Ivan “Wendall” Turnipseed
Ivan “Wendall” Turnipseed
Blair, Wis.
Ivan “Wendall” Turnipseed, 92, passed peacefully on Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, with family by his side.
Wendall was born on Oct. 26, 1930, in Iowa City, Iowa, the only child of Aura and Lila (Wilson) Turnipseed. He grew up in the rural area and graduated from Shueyville High School in 1950, where he met the love of his life, Edna Vondracek. On Dec. 7, 1951, he was inducted into the U.S. Army and served on the front lines of the Korean conflict for nine months. He received an honorable discharge in September of 1953. Wendall returned home and married Edna on July 24, 1954. They had one daughter, Michele.
Wendall joined Edna’s family farm and lumber business, managing the feed and fertilizer side. Wendall was known for being very particular about his equipment, trucks and cars and his fertilizer truck was often used as a show model for the New Leader equipment company. It was during the yearly summer vacations to Birchwood, WI that Wendall fell in love with the scenic Wisconsin countryside. After several years of searching for the right farm with the right house for Edna, they moved to the Blair area and raised grain crops along with Hereford and Angus cattle.
Wendall worked with the local soil management office, adding contour strips and waterways to the farm and received the Trempealeau County Land Conservation award for his farming practices. There were many years when the crop yields matched or performed better than his friends in Iowa. Wendall also was a representative for livestock mineral products and enjoyed delivering and visiting with his customers. He treated his customers like family and continued this service long after retiring from farming in 2000.
Wendall and his family enjoyed the beautiful area by driving in local tractor rides and hauling his tractor back to Iowa once a year to join friends on a two day ride. Wendall was a very devoted John Deere man and let everyone know green was the only color. He loved mowing lawn and if you drove by his place, you probably saw him mowing.
Wendall is survived by his wife of 68 years, Edna; their daughter, Michele and favorite son-in-law, Robert Henrickson of Hixton; brother-in-law, Alvin Vondracek of Swisher, Iowa; nephew and nieces, Craig, Connie and Cheri and special family friend, Marci (John) Walker of Wisconsin Dells.
Wendall was preceded in death by his parents; his mother and father-in-law, Filbert and Helen Vondracek; and two sisters-in law, Doris and RoseAnn Vondracek.
The family would like to give special thanks to the wonderful caregivers at Pigeon Falls Health Care Center during this difficult time.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, in the Jack Funeral Home in Whitehall. Pastor Dale Moe will officiate. Burial will be in the Sechlerville Cemetery in rural Hixton. Friends may call one hour prior to the service.
Memorials may be directed to the Trempealeau County Humane Society or the Pigeon Falls Fire Department.