Gretchen Young Obituary

Gretchen Elizabeth Young, age 93, of Pleasant Hill, Iowa, passed away peacefully on Thursday, November 7, 2024, at Iowa Lutheran Hospital. Born on November 27, 1930, in Des Moines, Iowa, to Joseph Glen and Esther Marie (Heggen) Gustafson, Gretchen lived a life full of love, service, and dedication.

Gretchen graduated from East High and North Park College. She had a varied career working at AE Dairy and Iowa Power before finding her true calling as a homemaker. She cherished her roles as a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother.

She was an active member of Urban Heights Covenant Church and PEO. She also made significant contributions as a preschool teacher at Evangelical Covenant Church and as a volunteer at Lutheran Hospital’s ‘Not New’ Shop. In her leisure time, she enjoyed reading, needlework, crocheting, and solving jigsaw and crossword puzzles.

While working at AE Dairy, she met her beloved husband, Darwin E. Young. Together, they shared many wonderful experiences, including camping, boating, and spending time at their house on Holiday Lake. They also enjoyed traveling to destinations such as Sweden, Hawaii, Norway, and Austria. While we gather to mourn, they are joyously reunited in marking their 69th wedding anniversary on November 12.

Gretchen is survived by her daughter Denise (Rick) Johnson, granddaughters Beth (Chad) Marchant and Anna (Roland) Bedard, and great-grandchildren Christian and Kathryn Marchant, and Parker and Brooklyn Bedard. She was preceded in death by her husband Darwin, parents Glen and Esther, and sister Phyllis Jenkins.

Family will greet friends from 9:00am to 11:00am on Tuesday, November 12, 2024 at Iles Grandview Park Chapel, 3211 Hubbell Avenue, Des Moines, Iowa 50317. Her funeral service will follow visitation at 11:00 AM and then a private family burial is planned at Resthaven Cemetery, West Des Moines, Iowa.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to NMDP (formerly Be The Match) in her memory. https://www.nmdp.org

The service will be live streamed on the Iles website. To join the service, please visit www.ilescares.com just before 11:00 AM on Tuesday, and scroll to the bottom of Gretchen’s obituary for the link.


ILES GRANDVIEW PARK CHAPEL

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