Mark J Rohlfs

Funeral services to celebrate the life of Mark J. Rohlfs, 98, of Davenport will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 31st, 2010 at St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Davenport. Burial will follow at Oakdale Memorial Gardens. The family will greet friends on Monday, August 30th from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Cunnick-Collins Mortuary in Davenport. Mr. Rohlfs died on Friday, August 27, 2010 at the Good Samaritan Care Center in Davenport.Mark Jensen Rohlfs was born on January 2, 1912, in Davenport, IA, the son of Richard and Augusta (Koch) Rohlfs. He graduated from the former Davenport High School with the class of 1930. On November 24, 1938 he married Leola G. Frerichs in Davenport. She preceded him in death in December of 2008.Mr. Rohlfs was a nurseryman his entire life. He co-owned and operated, along with his wife, Rohlfs Nursery in Davenport—the name was later changed to Alta Vista Nurseries. His father started the nursery in 1904. Mark had a love for life and for growing trees and developing new peonies. He developed and propagated 4 different varieties of crab trees; the Davenport, the Leola, the Margo, and the Allan. Three of the trees were planted at VanDerVeer Park, and the other is planted at Duck Creek Park. Many streets in Davenport and Bettendorf are also landscaped with these trees. His most recent development was a peony that he named “St. Matthew” for his church, and gave all the members a plant. His acres of peonies were a beautiful sight in the spring. In earlier years, Mark and his wife were very active members of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Davenport. He served on the church council, worked with the Luther League, and taught Sunday school for many years. When the church decided to develop a “mission church” in Northwest Davenport, Mark was active with the planning and building committee and helped establish what is now St. Matthew Lutheran Church. As a charter member of the church, he served on the first church council, the stewardship committee, the building committee, various other church committees, and was active as a senior high Sunday school teacher. He recently celebrated 57 years of membership at St. Matthew, where he also the lead the opening worship at Sunday school for many years. His church and faith were of the greatest importance to him in his daily life. Mr. Rohlfs was a member of the American Nurseryman’s Association, the Iowa Nurseryman’s Association, the Iowa Arboretum Association, and the Iowa Christmas Tree Association. In more recent years, Mark planted and sold Christmas trees, but “never on Sunday,” and donated trees to any area church that would ask. At one time he received a beautification award from the city of Davenport for his plantings and other various philanthropic work.He is survived by a daughter, Margo (Jim) Hancock of Davenport; a son, Allan (Karen Hanas) of Chicago; his grandson, Jensen; a very, very special little girl, and many nieces and nephews.He was preceded in death by his wife, Leola, in 1998; a sister, Mae; and 2 brothers, Neal and John. Memorials may be made to either the Good Samaritan Care Center – Davenport, the Good Shepherd Fund at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago, the American Diabeties Association, or to St. Matthew Lutheran Church.