all who knew her.

She is survived by her children, Alison (Derek) Herron of Guthrie Center; Ashlee (Jeremy) Wolfe of Guthrie Center; Eric Hayes of Minot, North Dakota; and Valarie Levy of Jefferson; 17 grandchildren, Brooke, Katelyn, Lane, Logan, Braelyn, Lillee, and Luke (Alison); Calleigh, Cordell, Cambree, and Cayla (Ashlee); Brayden, Riley, and Aria (Eric); Eva Mae, Kailynn, and Rosabelle (Valarie); siblings, Terry Kromrie of Guthrie Center; Mary (Troy) Busse of Guthrie Center; and Mike Kromrie of Winterset; Becky (Andy) Boss of Stuart; Dan (Ginger) Kromrie of Dexter; and Jean (Devlun) Whiteing of Ida Grove. Also her very dear friend, Tracy (John) Beer of Panora. Shelley has numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and close friends who she leaves behind.

She was preceded in death by her parents and husband, Wayne.

A Celebration of Life will be from 4-8 p.m., Friday, April 4, 2025, at the Guthrie Center Activity Center, 209 State St., Guthrie Center.

Twigg Funeral Home, Guthrie Center, is entrusted with her services.

1951-2025

Mr. Alan Lynn Elgin, age 73, of Adair, passed away on Sunday, March 30, 2025, at Unity Point Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines.

Alan Lynn Elgin was born on Nov. 13, 1951, in New Haven, Connecticut, to A Lynn and Alice (Winn) Elgin. Alan graduated from Adair-Casey High School with the class of 1969. He then continued his education at Iowa Lakes Community College, where he earned an associate degree in vocational technology in 1971. On Feb. 2, 1973, he married Shanee Frohling in Guthrie Center. From this union, two children were born, Tori and Tyler. 

Alan was a mechanic both professionally and as a hobby in his garage. He worked at various places, including implement dealerships, diesel shops and power lift companies, until his retirement in 2020. He enjoyed target shooting with his brothers, assisting during harvest season with his brother, Bill, and, even more, restoring tractors with his son, Tyler. Alan went on three WHO Iowa Tractor Rides. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Adair, where he was an elder for more than 20 years. He sincerely enjoyed his family, especially his granddaughters and great-granddaughter, who FaceTimed him every night.

Alan is survived by his wife, Shanee (Frohling) Elgin of Adair; daughter, Tori Elgin (Bruce Hartger) of Cedar Rapids; son, Tyler Elgin (Christy Wester) of Tenino, Washington; granddaughters, Lexi Knutsen of Anamosa, Logan Knutsen of Cedar Rapids, Danielle Pickett, of Tenino, Washington; great-granddaughter, Baylor Rae; brothers, Bill (Betty) Elgin, Les (Theresa) Elgin, and John (Rita) Elgin. 

Alan is preceded in death by his grandparents, Arthur and Eva Elgin, and Edgar and Mildred Winn, and his parents, A Lynn and Alice Elgin. 

A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 3, 2025, at First Presbyterian Church in Adair with Rev. Richard Boatman officiating. Interment will take place at Sunnyhill Cemetery in Adair. A luncheon will be held following the committal in the Fellowship Hall of the First Presbyterian Church. 

Public visitation with the family will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 2, 2025, at the Schmidt Family Funeral Home in Adair. 

Memorials may be directed to the Alan Elgin Family to be designated at a later date in memory of his name. They may be mailed to the Schmidt Family Funeral Home, P.O. Box 523, Atlantic, IA 50022. 

Funeral services are handled by the Schmidt Family Funeral Home of Adair.

1958-2025

Johnny “Mac” McNeley, 66, passed away suddenly on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, with his wife by his side. He was born Feb. 16, 1958, in Omaha, Nebraska, and lived in Iowa. He was a member of the wrestling team from Guthrie Center High School, a treasurer of the local FFA chapter, and a dairy judge. After graduating in 1976, he joined the Navy and was honorably discharged in 2002 as a Senior Chief Petty Officer, Damage Controlman, after proudly serving for 26 years. His last duty assignment was NAVMAC Millington, Tennessee. Upon discharge from the Navy, he attended horseshoeing school in Oklahoma, becoming a farrier.

Johnny was known to his friends in the South as Mac. He worked for Steel Warehouse of Memphis for 22-plus years in maintenance, retiring Oct. 31, 2024. In his off time when the grandchildren were young, he loved to have them spend the weekend at the farm with the menagerie of horses, goats, pigs, chickens and turkeys. Easter on the farm was always a fun time with easter egg hunts for the kids and “special” egg hunts for the grown-ups. He enjoyed the outdoors and was an avid hunter, as well as a fisherman on the ponds at his farm. He loved to participate in retriever hunt tests as a handler, judge and worker. He was an active member of Southern Flight HRC and a Started judge for HRC/UKC. He was also an active member and on the board of directors for Mid-South Hunting Retriever Club where he judged AKC Junior and Senior retriever hunt tests.

Johnny “Mac” lived in Holly Springs, Mississippi, with his wife, Janice. He is pre-deceased by his father, Billy McNeley, and a brother, Francis McNeley. Surviving family members are his mother, Shirley McNeley (Chichester), and two brothers, Roger and Terry McNeley, all still in Iowa, and his sister, Peggy Williams (McNeley) in Maryland. He has two adult children, Timothy McNeley in Millington, Tennessee, and Sarah Gaynor (husband Ryan) in Spanish Fort, Alabama. He has five grandchildren whom he loved dearly and bragged on whenever the chance arose: Dylan and Presley Gaynor; Drake, Mason “Cash” and Waylon McNeley. He also had two stepchildren, Samantha Poole (Williamson) in Holly Springs, Mississippi, and Chris Williamson in Clearwater, Florida.

Johnny’s remains will be interred at the Van Meter Veterans Cemetery, 34024 Veterans Memorial Drive, Van Meter Township on Friday, June 20, 2025, at 11 a.m. with full military honors. A Celebration of Life will immediately follow at the adjacent American Legion from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

1940-2025

Ronald L Stevens, better known as Ronnie to friends and family, 85, died peacefully March 13, 2025, at Thomas Rest Haven Nursing Home, Coon Rapids. He was born at home in Guthrie County on Feb. 24, 1940, the eldest son of Glenn E. Stevens and Lillian J. (Richey) Stevens.

Ronald graduated from Audubon High School, class of 1958. Following graduation, he served with the U.S. Navy through December 1963. Following his time in the U.S. Navy, he studied at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. After his correspondence with Josefina V. Daugdaug, they married in Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines in 1974. They resided in Jefferson where Ron worked in manufacturing and was also self-employed. He was married to Josie until her death in 2021.

Ron enjoyed being physically active and outside in nature. He would often spend time at the local high school track and walking trails in Jefferson. He enjoyed reading and had an assorted collection of books and movies. Self-education was an important attribute that he passed on to his daughters. He wrote poetry and jokes. He often discussed movies and would readily debate in politics and other social issues.

In addition to his parents and wife, he was predeceased by his daughter, Valerie.

He is survived by his daughter: Vanessa; his grandchildren: Kimora, Jaxon and Giovanni-Carlo; brothers: Kerry Stevens of Waukee, and Rick Stevens and his wife Peggy of Indianola; sister: Melodee Powers and her husband, Jay, of Newberg, Oregon; his nieces and nephews, great niece and great-great nephew.

Visitation will be held from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday, March 22, 2025, at Caldwell Parrish Funeral Home and Crematory, 1721 Park St., Perry, IA 50220. Service was held graveside at Union Cemetery, Guthrie Center following the visitation. Flowers and memorials can be sent to the funeral home. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.caldwellparrish.com.

1941-2025

“Jack” Jackie Lynn Stringer was born on Dec, 2, 1941, and passed away peacefully, surrounded by his large, loving and loud family, on March 15, 2025. The birth and death of this dedicated father and farmer are not nearly as relevant as the days he lived between those two dates.

Jack was born to Ralph and Jody (Mary Josephine Hoyt) Stringer on his Great Grandpa Stringer’s home place. In the spring of 1942, the family moved just down the road to the farm of Rufus Couch, Jack’s other Great Grandpa. Jack and his sisters grew up in the house that their Great Grandpa built in 1909. Jack still owns the land he loved so much and was proud to have had both farms designated as Century Farms. His childhood farm is currently home to the sixth generation of Couch/Stringer descendants.

Jack attended Beaver Country School through junior high and had fantastic stories to tell of the shenanigans that he, some cousins and other neighbor boys could instigate. For high school, Jack attended Guthrie Center Community High School. He loved playing sports and excelled in all of them. It was there where he met a cute cheerleader named Beverly Railsback, who would become the love of his life. He graduated from high school in 1960 and then attended an auto mechanical school in Omaha.

After several years of dating through high school, on July 16, 1961, he married that cheerleader. In the spring of 1962, Jack, Bev and baby John moved to the farm west of Wichita, where Jack lived, raised his family and farmed for 63 years. They had two mischievous boys: John (1962) and Jimmy (1970), and one somewhat strong-willed, bossy daughter, Brenda (1964). During the 1980-81 school year, they welcomed an exchange daughter from Greece, Elizabeth Xanthopoulou. A lifetime of love and adventure spanned over 56 years until Bev’s death in 2017.

Jack was a very progressive farmer. In 1969, he was selected as a soil conservation winner in the “Guthrie District Owner-Tenant Division” of The Des Moines Register contest, recognizing farmers practicing outstanding soil conservation. He served many years on the Soil Conservation board. In the early 1970s, he was recognized as an outstanding Beef Producer.

The Guthrie County Fair was a huge part of the Stringer family life and tradition. Jack started as the Sheep Superintendent, then Swine Superintendent, and later served many years as a Fair Board Member. Years and years of wonderful memories were made camping at the fair, riding motorcycles, and showing off Bev’s 1955.

Arm wrestling was a 45-year family tradition. Jack started by taking John in 1979 to the first of many years of competitions in Monster Arm Wrestling. It was just a matter of time before it became a family event, as Jimmy joined in at age 18, followed by many of the grandkids, and even a great-granddaughter in 2023.

Jack has always felt a need for speed, whether in his Chevy cars or Mud Bog Trucks. In 1999, he started mud bog racing at Guthrie with a stock truck named “Grandpa’s Toy,” eventually graduating to a 1,000-horsepower truck in the Outlaw Class. At the age of 82, after 24 years of racing, he won his final race in 2023.

Farmers never retire, so when Jack finally slowed down his farming operation, he simply pivoted to another passion that he had put on hold — playing in the dirt. Doing dozer work, running the excavator, or buying calves at the sale barn and raising them at the farm was definitely his happy place.

Jack loved sports and livestock. He especially loved football and basketball, and watching grandkids play sports or show livestock at the fair was something he truly enjoyed. In recent years, his companion, Judee Eischeid, and her family joined him in life’s many adventures.

Immediate family waiting in heaven to welcome him are his wife, Bev; his parents; grandson, Jacob Stringer; and son-in-law, David Christensen.

Jack left deep roots in the family who remain. His infectious laugh and giving heart will be missed by his loved ones: his children, John Stringer; Jimmy (Laurie) Stringer; Brenda (Michael) Esdohr; and exchange daughter, Elizabeth Xanthopoulou.

He leaves 10 grandkids: Lainey (Drew) Stringer (John’s daughter); Brea (Derek) Chaplin; Ashley (Wes) DeMaris; Cory (Heather) Esdohr; Elizabeth Esdohr; Ali Stringer (Brenda’s kids); Laurisa Stringer (Austin Fabian); LeAnna (Mason) Rasmussen; Jessica Stringer (Brandon Thomas); and Jenna (Dustin) Deist (Jimmy’s kids).

27 great-grandkids: John: Lilah (Jacob and Katie); Cooper, Emery, Griffin, Nora, and Juniper (Lainey and Drew); Brenda: Noah, Asher, Kaleb, Leah, Elijah, Rebekah, Benjamin, Jude, Sam, and new baby No. 10 due in August (Brea and Derek); Olivia and Stella (Ashley and Wes); Sal, Niki and Lexi (Ali); Hally, Zach and Luke (Cory and Heather); Jimmy: Waylon and Landry (Laurisa and Austin); and Opal (LeAnna and Mason).

He is also survived by his three sisters, Mary Jo (Jim) Laughery, Barb Hambleton, and Martha (Rick) Buttler, as well as numerous nieces, nephews, and so many good friends.

Visitation was held on Monday, March 17, 2025, from 4- 8 p.m. at the Event Center at the Guthrie County Fairgrounds. Funeral services, officiated by Pastor David Morris, took place on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Guthrie Center.

Deb Menning accompanied the congregational hymn “It Is Well With My Soul,” while special music included “Monsters,” performed by LeAnna Rasmussen, Jenna Deist, and Jessica Stringer, along with two recorded songs, “In Color” and “Lead Me Home” by Jamey Johnson.

Interment followed at Monteith Cemetery in rural Guthrie Center. Pallbearers included grandsons-in-law: Andrew Stringer, Derek Chaplin, Wes DeMaris, Austin Fabian, Mason Rasmussen, Dustin Deist, Brandon Thomas, and step-grandson Cory Esdohr. Honorary pallbearers were granddaughters: Lainey Stringer, Brea Chaplain, Ashley DeMaris, Laurisa Stringer, LeAnna Rasmussen, Jenna Deist, Jessica Stringer, step-granddaughter-in-law Heather Esdohr, step-granddaughter, Elizabeth Esdohr, and adopted daughter Ali Stringer.

Following the services on Tuesday, the family invited all guests to a time of fellowship and a luncheon at the Event Center at the Guthrie County Fairgrounds, catered by Café on the Hill in Guthrie Center. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.caldwellparrish.com.

1959-2025

With love and remembrance, we announce the passing of Derry Gene Hick, born on Oct. 14, 1959, who peacefully passed away on Feb. 19, 2025, in Honolulu, Hawaii, with his wife, Elizabeth, and their two daughters, Melissa and Erika, by his side. He was 65 years old.

Born in Guthrie Center, Derry joined the U.S. Air Force after high school, serving his country with honor. After leaving the service, he lived a life defined by acts of service and generosity to others. Known to so many as a kind and generous man, Derry left a lasting impact on all who knew him. His love for music, movies and cross-country driving brought him joy throughout his life.

While on military leave after a deployment in Korea, Derry met Elizabeth, a nursing student and his sister Debbie’s friend, during a visit to his family in Des Moines. They married in 1983 in Los Angeles and had two daughters, Melissa Ann and Erika Elizabeth. Derry and Elizabeth spent more than 41 years together, building a lifetime of cherished memories. Both Derry and Elizabeth served in the United States Armed Forces, sharing a deep sense of duty, service and love for their country.

Derry and Elizabeth were blessed with four grandchildren: Cameron and Gisele, children of their daughter, Melissa, and her husband, Stephen; and Henry Wyatt and Jane Lillian, children of their daughter, Erika, and her husband, James. Derry loved being their “Papa” and cherished every moment with them.

Derry is survived by his beloved wife of more than 41 years, Elizabeth Hick; his two daughters, Melissa and Erika; his four grandchildren; his mother, Joyce; and his brothers, Dan and Michael, along with their spouses and children. He will be remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend with a legacy of kindness and generosity that will live on in the hearts of all who knew him.

Derry will be laid to rest at the VA National Cemetery in Riverside, California.

A Celebration of Life will be from 1-3 p.m. in the basement at First Baptist Church, 113 N. Fifth St., Guthrie Center, on April 12.