Wall

Traer Fire Department

Iowa Fire Fighter Memorial

These are the names of Traer Fire Fighters on the Iowa Fire Fighters Memorial Wall.

The wall is located at: I-80 Exit 242; Coralville, Iowa

You can visit the Iowa Firefighters Memorial page by selecting its icon on the main page.

Iowa Fire Fighter Memorial

Traer Fire Department Names

Delbert Boldt

Lawrence Childs

Oren Finch

John Congdon Fleming

Paul Fleming

Ted Joens

George Kebschull

James G. Pavelka

Reg Reuman

Melvin W. Scott

John Robert Thomas

Ed Vesely

John Whannel

Richard Dean "Dick" Young

Delbert Boldt was a member of the Traer Fire Department from June 1959-1989. He was a charter member of the Traer Ambulance Service, started in 1972. He owned and operated Sunnyside Tavern and Golden Door Motel. His love in life was serving others. Delbert enjoyed the fire service and attended many fire schools and conventions--fellowship he treasured. His favorite pastime was the waterball contest, where he saw old friends and met new ones.
Delbert passed on Sept. 17, 1998. He was a 40-year Lions member, past director of the Traer Chamber of Commerce and member of St. Paul's Catholic Church. Delbert is survived by two sons and one daughter -- Marvin Boldt, member of the Traer Fire Department and past President of the Iowa Firemen's Association, Terry Boldt of Traer, and Patty Guzman of Traer.

Lawrence Childs Active member of the Traer Fire Department from 1954 to 1987

Oren Finch was a mechanic in Traer for many years and later he and his family moved to Cedar Rapids. Oren was active on the Traer Fire Department from 1940 to 1960.

John Congdon Fleming was born July 22, 1926, north of Traer, Iowa, the son of Paul C. Ruthal (Congdon) Fleming. He moved with his family to Traer where he attended school and graduated from Traer High School in the Class of 1944. In July that year he entered the U.S. Navy where he served his country during World War II. In November of 1946 he received his discharge and returned to Traer where he operated the Skelly Gas Station.
On June 18, 1949, he was united in marriage to Mildred Rohach at Marshalltown, Iowa. The made their home and all their married life in Traer where he worked with his father driving truck at the Skelly Bulk Station. Beginning in 1972 John and Millie worked together for 20 years at the Traer Country Club as greens keepers until their retirement in 1992. On May 14, 2000, John entered Covenant Medical Center where his death came on Sunday, May 21, 2000, at the age of 73 years.
John was a member of the Traer Fire Department for 40 years, the Traer Country Club, and a 50-year member of the Traer American Legion and the Traer Masonic Lodge. He also served as a volunteer for the Traer Ambulance Service.

Paul Fleming was a member of the Traer Fire Department from 1935 until 1965. He was elected chief of the department in 1944 and served until 1948 when he retired because of a health problem. He was again elected chief in 1954 and was serving as chief at the time of his death in 1965. Chief Fleming had a hand in developing the Traer rural fire protection plan, which is used by nay cities and towns in the state as a model. He is survived by two sons, John of Traer, himself a long-time Traer firefighter, and Lorin of Cedar Falls.

Ted Joens was a member of the Traer Fire Department from 1935 to 1973. Ted also served as secretary-treasurer of the department for many years. Ted and his wife ran an appliance store in Traer for many years.

George Kebschull was a member of the Traer Fire Department from 1938 to 1974.

James G. Pavelka was born Feb. 22, 1926. He married Lucille Cizek on April 8, 1947 and had three children, Nancy, Dennis, and Beverly. Jim served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He was a member of the Traer Volunteer Fire Department from Dec. 30, 1963 to Jan. 7, 1978. Jim drove school buses for many years at Traer School and worked in central Iowa all his life.

Reg Reuman was a member of the Traer Fire Department for 20 years and was serving the department as captain at the time of his death. Reg was also very active in the Traer community in various projects and organizations. He was married to Mary and they had three daughters.

Melvin W. Scott was born on Oct. 1, 1906, to Will and Carrie Scott. He grew up in Traer, Iowa, graduating from high school in the 1925 class. He attended Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, and Iowa State Teacher's College in Cedar Falls. He married Betty Thompson of Clarksville, Iowa. Melvin passed away at age 30 of a ruptured appendix and complications. He left behind his wife and two children, Gordon, age 7, and Dona Mae, age 5. Melvin was a popular clerk at the R. J. Smith Drug Store. He was also an active member of the Traer Fire Department for only 20 months, rarely missing a meeting or fire.

John Robert Thomas was born Feb. 13, 1918, in Traer, Iowa, the son of Paul and Zenaide (Kahler) Thomas. He received his education in Traer and graduated with the class of 1938. On July 18, 1939, he was united in marriage to Euterpa Mae Hagedorn at Fort Collins, CO. He then worked in the family plumbing business before entering the Coast Guard. He served his country during World War II in the South Pacific and was involved at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Following his discharge he returned to Traer to work for the U.S. Postal Service and continued in the plumbing and heating business. John was an active member of the community by serving as a Boy Scout leader, a fireman, and in the American Legion Kubick Finch Post #142. John was a lifetime member of the Ripley United Church of Christ. Following retirement from the Postal Service he and Euterpa continued to make their home in Traer. John fought a battle with Parkinson's disease since 1978 and chose to move to Waterloo to be near family in 1997. In 1998 he became a resident of the Ravenwood Care Center.

Ed Vesely was a member of the Traer Fire Department from 1944 to 1975. He also served as chief for 10 years, from 1965 to 1975.

John Whannel was a member of the Traer Fire Department for 30 years. He was a business partner in A.W.E., a service station and auto repair business in Traer. John passed away on May 23, 1999. He is survived by three daughters.

Richard Dean "Dick" Young was born January 31, 1928, at Traer, Iowa, the son of Wanda (Wilhelmi) and DeVere Young. He attended school in Traer, graduating with the Class of 1946. He then served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. On Dec. 10, 1949, he was united in marriage to Helen Joan Wiese at Tama, Iowa. They made their home in Traer and Richard was employed at John Deere Waterloo Tractor Works until his retirement in 1987. He was a member of American Legion Post No. 142 and VFW Post No. 6607. Richard also served on the Traer Fire Department until retiring in 1994. He continued working with the Iowa Fireman's Association and served as president of the CITA Kirkwood Fire School. Most recently he has been serving as district coordinator and custodian for the Iowa Fireman's Association.

The mission of the Iowa Firefighters Memorial is to forever honor, celebrate and inspire the spirit, courage and service of Iowa firefighters-past, present and future.

The memorial park is an inspiration to Iowans of all ages to continue the tradition in Iowa of service to each other and to our communities.

Iowa is the first state to have a firefighter memorial and visitor center echoing Iowa's national leadership in fire service training and safety education. Iowa has 2O,OOO firefighters organized in 871 fire departments. Every year these men and women serve 3 million Iowans in more than 4O,OOO emergency calls. Every Iowan will be touched at some point in life through fire rescue, emergency response, fire prevention education, or hazardous materials cleanup. This memorial park exemplifies Iowa-its pride, family values, community service, and commitment to quality. The site includes the memorial sculpture and wall, eternal flame and a visitor center with restroom facilities. Ample parking and peaceful landscaping complement the tranquil view.

History of the Memorial

In 1988, Mike Reuman, a firefighter from Traer, Iowa on vacation in another state noticed a sign pointing to a firefighter's memorial in a near by state park. His stop catalyzed the start of a project in which Iowans can take great pride. In 1990 the Iowa Firemen's Association commissioned a bronze memorial sculpture. Their challenge was to find a home suitable for such a touching memorial. After an extensive application process, research and site visits, the Iowa Firemen's Association, in 1992, chose Coralville due to it's scenic hilltop location, ease of access for Interstate travelers, availability 365 days a year, a visitor center and park like atmosphere, proximity to hotels and restaurants and commitment of Coralville/Iowa City leaders to create and perpetually care for the site. The memorial park was dedicated April 10, 1994 at a ceremony attended by 2,500 firefighters and fellow Iowans.

Information about adding a name to the wall, and biographies to the kiosk, is available from

Mike Reuman, P.O. Box 7, Traer, 5O675, (319) 478-2584.

Current as of 2 February 2006