Howard I. Taplin

Howard I. Taplin, age 92, of Savanna, Illinois, died Monday, October 8, 2007 at Big Meadows Nursing Home, Savanna, Illinois. Funeral Services will be held 11:00 a.m. Monday, October 15, 2007 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Derinda, Illinois with Reverend Kurt Hansen officiating. Burial will take place in Derinda Trinity Lutheran Cemetery. A visitation will be held from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 14, 2007 at the Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna. Memorials may be given to the Trinity Accessibility Building Fund in Howard’s memory.

Howard was born January 27, 1915, the son of Lee and Jennie (Laing) Taplin in Miles, Iowa. On January 27, 1937, Howard married Berniece D. Mehlberg, at St. Paul Lutheran Church, Preston, Iowa. Berniece died on February 6, 2005.

Howard farmed in Sabula, Iowa and moved to Savanna in 1951 where he farmed for fifty years. Howard also worked at the Savanna Army Depot during the World War II and the Korean War. He later worked for Interstate Power Company as a Serviceman for twenty-five years retiring in 1979. He was a member of Trinity Lutheran Church and a former trustee for Trinity Lutheran Church. Howard enjoyed traveling with his Coachman Trailer and camping all over the United States, most of all he loved spending time with his family and friends.

Howard will be dearly missed by his son, Terry (Jill) Taplin of Belvidere, Illinois; two daughters, Shirley (Mike) Hurst of Conroe, Texas, Carolyn (Gary) Bailey of Cottage Grove, Minnesota; six grandchildren, Eric (Donna) Kulbeck, Laura (David) Adkison, Lisa (Kevin) Kirane, Tracy (Todd) Boettcher, Jennifer (Tim) Davis and Nicole (Mark) Weiberg; eight great-grandchildren Sara Adkison, Joshua and Gordon Kulbeck, Rachael and Breanna Kirane, Ryan Davis, Luke Boettcher and Justin Shoutz; and one sister, Marge Hoyer of Sabula.

Howard was preceded in death by his wife, Berniece; two brothers, Donald and Thomas Taplin; two sisters, Dorothy Hitchcock and Genevieve Kuhl; and one son in-law, Jerry Kulbeck.