Gloria Jean Burgy

loria Jean Martinson Burgy, age 72 of Marengo, Iowa, surrounded by family in prayer and song, was welcomed into the arms of Jesus on April 9, 2018, at Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, following a sudden illness. Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, April 14, 2018, at First Lutheran Church, Conroy, Iowa, with Pastor Don Dovre officiating. Burial will be in the First Lutheran Cemetery, Conroy. Family will greet friends from 4 to 7 p.m., Friday, April 13, 2018, at Kloster Funeral Home, Marengo. Memorials may be given in honor of Gloria to the Safe Haven of Iowa County, P.O. Box 444 Williamsburg, IA 52361.

Gloria was born on December 24, 1945, in Marengo, the youngest daughter of Frank and Irene Schwarting Martinson. Gloria knew Jesus Christ as her Savior. She was baptized and confirmed at First Lutheran Church, Conroy and remained a life-long member of the church. God blessed Gloria with a beautiful voice and she enjoyed singing in the church choir, community choirs and at family and neighborhood gatherings. Gloria attended Hilton Consolidated Schools in Conroy until its closing, at which time she continued her high school education at Iowa Valley High School, in Marengo, graduating in 1964. In September 1964, Gloria married Larry Burgy. They later divorced. While in high school, Gloria worked at the Ox Yoke Inn in Amana. After graduating high school, she worked as a secretary at Amana Refrigeration until May 1967, at which time her sister and brother-in-law opened Colony Village Restaurant at the Little Amana exit on Interstate 80. Gloria worked at Colony Village as a bookkeeper and assistant manager, performing whatever tasks were necessary from 1967 until the restaurant closed in November 2014. At the time of her death, Gloria was working at Big G Foods in Marengo.

Gloria loved her flowers. If you visited Gloria’s home, her outdoor entryway would greet you with an array of colorful plants and flowers. Gloria was a kind, caring and giving person who put the welfare of others before herself. She was passionate about offering care and comfort to animals in need and over the years found homes for many cats who “through no fault of their own” were hungry and in need of a home.

Gloria was preceded in death by her parents; her oldest brother Harold Martinson, Sr.; sister-in-law Lorraine Shedenhelm Martinson; sister-in-law Shirley Alderman Martinson; brother-in-law Russell Sanderfeld; and special friends Seward “Stu” Lerch and Jerry Heisler.

Gloria’s greatest joy was being a loving and devoted mother to her son, Matthew John Burgy, who survives her. Gloria is also survived by a brother Edwin L. Martinson; a sister MaryEllen Sandersfeld; 12 nieces and nephews; 20 great-nieces and nephews; and 12 great-great nieces and nephews. She is also survived by her former husband Larry Burgy and a special friend Jim Tompkins.