Beverly Larsen

Beverly Lucille Caroline Larsen was born March 2, 1929, in Fort Dodge, Iowa, to Louis and Mary Lucille (Skuldt) Namen. She graduated from Franklin High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in 1948. She married Richard Peterson, to whom two children, Stephen and Christine, were born. That marriage ended in divorce.

In 1954, Beverly married Edwin F. Larsen at the Elk Horn Lutheran Church. Ed had two daughters, Linda and Marcia, from a previous marriage. Ed and Bev blended their two families into one. Linda, Marcia, Steve, and Christine were joined by a sister, Rachel, in 1955. The five children grew up together on the farm east of Elk Horn.

Bev was baptized at Calvary Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids in 1948. She became a member of Elk Horn Lutheran Church in 1954.

Bev worked on completing her college degree as a farm wife and mother. She graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Education from Dana College in Blair, Nebraska, in 1963. She taught elementary school in Irwin, Exira, and at Elk Horn-Kimballton for a total of 28 years. She authored five books and had over 50 articles published. Bev wrote the weekly “Farm Flavor” newspaper column in the Elk Horn and Audubon newspapers for almost 20 years. She tutored Vietnamese refugee families in English starting in 1975. She also learned and taught American Sign Language.

In 1980, Ed and Bev moved into their new home in Elk Horn. She led devotions at the Salem Home for 18 years. She operated “Bev’s Butik,” a Scandinavian imports store, for many years. She enjoyed giving presentations on Iowa pioneer women through Humanities Iowa at libraries and churches across the state. Her hobbies included reading, knitting, playing a table harp, and studying the Bible in Greek & Spanish.

Bev moved to the Exira Care Center Assisted Living in 2024. She passed away on November 5, 2025, at the Exira Care Center, at the age of 96.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Rina Dorheim Dangl; her son, Steve; and her husband, Ed, who passed away in 2016. She is survived by her daughters, Linda (Roger) Jensen of Atlantic, Marcia (Terry) Nelson of Kimballton, Christine Jensen of Boise, Idaho, and Rachel (Randy) Birks of Irwin. She is also lovingly remembered by eight grandchildren, sixteen great-grandchildren, and ten great-great-grandchildren, with one more expected soon, along with several nieces and cousins.

Visitation with the family will be held at Heartland Funeral Home in Harlan from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 16, 2025. Funeral Services will be held on Monday, November 17, 2025, at 10:30 a.m., at Elk Horn Lutheran Church. Burial will be held in the Elk Horn Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to the Elk Horn Lutheran Church’s Food Pantry in Beverly’s name.