Walter 'Wally' C. Beck

Walter ‘Wally’ Beck, age 90, of Kearney, NE, passed away Friday, July 7, 2023 at Brookfield Park Nursing Home in St. Paul, NE. Funeral Services will be on Thursday, July 13, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Kearney. Pastor John Rasmussen will officiate. Burial will follow at Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery near Arapahoe, NE at 2:30 p.m. Visitation will be 1 hour prior to services at the church on Thursday. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to Holy Cross Lutheran Church or to the family to be designated later. Please visit www.hlmkfuneral.com to view the full obituary or to leave a message of condolence. Horner Lieske McBride and Kuhl Funeral and Cremation Services in Kearney are in charge of the arrangements. Wally was born on September 27, 1932 in Sauk Rapids, MN to the Rev. John and Gloria (Berwald) Beck. Most of his childhood was spent in Minnesota. He attended boarding high school at Concordia in Seward, NE graduating in 1949 and four years later earned his Bachelor's degree in education from Concordia Teachers’ College. He first taught in Addison, Illinois. In college at Seward, he met Elizabeth “Betty” Hermes and in 1956 they were united in marriage at Trinity Lutheran Church in Arapahoe, NE. He received a call to teach and coach at Concordia in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Their sons Kevin and Rick were born there. They accepted their next call to St. Paul, Minnesota where Wally taught at Jehovah Lutheran School and was the Youth Director at the church. While in St. Paul, MN, their daughter Katie was born. The Beck family moved to Grand Island, NE in 1965. There they both taught at Trinity Lutheran School during which time he earned his Master’s degree in School Counseling from Kearney State College. Wally spent his last 27 years in education as a counselor at Northwest High School in GI, retiring in 1996. In 2007, Wally and Betty moved to Hastings, NE and in 2016 they moved to Kearney, NE. Betty went to her eternal rest in 2017. Walter moved to St. Paul, NE for the last month of his life. Wally spread joy EVERYWHERE he went. That joy came from a deep, intense love for His Savior. He had many hobbies and adventures in life, and he loved his family and friends more than life itself. He was ornery, genuine, accident-prone, loving, funny, kind, and a people-magnet. But his faith was the most important aspect of his life and he wanted everyone to know his Jesus and he’d always say, “Ya know, Jesus loves you!” Left to cherish his memory are their Children, Kevin Beck of St. Petersburg, Florida, Rick and Valerie (Thomas) Beck of Honomu, Hawaii, and Katie (Beck) and Mike Mathews of St. Paul, NE; Grandchildren, Ryan and Mitsuko (Oitome) Beck of Lafayette, CO, Emily Beck of Las Vegas, NV, Mitch and Libby (Szymanski) Mathews of Kearney, NE , MacKenzie (Mathews) and Carlos Tejada of Celina, TX; and one great grandchild, Mila Tejada; his surviving siblings include Dr. William and Geri Beck, Rosemary Dietrich, Rev. John and Barbara Beck, Roger Dubbe, Maxine Beck, Gloria and Bob Becker, Alice Oelke, Charles and Margaret Hermes, Doug and Cheryl Schutz and many, many beloved nieces and nephews on each side of the family. Wally was also considered a cherished part of an extended Dr. Maurice and Maedean Mathews/Dr. Rich and Sandy Fruehling family. Walter is preceded in death by both of his and Betty’s parents, siblings Johanna and Harlan Muehring, Glorianna Dubbe, Lowell Beck, Clifford Dietrich, William and Ruth Hermes, Charlotte and Bob Hawthorne, Victor Oelke, MaryLou and Lee Weber, nephew Jason Beck and niece Tara Knowles.

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Walter 'Wally' C. Beck

September 27, 1932 - July 7, 2023