S. Ronald Gilbert

Samuel Ronald Gilbert, 86 of Olin, died Wednesday, October, 14, 2009 at St. Luke's Hospital Cedar Rapids. Services for Ron will be 2:30 p.m., Sunday at the First Presbyterian Church in Mechanicsville, where friends may call from 1:30 p.m. until service time. The burial will be in Rose Hill Cemetery. Surviving Ron are his wife Alta Mae; a brother Carl in Arizona; 7 sisters-in-law; 5 brothers-in-law; and many nieces and nephews. Preceding Ron in death were his parents; 3 brothers: Elwin, Grant, Lloyd; 2 sisters: Doris and Marian. Ron was born April 21, 1923 in Polo, Illinois, the son of Samuel C. and Naomi E. Schell Gilbert. He graduated from Polo High School, from Cornell College, and received a Masters of Education from Drake University. Ron served as a U. S. Navy guard on fuel tankers during WWII. He married Alta Mae Farrington in 1951 in Mechancisville. The couple moved to Polo where they farmed the family farm for seven years, moved to Fontanelle, and to Clear Lake in 1961 where Ron was a popular biology and physiology teacher for the next twenty-five years. In 2008 the couple moved to Olin. He was a member of the American Legion Post #222 Clear Lake. Ron was a lover of nature especially bird watching and gardening. Ron will always be remembered for his dedication to education and his sense of humor. Memorials in Ron's honor may be made to the American Legion Busch-Dennis Post # in Mechanicsville or Mechanicsville Ambulance-EMT