Leland U. Lester

Leland U. Lester, 94, of Newton, passed away Sunday, Nov. 15, 2015, at Skiff Medical Center in Newton. A funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18 at the Howard Street Christian Church in Colfax. Burial will follow at Colfax Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 at the church. The family will greet friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Memorials may be directed to the church and condolences may be left for the family at www.coburnfuneralhomes.com.

The son of Samual and Myrtle (Ulrich) Lester, Leland was born Oct. 21, 1921, in rural Colfax. He attended school in Colfax. Leland proudly served in the United States Navy. Leland was stationed on the USS Pennsylvania on Dec. 7, 1941, in Pearl Harbor. Following his time in the service, he was married on June 29, 1947, to Martha Jane Boatwright at her parents’ home in Colfax. Leland worked at the Monroe Table Company, Massey Ferguson and Farmland. He was a member of the Howard Street Christian Church and the American Legion. He enjoyed woodworking and sharing his stories of his military time.

Those left to honor his memory include his children, David Earl (Brenda) Lester, Fredena (Bill) Pion and Margie Louise Heston; six grandchildren, Dawn (Jeff) Chekal, Mary Ann Lester, Sarah (Todd) Holder, Mark (JoEllen) Linn, Stephanie Linn and Michael Kohrs; and nine great-grandchildren, Vanessa Roudaeush, Brooke Chekal, Katee Lester, Kyle Crady, Casey Crady, Marc DeBruyn, Kristina DeBruyn, Aaron Kohrs and Alex Kohrs; and a sister-in-law, Doris Lester. Preceding him in death were his parents; wife; two brothers, Robert E. Lester and Francis Durlyn (Phoebe) Lester.