Fern Drury, 97, passed away peacefully on July 27, 2020, at Chosen Valley Care Center in Chatfield. She had been a resident there since 2018.
She was born Fern Irene Miller on January 27, 1923, in Franklin County, Iowa, to Ira and Mabel (Patton) Miller. She graduated from Hampton (Iowa) High School and Hamilton School of Commerce in Mason City, Iowa.
On August 31, 1943, she married Lyle Bartell in Mason City, Iowa. They were later divorced. She married Daryl Huntington on April 10, 1946 in Sioux Falls, S. Dak. Daryl died on October 9, 1971. On October 7, 1978, she married Reuben Drury at the Root Prairie Lutheran Church in rural Fountain, Minn. He died April 1, 1989.
Fern worked at Preston Dairy and Farm for many years.She was a very active member of the Fountain Lutheran Church, Fountain WELCA, Mary Circle, and Fountain Senior Citizens. She was a lifetime member of the Fillmore County Historical Society. She was also a longtime member of the Rochester Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Fountain Legion Auxiliary. She enjoyed reading, playing cards, Bible study, and spent many hours driving friends to their appointments and other functions.
She is survived by three sons, Gary (Mary Lee) Huntington of Buhl, Idaho, Robert (Carol) and William (Linda) Huntington of Chatfield and her stepson David Drury of Fountain, brother Dean Miller of Hampton, Iowa, and brother-in-law R. Peter Hansen of Phoenix, Ariz.; 20 great grandchildren and two step great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, husbands, her sons Wayne Bartell of Minneapolis, Minn., and Donald (Sharon) of Eau Claire, Wis., and also by her sister Doris Hansen of Phoenix and brothers Charles and Howard Miller of Sun City, Ariz.
A family gathering is planned at a later date. To share a memory or condolence with family, please visit rileyfuneralhomes.com.
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