Virginia Degen

Virginia Mae Degen was born September 1, 1923 to Warren and Lavina (Wellendorf) Roben at Ashton, Iowa. She was baptized and confirmed in the Catholic faith. She attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Ashton through her junior year until her family moved to Sibley, Iowa, where she graduated from Sibley High School in 1940.

Virginia was employed as a secretary/bookkeeper until her marriage to Leonard Degen of Granville, Iowa on November 11, 1948 at St. Andrew’s Catholic Church of Sibley. She and Leonard lived on farms in several areas in northwest Iowa until purchasing a farm northwest of Holstein in 1972. They retired from farming in 1988 and moved into Holstein.

She was a member of Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church, where she held several offices in the Rosary Society and assisted with the Religious Education program for many years. She was a charter member of the Ida County Historical Society and longtime member of the Douglas Homemakers Club. She was a volunteer at the Good Samaritan Society of Holstein and delivered Meals on Wheels for many years.

In 1982, Virginia became a certified literary Braille transcriber for the Iowa Department for the Blind, and in 1997 became certified in Braille mathematics. In addition to transcribing many textbooks into Braille, she mentored students taking both the literary and mathematics Braille courses. In 2005 she received the Elizabeth Perowski Memorial Award for her volunteer service for the blind. She retired from her work in Braille in 2011.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Leonard in 2005; sister, Joyce Grush; brother, Ronald Roben; and twin sisters, Dorothy and Doris who died in infancy. She is also preceded by her in-laws, Les Fuchsen, James Goff, Robert Degen, Don Degen, Esther and Vincent Lombardo, Marion Fuchsen and William Degen.

Virginia is survived by her three children, Elisabeth and husband, Steven Hotvedt of Sioux City, IA, Christopher Degen of Storm Lake, IA and Rich and wife Michelle Degen of Holstein, IA; three grandchildren, Jessi and husband, Brien Cosgrove, Cole Degen and Austin Degen; and one great-granddaughter, Hannah Tott. She is also survived by her sister, Lavonne Sally Walton of Montrose, CO; in-laws, Florence Goff of Sioux City, IA, Camilla Degen of Omaha, NE, Anita Degen of Algona, IA, Ann Degen of Bancroft, IA, and Rev. Jerome Degen of Fort Dodge, IA; and many nieces and nephews.