Joseph Henry Clercx, 84, Jasper, formerly of Luverne, died Sunday, Jan. 19, 2003, at Luverne Hospice Cottage.
Services were Thursday, Jan. 23, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Jasper. Burial was in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, Jasper.
Joseph Clercx was born to Peter and Margaret (Snyders) Clercx on July 20, 1918, in Larchwood, Iowa. He was baptized on July 21, 1918, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Larchwood. He was raised on the family farm southwest of Larchwood, near Klondike, Iowa. He attended country school and St. Mary’s Catholic School in Larchwood. After his graduation from high school in 1936, he worked as a carpenter. He also worked as a musician, playing his trumpet with his family in the Clercx Family Dance Band for many years throughout the area. On April 18, 1941, he entered the U.S. Army in Omaha, Neb. He served during World War II in England, Italy, Northern Ireland and North Africa. After his discharge from the service on June 11, 1945, he returned to Larchwood. He worked installing refrigeration units for Gustafson & Larson Refrigeration in Sioux Falls, S.D. In 1951 he moved to Ortonville where he worked as a car salesman.
He married Leola Rabey Wade on May 9, 1953, in Ortonville. Following their marriage they moved to Marshall and then Ihlen. In 1956 they moved to Jasper where he sold automobiles for Scheppmann Motors. In 1958 he worked for Connell Chevrolet in Luverne where he remained until retiring in 1982. During this time he also worked for the U.S. Postal Service as a rural carrier from 1964 to 1983. After his retirement he obtained his real estate license and sold real estate for Quartzsite Realty in Jasper until this past year. He was admitted to Luverne Hospice Cottage on Wednesday, Jan. 15.
Mr. Clercx was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Jasper, where he had served on the parish council and was also a Eucharistic minister and a trustee. He was a member of Knights of Columbus, serving as financial secretary for more than 35 years and the Oscar Iverson American Legion Post #133 in Jasper. He had served as a peer counselor for the Southwest Area Agency on Aging. He was active in the DFL Party and in 1980 attended the National Democratic Convention. He loved playing his trumpet and until recently he played with the Jasper Blowhards. His hobbies included cars, stamp collecting and coin collecting.
Survivors include his wife, Leola "Toots" Clercx, Jasper; three children, Rick (Diane) Clercx, Slayton, Jolene (Doug) Hookie, David City, Neb., and Marla Clercx, Florence, Wis.; one stepdaughter, Judy (John) Rosa, Junction City, Kan., and one stepson, David (DeAnn) Wade, Elwood, Neb., nine grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; two brothers, Al (Frances) Clercx, and Greg (Vicki) Clercx, all of Sioux Falls; and one sister-in-law, Mary Clercx, Rock Rapids, Iowa.
Mr. Clercx was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers, John and Frank Clercx; and two sisters, Ann Simons and Mary Agnes Kramer.
Foster-Hartquist Funeral Home, Jasper, was in charge of arrangements.