Nellie "Nell" M. Koepke

Nellie “Nell” Koepke, age 105, of Kearney died Tuesday, November 7, 2017 at the Mother Hull Home in Kearney. Funeral services will be Friday, November 10, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. at the Horner-Lieske-McBride and Kuhl Funeral Chapel with Pastor Dean Pofahl officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to the funeral service. Burial will be Monday, November 13 at 1:00 p.m. at the Soldier Valley Cemetery in Pisgah, Iowa. Memorials are planned to the Kearney Area Animal Shelter or to the Mother Hull Home. Please visit www.hlmkfuneral.com to leave a tribute or message of condolence. Horner Lieske McBride & Kuhl Funeral and Cremation Services in Kearney are in charge of arrangements. Nellie May (Bryceson) Koepke was born October 29, 1912, in Pisgah, Iowa, the second of four children born to Allen and Minnie C. “Christie” (Bryan) Bryceson. She spent her childhood in Pisgah and received her education there graduating from Pisgah High School in 1930. It was when Nell went to work for a relative in Blue Hill, Nebraska, that she met and married Oscar Koepke. Their marriage took place in Blue Hill on April 1, 1934. They remained in Blue Hill, and it was there that their son was born. The family later moved to Kearney where they owned the O.K. Farm and Motor Company. In 1956, they moved to Colorado residing in Boulder and later in Estes Park. In 1973, they moved to Pisgah, Iowa. Oscar died in 1979, but Nell remained in her Pisgah home until 1993 when she moved to Kearney to be near her son and granddaughters. Nell will be remembered for her quick wit, her pencil skirts and high-heeled shoes, and her love for animals. She enjoyed cooking and sewing, and in retirement she travelled extensively with friends and relatives. In later life, she made many baby blankets which she enjoyed giving away, and she was proud that recipients included children in several foreign countries and all living First Ladies. She was a willing caregiver when a friend or relative was in need. She was a member of First Lutheran Church. Nell is survived by her son, Gene and his wife Connie; two granddaughters and their husbands, Jennifer and Steve Homan and Christie and Ben Hirschfeld; five great granddaughters, Claire, Samantha, and Mia Homan, and Lillian and Ada Hirschfeld; two nieces and four nephews. In addition to her husband, Nell was preceded in death by her parents; her stepmother, Millie Bryceson; brothers, James and wife Ilene and Harrison; sister, Frances Wakehouse and husband Ralph; sister-in-law, Letha Bachman and husband Harold; and brother-in-law, Gilbert Koepke and wife Dorothy.

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Nellie "Nell" M. Koepke

October 29, 1912 - November 7, 2017