Herbert L. Tew

Herbert Leroy Tew was born February 26, 1921 in Grinnell, Iowa; the son of Donald, Sr. and Evelyn (Evens) Tew. Herb passed away Thursday, April 8, 2010 at Wright Medical Center. He was 89 years old.

A private memorial service was held at the Ewing Funeral Home on Saturday, April 10th. Interment was at the Evergreen Cemetery in Clarion on Monday, April 12. 

Herb attended school in Grinnell and graduated from Grinnell High School in 1939. Following graduation, he worked as a set-up man for John Deere until WWII when he enlisted in the Navy. He served at Pearl Harbor arriving shortly after the attack where he served as an activation mechanic. He and his father, Don, were both members of the John Deere 600 Man Battalion during WWII.

He married Edna L. Zeigler on December 16, 1948 at St. John's Lutheran Church in Corwith, Iowa. Herb and Edna lived in Huxley and Kanawha where Herb worked as a John Deere mechanic, before settling in Clarion where he worked for Claude Banwell John Deere until it closed. He then worked for Clarion's Massey Ferguson and as a shop mechanic for Wright County until he retired in 1985.

Herb is survived by his children: Paul (Pam) Tew, Dwight (Roberta) Tew, and Carol VanDyke. He has 8 grandchildren: Shawn (Tiffany) and James (Jennifer) Tew, Jennifer Woodbeck (Galen Andrews); Jeff Jensen, Andrew (Amanda), and Joshua (Emery) Tew; and Jamie (Kelley) and LuAnn VanDyke. He had 17 great grandchildren: Zachary, Savannah, Brennan, Brady, and Alexander Tew; Peyton Woodbeck and Brenna Andrews; Hannah, Owen, Ella Tew; and Asa Tew. Also surviving are his brothers Donald Tew Jr. and Wayne (Lynn) Tew, his sister, Maxine Reediz; sister-in-law Maxine Zeigler; and numerous nieces and nephews.