Obituary of Geraldine K. Clausen

Geraldine K. “Gerry” Clausen, 93 of Iowa City passed away after a lengthy illness on Thursday, November 19, 2020, at Atrium Village in Hills. Graveside services will be held at 2pm Saturday, November 21, 2020, at Memory Gardens Cemetery. Geraldine’s service will be live streamed on Saturday afternoon and can be viewed later. Here is the direct Facebook Link to “Remembering Geraldine Clausen”. People can either click on the link and request to join or go to facebook and search “Remembering Geraldine Clausen” and request to join the group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1242781356108751 To share a thought, memory or condolence please visit the funeral home website @ www.gayandciha.com. Geraldine Kathryn Clausen was born on May 11. 1927, at her parent’s home to Alvin and Florence (Fair) Swanson in Osco, Illinois. After high school she attended Cosmetology school in Moline, Illinois. She moved to Iowa City to work and help her sister, Elaine Walline, care for her niece, Sandra. It was in Iowa City she met her husband, J. Christian (Chris) Clausen. They married in 1950 and were able to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. They had two daughters, Debra and Dawn. Gerry spent 70 years in their farm home near Hills. She loved her family, farming with her husband, and working outdoors in her gardens. She loved to tell people that she had her own tractor. She is survived by her daughter, Dawn Allen of Iowa City; two grandsons, Jeremy Allen and his wife, Jessica and their children, Paisley and Cutter of Iowa City; Lucas Allen and his wife, Krista and their son, Sawyer of Broomfield, Colorado; and Gerry’s sister, Francis Riggs and her husband, John of Genesco, Illinois. She was preceded in death by her husband, Chris; daughter, Debra; sister, Elaine Walline; brother, Howard Swanson and their spouses. Gerry’s family wants to thank her many caregivers. Those who cared for her at home and later those who cared for her at Atrium Village. In lieu of flowers, memorials will be added to the Debra Clausen Scholarship given annually through the University of Iowa College of Education.