Florence Frances Wrage

, 92, of Gladbrook, IA passed away Sunday, May 1, 2022, at Westbrook Acres Nursing Home in Gladbrook. Funeral services will be at 10:30 a.m. Friday, May 6, 2022, at Peace United Church of Christ in Gladbrook. Visitation will be 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Thursday, May 5, 2022, also at Peace United Church of Christ. Interment will take place at Crystal Cemetery in rural Gladbrook. Because of Florence’s love for her lifelong hometown, a memorial has been established in support of the community of Gladbrook. Memorials may be sent in care of Anderson Funeral Homes, 405 W. Main St., Marshalltown, IA 50158. Online condolences may be sent to www.andersonfhs.com.

Florence was born December 10, 1929, to Charles and Anna (Kammerer) Busch on the family farm southeast of Gladbrook. She attended school at Spring Creek #6 just a short distance from the family farm. After 8th grade, Florence attended Gladbrook High School, graduating in 1948. She then graduated from Gates Business College in Waterloo, IA. While working in Waterloo, she and friends often attended dances at the Electric Park Ballroom where she met her future husband, Gus Wrage. They were united in marriage on April 10, 1951, in Waterloo. She and her husband started farming south of Hudson, IA before moving to their farm just east of Gladbrook. Florence was an active participant in their farming operation saying, “I believe we were both meant to be farmers.” Seeing the cows with their baby calves in the spring brought her great pleasure, even long after their farming years. In addition to helping with the farm work, she kept a vegetable garden and, loving flowers had a large flower garden. Several years after retirement from farming, they moved into Gladbrook in 1998.

Florence and Gus loved to travel and visited numerous European countries during their several overseas trips. Since they both had grown up speaking only German until entering grade school, they especially loved visiting family in Germany and then having the German relatives visit them in Gladbrook. They also enjoyed bus tours around the United States, eventually traveling through all 50 states.

She was a member of the Peace United Church of Christ and the Gladbrook American Legion Auxiliary.

Florence will be missed by numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and lifelong friends.

She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Gus, in 2007.