Obituary of Valdean Lembke

Valdean Charles Lembke passed away peacefully at his home on February 27^th, 2024. A visitation for family and friends will be held on Friday, March 1st from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Gay and Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service  with a funeral service held at 10:30am on  Saturday, March 2nd, at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Iowa City. 

Val was born November 21, 1935, on the family farm near Monona, Iowa, the son of Erwin and Mildred (Sass) Lembke.  He was preceded in death by both parents and his brother Norbert Lembke and is  survived by his wife, Lois, and sons Ronald Lembke and his wife Becky, and Gary Lembke and his wife Erica, and grandchildren Grace and Noah Tibben-Lembke and Carter Lembke.

Val attended country school through the eight grade and MFL High School in Monona, Iowa.  He then enlisted in the US Army Ordnance Corps and spent three years in the European Headquarters in Ludwigsburg, Germany.   With support from the GI Bill, he was able to attend Iowa State University, graduating with majors in accounting and finance, and was later honored as an outstanding alumnus. As a student he served on student senate and in a variety of positions as a member of Beta Sigma Psi fraternity.  As a senior he was inducted into Cardinal Key, the highest men’s honorary on campus.  Val and Lois Davidson met while students at Iowa State and were married in July 1963, celebrating more than 60 years together.

Val worked in Chicago in public accounting with Arthur Andersen & Co. for two years before earning his MBA and PhD degrees from the University of Michigan.  In 1968 he joined the Department of Accounting at the University of Iowa and remained on faculty until retirement in June 2001, serving several terms as department chair, director of the professional program in accounting, and a member of search committees in the College of Business and the university and was especially proud of being named the first recipient of the Gil Maynard Outstanding Teacher Award.  He was an active member of the American Accounting Association, serving as chair of the Midwest Region and a member of the national council.  He helped establish and for many years coordinated a very successful program to assist accounting majors in passing the CPA examination.  While on faculty, he published a number of articles and coauthored an advanced accounting text, remaining as a coauthor through six editions.  Following retirement, he served on the University of Iowa Emeritus Faculty Council and as a long-term member of the Senior College Board.  Additionally, he was named an outstanding volunteer for the University of Iowa Retiree’s Association.

Val learned to enjoy travel while in the US Army and he and Lois spent time with sons Ron and Gary camping nearly every summer until they were in college, visiting all but one or two of the states in the U.S. and Canadian provinces   In subsequent years, Lois and Val traveled with friends to more than 40     countries in Europe and around the world, including visiting Berlin while it was under Russian control.

Val was an active member of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, serving as Sunday school head, three terms on church council, and on a variety of call committees and other committees.  He chaired the Lutheran Campus Ministry board when it sold its live-in community property to the University of Iowa and purchased joint ownership of Old Brick.   

He and Lois enjoyed living in Iowa City since 1968, for many years attending Iowa football and men’s and women’s basketball games and concert series at Hancher auditorium.  He and Lois also loved traveling to watch their grandchildren Grace and Noah in many orchestra, band, choir, and drum corp performances. In addition, they traveled and braved the elements, to watch their grandson Carter in cycling events.

Many will remember his diplomacy, his kindness, his outreach, and his quick wit. He served for 6 years on the Iowa City Free Medical Clinic board, served in Lutheran Chaplaincy Outreach for 6 years, and provided courses on how to do accounting to non profit organizations.

In lieu of flowers, Valdean’s favorite organizations to support were Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Iowa City, Lutheran Campus Ministry, and the Iowa City Free Medical and Dental Clinic.

A livestream of the funeral service Saturday will be livestreamed for those unable to attend. You can find the livestream on the Gloria Dei website: www.gloriadeilive.org.