Alta (Welk) Stoebner

Rock Rapids, Iowa Alta (Welk) Stoebner, Mrs. Ben Stoebner, age 94 of Arden Hills, MN, formerly of Rock Rapids, IA, died Thursday, July 28, 2011 at the Presbyterian Home of Arden Hills. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM, Monday, August 1, 2011 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Rock Rapids with Rev. Dan Kordahl officiating. Burial will follow at Riverview Cemetery of Rock Rapids. Visitation will be Monday morning, August 1st from 9:30 AM until the hour of service at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Rock Rapids. Memorials may be directed to Immanuel Lutheran Church or Central Lyon Foundation. Jurrens Funeral Home of Rock Rapids is in charge of arrangements. Alta Marie Welk was born December 25th, 1916 in Delmont, SD, the daughter of John and Christina (Eberly) Welk. On December 25th, 1940 she was united in marriage to Benjamin Ben Stoebner. Working in the farming business, Ben and Alta settled in the Rock Rapids, IA area in 1941. Together Ben and Alta had nine children. In May of 1968, Ben Stoebner passed away at the age of 53. After Ben's death, having only an 8th grade education, Alta obtained her GED and applied, and was accepted to the Sioux Valley School of Nursing in Sioux Falls, SD. She graduated from nursing school and obtained her LPN license in 1970, at the age of 53. She worked as a LPN in Rock Rapids nursing homes until her retirement in 1990. In July of 2008, Alta sold her house in Rock Rapids and moved to assisted living, and then a skilled nursing facility in a suburb of St. Paul, MN. Alta lived in Rock Rapids, IA for 67 years. She was a long time member of Immanuel Lutheran Church, participating in the church choir and many ladies aid committees and events, was a member of the VFW Auxiliary and was involved in many community organizations. She was a skilled seamstress, loved to crochet, knit and quilt, as well as dabble with many other craft projects. Alta loved gardening and always had a lawn and house full of green plants and colorful flowers, many of which are strewn throughout Rock Rapids. She also loved to travel everywhere, experiencing all parts of the U.S. and the World, visiting her family wherever they ventured. She dearly loved her children, her grandchildren and her great grandchildren. Alta is survived by three sons and three daughters, Jim (Sharon) Stoebner of Minneapolis, MN, Audrae Coury of Big Sky, MT, Marie Baker of St. Charles, MO, Bruce (Averi) Stoebner of Denver, CO, Lynne (Kevin) Megan of St. Paul, MN and Eric Stoebner of St. Paul, MN; eleven grandchildren; fifteen great grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. Preceding her in death were her husband of 27 years, Ben Stoebner; two sons, Randy Stoebner and Chuck Stoebner; a daughter, Nyla Lawson; two brothers, Herbert and Leon Welk; and a sister Leontina Bueber.