Clara N. Ford, 94 of Dixon, Iowa passed away peacefully at her home with her family at her side on Thursday, September 18, 2025. Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at The Runge Mortuary & Crematory, 838 E. Kimberly Road, Davenport, Iowa. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 am on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, with a visitation one hour prior at Hope Lutheran
Church, 406 Muscatine Street, Dixon, Iowa. Please share condolences with the family at
www.rungemortuary.com.
Clara was born January 30, 1931, on the farmstead to Fred Jr. and Elizabeth Volzke Beck at Herreid, South Dakota. She grew up on the family farm doing chores and helping with the farm work. She took a summer college course and then taught school in a one room schoolhouse the year before she married Lester Ford on June 4, 1950, at Peace Lutheran Church, Herreid, South Dakota.
She was a stay-at-home mom and homemaker raising nine children, teaching Sunday school, bible school, and singing in the church choir. She enjoyed working in a large garden each year while canning and freezing the vegetables. In 1966 they moved their family to rural Donahue, Iowa where Lester worked on a farm. In 1969, with the oldest child leaving home, Clara started work at the Iowa 80 Restaurant in Walcott. She quickly became head cashier of the night shift and helped each of her children to get their first job at the restaurant or truck stop. She soon became third shift manager for
several years. When Lester started working for the City of Davenport, Clara changed to cashier on second shift to match his schedule. She retired in April 1993.
She spent her retired years enjoying vacationing with her husband on their motorcycle, visiting and traveling with family, working in her garden, crocheting, and family genealogy. She was an active member of Hope Lutheran Church for over 55 years, ending with working the altar guild.
Those left to cherish her memory include her nine children: Gloria Olvera, James Ford; Mary (John) Rosenboom, John Ford, Jean Ford, Dale Ford (Armand Zakarauskas), Paul (Donna) Ford, Tim Ford, and Sheri (Rick) Duhme; sixteen grandchildren, twenty-two great grandchildren, two great-great grandchildren and a sister, Ruth Overby.
She was preceded in death by her husband Lester in October 2018, her parents, three brothers and one sister.
Memorials may be made to the family to distribute to various places in her memory.
