Doris Faith Coder Nowels, age 101, went to be with her Lord and Savior on Sunday, January 15, 2023, at Vintage Gardens Senior Living in Saint Joseph, Missouri.
She was a long-time resident of St. Joe. Reading the Bible and humming hymns at her bedside was daughter Pamela, faithful on-call caregiver in Doris’ last decade. The Sunday before she passed, Doris was surrounded by loving family on her 101st birthday.
Doris was preceded in death by her husband Dean Nowels; preceded in death by her husband Jack Wareham and survived by their three children; and preceded by former husband Clifford Ludington and survived by their three children. She was preceded in death by her infant brother Gordon Fred Coder; and by her cousin James C. Vincent who was raised as her brother.
Doris Faith was born on Sunday, January 8, 1922, in Gordon, Nebraska to Blanche (Brown) and Fred Wray Coder. Her parents chose her name prayerfully: The name Doris means Gift of God and Faith refers to Hebrews chapter 11.
When Doris was a toddler, the family moved back to Page County, Iowa, her mother’s birthplace, to be near grandparents and extended family. She enjoyed a carefree childhood on their 40-acre farm near Shambaugh, bordering the Nodaway River. She walked across the railroad trestle over the No Business Creek and up a dirt road to her grade school. She professed her faith in Christ and was baptized when nine years of age. She loved going to yearly church Camp Meeting in Weeping Water, Nebraska. She graduated from College Springs High School in 1940.
Doris always considered Page County her home but lived in many places during her long life. In Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri, she made every house a loving, prayerful home for her children. She was a wonderful homemaker, bread and pie baker, cook and cookie maker, seamstress, nurse and nurturer. Along the way, she was a bookkeeper, a condominium manager, businesswoman, and LPN. A lifelong learner, at age 83 she earned her bachelor’s degree from Missouri Western State in 2005. An avid reader, her well-worn Bible was her favorite Book. She quietly went about doing good and touched countless lives. She loved, encouraged, and prayed for her children and many grandchildren, and they loved her dearly.
Left to cherish Doris’ memory are her six children: Gary (Jane) Ludington of Hamilton IL; Janice Duerksen of Groesbeck TX; Verna (Mike) Mickelson of Centerville GA; Pamela (Mike) Nold of Easton MO; Larissa (Doug) Heinrich of Stilwell KS; Janelle (Phillip) Wolfe of Saint Joseph MO. Doris was a loving Grandma to 17; Great-Grandma to 28; and Great-Great-Grandma to 23. She was truly a blessing from God.
Graveside Farewell Services & Interment 1:00 P.M. Friday, Butler Cemetery near Shambaugh, Iowa.
