Memorial
Althea Irene Burnett Lord, 96, of Marion, Iowa, formerly of Bondurant, Iowa died peacefully Friday, September 23, 2016 at St. Luke’s UnityPoint Hospital.
Born November 15, 1919 in Woodward, Iowa, she was the eldest of Gailard H. Burnett and Helen Hibbs Burnett’s seven children. She had four children, fourteen grandchildren (eleven living), twelve great-grandchildren, six siblings (one living) and their spouses (two living), many nieces and nephews and their spouses, children and grandchildren.
She started school at Camp#2 School for her first year and part of the second. Her family moved to Ivy, Garrott Grove, and Shaffey schools over the next few years which resulted in her having to be held back a year in the fourth grade. She finished her schooling in the Mitchellville school system, graduating in 1938.
She eloped with George Edward Lord on April 27, 1938 to Bethany, Missouri and began their life together, which ended upon his death, July 11, 1998. She was his helpmate on the farm, helping with plowing, cultivating, animal care, gardening, and raising their four children. When they left the farm two miles north of Bondurant and moved back to the house in which they had started their lives together, she helped her husband with the books and the meat cutting and sausage making at Lord’s Meats while he handled the sales and delivery. When that endeavor became too much, they built storage garages for rent, and she again did the books while also working at Look Magazine. After Look Magazine, she spent a few years at the Polk County Juvenile Home as a receptionist.
George and Althea loved to travel. When they returned from a driving trip in the 1980s, she would paint an oil picture of something she remembered. Those pictures adorn the walls in her Marion home.
She was a caring person, wanting to know more and taking a first aid class to be able to do so. She nursed her father-in-law through his final days, as well as her mother and her husband.
Althea was very crafty and talented. She knitted, crocheted, tatted, sewed, quilted, painted, did macramé, and tried her hand at wood burning, leather craft, and wood carving. She built the kitchen cabinets in the Bondurant House which still were there when she moved to Marion in 2011.
She was a charter member of the Rebekah Lodge 725 in Mitchellville in 1938, then moved to May Henry Lodge in Bondurant in 1939, and on to Garcia Lodge in Mitchellville and was an active member until 1981. Growing up, she was a member of the Congregational Church in Mitchellville. After her marriage, she was a founding member of the Federated Church in Bondurant.
Althea is survived by her children: Brenda Jean McDole of Marion; James Edward (Leanne) Lord of Lincoln, Nebraska; Frederick Gailard (Barbara) Lord of Forest Junction, Wisconsin; and George Ernest (Barb) Lord of Cedar Rapids; grandchildren: James Edward Lord, Jr. of Colorado; Bryce Aaron Lord (Jon Stewart) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Lynne McDole (Brian Fahrner) of Cedar Rapids; Martin (Jo Marie) McDole of Marion; Andrew Colin Lord of Seattle, Washington; Joseph Birkett Lord of Wisconsin; Meghann Dorais (Miles) Fenn of Colorado; Kendra Davis Lord, Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Air Force; John A. (Laura) Lord of Marion; Christiana Lord; and Carin Joy Lord (Brandon Bailey) of Lisbon.
Also surviving are twelve great-grandchildren; sister Mary Vermie of Altoona; brother-in-law Donald (Shirley) Stevenson of Arizona; sister-in-law Mary Lou Burnett of Bloomington, Minnesota; and her beloved blonde Chihuahua, her “pampered pooch,” Baby.
Althea was preceded in death by her husband; parents; grandchildren: Keith Alan Lord, Jennifer Lou Lord Bond, Latrice Carlene Lord Shaner; sisters: Wanda Dunbar and spouse Bill, Mildred Shissler Woods and spouses Dean Shissler and Barney Woods, and Lorna Stevenson; as well as brothers Max Burnett and spouses Lily and Mae, and Jerry Lee Burnett; and son-in-law Lloyd McDole.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday, September 30, 2016 at the Federated Church of Bondurant. The family will greet friends at the church from 9:00 until 11:00 a.m. before the service. Interment will follow at the Bondurant Cemetery.
Memorials in Althea’s name may be made to your favorite local animal shelter.