A funeral service for George E. Ross of Audubon will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, September 14, 1996, at First United Methodist Church in Audubon.

Mr. Ross, 79, died Wednesday, September 11, 1996, at his home.

Dr. Emmanuel Tabelisma and the Rev. David Vanderpool will officiate the service.

Casket bearers will be Kenny Deist, Rick Hansen, Jim Heithoff, Wayne Rasmussen, Joe Riesberg, Don Rustvoldt, and Fred Sievers.

Burial will be Cameron Township Cemetery, east of Gray.

Friends may call at their convenience at Kessler Funeral Home in Audubon.

Born September 16, 1916, on his parents' farm north of Audubon, he was a son of Sam and Iola (Johnson) Ross.

He was baptized and confirmed at the Methodist church in Audubon.

Mr. Ross attended rural school in Audubon County graduating from Audubon High School in 1934. He then attended Capital City Commercial College in Des Moines where he studied accounting.

He and Virginia Nickum were married April 27, 1937, at Rock Island, Illinois. The couple lived in Moline, Illinois, for a short time while Mr. Ross was employed by an implement company.

The couple returned to Audubon and Mr. Ross began farming with his father. He also carried mail from Audubon to Gray and worked at the corn plant in Coon Rapids, until selling his farm equipment.

He contracted leukemia in 1976.

Mrs. Ross died in 1981. Mr. Ross helped his son-in-law, John, farm and later helped Jim Heithoff farm. He retired in 1991.

He and Donella Mickelson were married November 5, 1982, at Faith Fellowship Church in Audubon. In 1984, the couple moved into Audubon. She died in 1989.

Mr. Ross was an antique collector of tractors and cars and participated in parades and fairs.

Mr. Ross was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Audubon, where he served on the Stewardship Committee and kept attendance records; Farm Bureau and the Dedham Co-op.

Survivors include his daughter, Deborah Swensen and her husband, John, of Audubon; two grandchildren: Nathan and Jesse Swensen, both of Audubon; four step-children and their spouses: Brenda and Mike Eckerman of Carroll, Jill and Jim Schultes of Dedham, Tim and Cheryl Hart of Deltona, Florida, and Rick and Joan Hart of Plano, Texas; eight step-grandchildren; his sister, Mary Ellen Quandt and her husband, Harvey; his father-in-law, Normal Mickelson, of Hamlin; his sister-in-law, Lori Joens, of Manning; his brothers-in-law and their spouses: Melvin and Lorraine Knudsen of Audubon and Harold and Ginnie Nickum of Glenwood.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his wives; two sons: George Randall Ross and Jimmy Ross; a daughter, Rebecca Ross, in infancy; two brothers-in-law: Ted Moreland and Donald "Bonnie" Joens; and a sister-in-law, Coreen Knudsen.