Harold “Harry” Reiman, age 89, of Carroll, passed away on Thursday, April 20, 2023 at Journey Senior Services in Carroll.
Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, April 27, 2023 at Holy Spirit Catholic Church – St. John Paul II Parish in Carroll. The celebrant will be Fr. Patrick Behm, assisted by Deacon Butch Stone. Music will be by Kathy Halbur and Kathleen Macke. Lectors will be Evan Reiman, Garrett Miller, and Caleb Reiman. Gift Bearers will be Bradley Reiman, Bruce Reiman, Brenda Miller and Rodney Reiman. Eucharistic Minister will be Bradley Reiman. Casket Bearers will be Garrett Miller, Evan Reiman, Vanessa Miller, Lucas Reiman, Marcus Miller, Caleb Reiman, and Alyssa Reiman. Burial will be in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Carroll with military honors conducted by the Carroll American Legion.
Visitation will be held from 4 to 7p.m. on Wednesday, at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll where there will be a Rosary prayed at 5p.m. and a Christian Wake Service held at 6:30 p.m. The casket will be moved to Holy Spirit Church on Thursday morning where visitation will continue from 9:30 to 10:15 a.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to the family for later distribution.
Funeral arrangements are under the guidance of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll, and online condolences may be left for Harry’s family at www.sharpfuneral.com.
On April 20th Harry Reiman, passed away 11 days before his 90th birthday, probably because he wanted nothing to do with the party his family was going to throw for him.
Harry spent most of his life farming near the tiny town of Roselle, Iowa where he was born, grew up and raised his 4 children with the love of his life, Sally Wanninger. “When Harry met Sally” was always their tagline. They met at his sister’s and her brother ‘s wedding in 1956 and were together ever since for 65+ years. While dating, he gave his paycheck to her one week and said, “let’s go buy a ring!” Their son Bradley arrived a year later, and to their surprise they added twins Bruce and Brenda shortly thereafter. Six years later Rodney was born. “Be good” was his famous piece of advice to his children, and still was his parting remark to them after being together. He didn’t give long winded lectures. “Be good” covered so much ground all on its own. The simpleness of it illustrates how wise he was…. both in his heart and his mind. By his example, he taught his children to work hard, to never lie or cheat, to go to church on Sundays, and to have a sense of humor.
He took great pride in his 7 grandkids (Garrett, Vanessa, Marcus, Evan, Lucas, Caleb, and Alyssa) who affectionately called him PopPop. Two great grandchildren were added to his legacy in the past 7 months. Cohen Miller and Carsten Reiman will never know their great grandpa, but they will for sure hear the stories about him from his grandkids. They will tell them how he was kind and ornery and threw money on the lawn for Easter egg hunts.
Harry served in the Army from 1954-1956 and received an honorable discharge. He then began work at Juergens Produce and Feed where he worked until 1973. At that time, he then became a fulltime livestock and grain farmer, until he retired.
He was a rockstar on the ball field, playing Rover for many years for the Trio Tavern slow pitch team. Harry would fly around the bases at lightning speed while his family watched on the hood of their car, eating homemade greasy popcorn out of a huge paper grocery sack. Sometimes he had to leave in the middle of a ballgame to be taken to the chiropractor because he had hurt his back. Always a fan of the KC Royals and the St Louis Cardinals, he took his family on trips to major league baseball games every year.
Playing cards (pinochle, euchre, hearts) was a favorite pastime, and although he held his cards in complete disarray, he would win most of the time with that ornery smile and a clever comment. This past year, even in his declining health, many card games were played with family members, and with that twinkle in his eye, he continued to beat them. He loved a full rain gauge, naps in his recliner, and Anacin for any pain. He wasn’t a fan of facial hair, tattoos, and jeans with holes in them.
Together with Sally, they traveled the world on Farm Bureau sponsored trips. The mountains, oceans, castles, monuments etc were all wonderful but what Harry treasured and remembered most was the relationships he made on these trips. And he will always be remembered as the guy who kept a $100 bill in his shoe for emergencies on vacation. He adored Sally with every beat of his heart and every tap of his coffee cup to let her know he needed a refill. He was always proud of her, never minding at all if she would outshine him. A man of few words, he always signed his cards to her “Just Harry”.
The original six (Harry, Sally, his 3 sons and 1 daughter) were all together in his room at Journey Senior Services when the angels came to get him. Harry is reunited in heaven with his parents Joe and Elenor Reiman, siblings Valaria Sheets, Donald Reiman, Marlene Stecher, brothers-in-law Richard Stetcher, Roy Lidbeck, Merlyn Zubrod, Duane Irlmeier and Billy Wanninger, sisters-in-law Marilyn Zubrod and Delores Lidbeck. Left to carry on Harry’s legacy are his wife Sally, children Bradley Reiman (Claire) of West Des Moines, Bruce Reiman of Carroll, Brenda Miller (Jeff) of West Des Moines and Rodney Reiman (Jill) of Gilbert, Arizona, 7 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister Lue Wanninger, and sisters-in-law: Pauline Irlmeier, Shirley Reiman, Pat Zubrod and numerous nieces and nephews.