Loretta J. Olson

Loretta J. Olson’s life revolved around her family. Her siblings were her best friends and her grandchildren were the stars in her life. On Monday, September 7, 2015, Loretta passed away at her daughter’s home in Camanche, Iowa, surrounded by her loving family. A funeral service will be held 1:00 p.m. Friday, September 11, 2015, at Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna, Illinois. Burial will take place in Lower York Cemetery, Thomson. A visitation will be held from 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. Thursday, September 10, 2015, at Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna. Memorials may be made to “Loretta Olson Benefit” at Aegis Credit Union in Clinton, Iowa.
Loretta was born March 1, 1955, in Clinton, Iowa, the daughter of Arnold and Virginia (Trude) Horton. She attended Thomson schools. On July 16, 1981, she married Kenneth Lee Olson in Clinton, Iowa. Loretta was a homemaker who cherished taking care of her family. No one’s cooking could compare to Loretta’s and no one ever went home hungry, especially when she made her famous chili cheese dip and mashed potatoes and gravy.
She enjoyed reading magazines, putting puzzles together, watching The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, the Cooking Channel, and collecting recipes. Most of all, she loved visiting her siblings, going on trips with her husband and siblings, and spending time with her grandchildren at their over-night visits. Even through her struggles with her health, Loretta would always say, “giving up is not an option.”
Loretta is survived by her husband, Kenneth; three children, Dawn (Gary) Firrell of Camanche, Jeff (Brandi) Mitchell of Canton, Illinois, and Jesse (Bre) Olson of Camanche,; seven siblings, Robert (Gina) Trude of Camanche, Violet (Gary) Dalton, of Camanche, Diana Hull of Clinton, Ronald Horton of Clinton, Cathryn (Joseph) Hughes of Clinton, Cindy (Robert) Atwater of Janesville, Wisconsin, and Kenneth Horton of Waterloo, Iowa; eight grandchildren, Johnathan, Tyler, and Quinn Mitchell, Morgen and Michael Firrell, Whitnee and Blakelie Bordner, and Hunter Kenworthy; a great-granddaughter, Oliviah Mitchell; and her special friends, Linda Sibley, Burton VanZuiden, Virginia Carmen, and Jennifer Naeve.
Loretta is preceded in death by her parents, Arnold and Virginia; two brothers, Richard “Butch” Trude, and Jerry Horton; two brothers-in-law, Lloyd Wayne Hull and Warren Olson; a sister-in-law, Sharon Horton; mother-in-law, Ruth Olson; and an unborn child.