Lora Beth Wilson

Lora Beth Wilson

Paullina, Iowa

Services for Beth Wilson, age 91, of Paullina who passed away on Wednesday, January 24, 2024, at Prairie View Home in Sanborn.  Her memorial service will be 11:00 A.M. on Saturday, February 3, 2024, at the Friends Meeting House in rural Paullina.

The service will be livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/events/397142642672352/

Burial will be at a later date at the Friends Cemetery in rural Paullina.

Visitation with the family present will be from 6 to 8 P.M. Friday, February 2, 2024, at the Eldridge Family Funeral Home in Paullina.

In lieu of flowers memorials can be directed to the Friends Meeting House in rural Paullina.

Lora Beth Wilson

Beth Wilson died on January 24, 2024 in Sanborn, IA. Daughter of Walter and Emma (Larson) Henderson, Beth was born on September 23, 1932, at her grandparents’ home near Gaza, Iowa.  After going to Gaza Elementary School, she graduated high school from Scattergood Friends School in West Branch, IA, and went on to study music at the University of South Dakota, in Vermillion, SD.

She married Ernest Wilson on June 30,1951, at the Paullina Friends Meeting. The couple farmed near Sutherland, IA and re-located to Webb, IA for five years before moving to Paullina, IA in 1959 where they raised their family. 

Beth was a devout Quaker and regularly practiced her belief in being of service to others in her community and the wider world. In the 1960’s, she organized a summer program, bringing inner-city children to local host families for two-week farm experiences. In 1987, she joined a delegation of women who visited the USSR as part of Peace Links, a volunteer organization empowering women to work towards abolishing nuclear weapons and promoting conflict management. She served in various positions supporting the Iowa Yearly Meeting of Friends, including clerk, and as a representative to the Friends Committee on National Legislation. 

She believed strongly in the power of education and remained a supporter of Scattergood Friends School, serving on and chairing the school board for a number of years. An avid reader, Beth also served as a board member of the Paullina Public Library.

In her later years, Beth spent time enjoying her many interests including quilting, gardening and painting. As a loving mother, grandmother and friend, Beth developed and maintained a large network of friends and family. 

Beth is predeceased by her husband, her parents and her siblings, Rolland Henderson and Mary Kimelman. She is survived by her children, Dan (Lorna) Wilson, Colin (Carla) Wilson, Holly (Alan McMahon) Wilson and Brent (Penney) Wilson; her brothers, Thomas and Phillip Henderson; 17 grandchildren; and 18 great-grandchildren.