Moore brothers
John, Lester, Raymond, Edwin, Donald, Alleyne
Lester Leland Moore, 88, passed away May 15, 2014, in Ames, Iowa. Visitation will be held Thursday, May 22, from 6:30-8:30 pm at Collegiate United Methodist Church at 2622 Lincoln Way in Ames. A memorial service will be held Friday May 23 at 11:00 am at the same location, burial Ames Municipal Cemetery. Lester was born May 9, 1926, in Troy, Iowa. He was the 9th son of twelve children born to Rev. Forest Allen Moore and Ida May (Freeman) Moore. He graduated from Grinnell High School in 1943.
He enrolled in the United States Army at the age of 18, was sent overseas four months later, and was assigned to the 79th Infantry Division, 314th Regiment, 1st Battalion, Company A 1st Platoon, 1st Squad and was the 1st Scout. He was engaged in three major battles in the European Theater. After being wounded, he was sent back to the United States via the field hospital in Paris where he related he saw the Eiffel Tower through the ambulance window. He was discharged on June 16, 1946. For his service he was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with a V for valor, the Purple Heart, the Good Conduct medal, the American Theater and the European Theater ribbons, the Victory medal, the Combat Infantry Badge, the Presidential Unit Citation, Meritorious Unit Citation, the Allied Command ribbon, and the French Croix DeGuerre.
When he returned home, he attended college on the G.I. Bill and graduated from Simpson College in 1949. His debate team finished second in the national college tournament. In 1953 he received his School of Theology Bachelors and Masters degrees from Boston University School of Theology with a special emphasis on social ethics. He did graduate work at the University of Iowa.
Lester married Ruth Ellen Stremlow of Davenport, Iowa, on December 1, 1946. They parented four children with love, patience, kindness, and wisdom.
Lester was a wonderful father to his 4 children. He taught them life lessons every day through his example of kindness, patience, generosity, and love. The many family vacations and trips he spearheaded added marvelous experience and a world view to the whole family.
Lester and Ruth were married for forty-three wonderful years and were parted by Ruth's death in 1990. Lester loved his family dearly, and his grandchildren were treated to many adventures and much laughter. Bedtime story telling kept them begging for more.
In 1988 Lester was granted a Doctor of Divinity degree from Iowa Wesleyan College. He accepted his first position as a local pastor on December 5, 1946, at Liberty Methodist Church. This was 4 days after his marriage to Ruth. Together Lester and Ruth served many churches as a perfect team. They opened their home to friends and strangers alike. It was not unusual for Lester to invite a "man of the road" home for Sunday dinner with the family.
Churches served also included, South Middleboro-South Carver, Massachusetts North Muscatine Methodist Parish (Park Avenue, Sweetland, Spangler Chapel and High Prairie), Manning and Dedham Methodist, Corning United Methodist Parish (Corning, Mt. Etna, Brooks and Carbon, Collegiate United Methodist Church and Wesley Foundation, First United Methodist Church in Perry. He served as District Superintendent of the Muscatine District from 1983-1989.
Following his retirement in 1991, he served interim positions in Willow, Alaska, at St. Luke's United Methodist in Dubuque and at First United Methodist in Anchorage, Alaska. He represented the Ecumenical Ministries of Iowa as its representative attempting to organize community college campus ministries in various community colleges in the state. He also accepted an appointment as the Local Church Consultant for the Iowa United Methodist Foundation where he worked until 2003. Lester was elected by his peers to be a delegate to the General Conference of the United Methodist Church every four years from 1960-1984.
While his first love was the ministry, he also spent 18 months as an Administrative Assistant to Congressman John R. Hansen (of Manning, Iowa) from the 7th District in Iowa from 1965-1966. Moving his family to Washington D.C. was a decision which afforded him the opportunity to work on issues of importance to the country as well as offer each family member a very special and invaluable experience.
In 2003, Lester married Rosemary Woodin Reed. They enjoyed taking many trips and seeing all corners of the country. They were great fans of Iowa State basketball and supported both the men's and women's teams with season tickets. Rosemary passed away in 2013.
Lester is survived by his son, David (Linnea) Moore of Minneapolis, Minnesota; son, Jeffrey (Margaret) Moore of Milford, Michigan; daughter, Jane (Kevin) Clark of New Hope, Minnesota; son, Randall (Amy) Moore of Northfield, Minnesota; grandchildren, Miriam Moore, Joshua Moore, Juniper Moore, Caitlin Clark, Emma Clark, Neil Moore, and Lily Moore; step-children Dan Reed and Deb (Rich) Scott; siblings, Rev. Raymond (Marjorie) Moore, Edwin (Gwendolyn) Moore, and Priscilla (Dale) Strohbehn; sister-in-law Marles Moore; and multitudes of nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, Ruth, seven brothers, one sister, and wife Rosemary.