Lois Gannon

On January 6, 2022, Lois Marie (Denbow) Gannon passed peacefully, embraced by the love of her family, and under the thoughtful care of the staff and volunteers of the Bird House Hospice Home of Johnson County and Iowa City Hospice.

Lois was born on July 16, 1925 to Carl and Laura Denbow, and raised on a farm near Gladbrook, Iowa, where she learned the value of hard work and living frugally. She played club basketball in Marshalltown and loved the sport all of her life. She especially loved watching the Iowa Hawkeye basketball team. As a secretary at Gethmann Construction in Gladbrook, IA, Lois caught the eye of a newly graduated Iowa State University engineer, whom Mr. Gethmann had hired. Don Gannon successfully won her heart, and they were married on November 29, 1952.Don eventually started his own construction company in Iowa City. Lois did the book work for the business, along with her full-time job of raising four children, and attending their many sports and activities. She stood by Don’s side through thick and thin, and the challenges of his Alzheimer’s Disease, until his death in 1995. Her family rejoices that they are now reunited in Heaven.

In her retirement, Lois enjoyed regular walks and coffee with her dear friends, Carol Kondora and Marie Gurnett. She also loved a competitive round of Rummikub or Bridge with her friends at Legacy, watching college sports, and keeping up with her children and grandchildren. Lois’s heart was so big, and beat so fully in her love for family and friends that it finally wore out.

To the end she continued to share that love, as well as her sense of humor, and prepared to meet her lord by praying the rosary. Her children will remember her for her qualities of kindness, encouragement, compassion, and her ability to listen.

Lois is survived by her brother, Richard “Dick” (Jolene) Denbow, her children and their spouses, Patty (and Steve) Wager, Mary (and John) Kaufmann, Mike (and Denise) Gannon, and Mark (and Leslie) Gannon. She was blessed with seventeen grandchildren: David, Dustin, and Anna Wager; Sarah (and Brian) Nagle, Katie (and Gonzalo) Saldivar, Michael, Paul, Patrick, and Timothy Kaufmann; Rachael (and fiancé, Aaron Palmer), Jacob (and Kelly) Gannon, Maria (and Luke) Koester, Jonathan, and James Gannon; and Chad Gannon, Lindsay (and Rommel) Mayuga, and Chelsey (and Kirby) Rabalais. She was delighted to know her six great grandchildren, Penelope, Harley, Porter, Birdie, Elora, and Stella, and was well-loved by nieces, nephews, and friends too numerous to list. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband Don, her parents Carl and Laura, her brother Robert Denbow, and sisters Marge Dreessen, Edith Whannel, and Barbara Kienzle.

Lois’s family will greet friends Monday, January 10th, from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at Lensing Funeral Service in Iowa City. A Mass Celebrating Lois’s life will be held Tuesday, January 11th, at 10:00 am, at Saint Thomas More Catholic Church, 3000 12th Avenue in Coralville. Burial will follow in St. Joseph Cemetery in Iowa City. The family respectfully requests that all guests at her service be masked, regardless of COVID vaccination status.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to Iowa City Hospice or Alzheimer’s Research at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, c/o The U of I Foundation.