Julia Amanda Titus, of LeRoy, passed away from ALS (Lou Gehrig’s) on May 8, 2017 in Rochester, Minn.
Visitation will be held at Saetersdal Lutheran Church at 21477 County 30 in rural Harmony on Saturday, May 13 at 2 p.m.; a memorial service also will be at Saetersdal on May 13 at 3 p.m., with Pastor James Leonard of Valley Christian Center officiating. A graveside service will follow at Saetersdal Lutheran Cemetery. Lindstrom Funeral Home is handling the service arrangements.
Julia was born in Wykoff to Harvey and Mary Biel on February 19, 1942. She went to high school at Harmony High School and graduated in 1960. Upon graduation, she became a nurse’s aide at Saint Marys Hospital in Rochester before marrying Morris Kellogg in September of 1961. While a nurse’s aide, she provided care to a weathered, white-hair man from Ketchum, Idaho – it was Ernest Hemingway, who was at Saint Marys for treatment.
After settling in as a homemaker and mother to raise four children with Morris – three sons and a daughter – for the next two decades, Julia returned to Saint Marys to earn her degree as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) in 1982. She worked for the next several years as an LPN at Saint Marys.
Morris and Julia divorced in 1987, and she relocated to Kansas City, Mo., where she worked at the Veterans Administration Hospital as an LPN for 25 years. Her long-time companion, Rollins Mack Carpenter, passed away in 2002. Julia later moved to Lamoni, Iowa, where she married Thomas Richard “Dick” Titus, a military veteran, retired pilot and long-time rancher, in 2003. After retiring from her nursing career and then surviving a battle with breast cancer, Julia and Dick enjoyed many happy years at their ranch in Iowa, where they raised Angus cattle until full retirement in 2015. Julia often tended her gardens at home, and took care of dozens of stray cats who curiously found their way to the Titus Ranch, drawn in by the tender treatment of a veteran caregiver who never quite gave up nursing.
Julia was preceded in death by her parents, Harvey and Mary; one brother, Clifford; a sister, Cynthia; and a sister-in-law, Rosamond Biel.
Julia is survived by her brother Stan (LaVonne) of Durand, Wis.; sister Marion of Harmony; brother Louis of DeWitt, Iowa; son Daniel of Lake City; son Scott (Lorianne) of Fountain; daughter Polly (James) of LeRoy; son Shannon (Kellyn) of Leesburg, Va.; 12 grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and many special friends, including Jerilyn Grooters, Laura Rasmussen and Dave and Yasko Titus.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the ALS Association (www.alsa.org).
The family wishes to extend their gratitude to the ICU and hospice teams at Saint Marys for their support in her final days.
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