Blanche Labelle Jacobsen

Blanche LaBelle Jacobsen, the daughter of Anton and Margaret (Rasmussen) Christensen, was born April 27, 1928, at her parents’ home in rural Audubon County near Kimballton, Iowa, and died May 10, 2020, at the Friendship Home in Audubon, Iowa at the age of 92 years and 13 days.

Blanche was baptized and confirmed at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Kimballton. She attended rural schools then graduated from the Audubon High School with the Class of 1946. Blanche studied at Grandview College in Des Moines then received her Nursing Degree from the Iowa Lutheran Hospital School of Nursing in 1950.

On September 1, 1950, she was united in marriage to Allan Dale Jacobsen at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Kimballton. They were blessed with seven children: Joan, Barbara, Rebecca, Donald, Robert, Allan Jr., and Tony. They farmed in the Fiscus area, and Blanche was a nurse for Dr. Lawrence Larsen in Harlan, Iowa. They moved to Audubon in 1957, where she was a homemaker during the day and worked as a nurse at night at the Audubon County Memorial Hospital; she was later employed at Dr. Merselis and Dr. Bartley’s office. When the doctors retired, Blanche was employed at the Friendship Home in Audubon until she retired.

Blanche was an active member of Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in Audubon. Blanche and Allan participated in several work camps, and she also served as a 4-H leader. She enjoyed quilting, crocheting prayer blankets and doing hardanger (Scandinavian stitching). Blanche enjoyed painting the many figures Allan would cut out for her and make them as wall hangings. She loved music and sang in the church choir and also sang with a group of several ladies.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Allan D. Jacobsen; her son, Allan D. Jacobsen, Jr.; her parents; an infant sister, Sylvia Christensen; her brothers and sisters: Paul and wife Vita Christensen, Ingrid and husband Ove Heilskov, and Arild and wife Enda Mae Christensen; her brother-in-law, Virgil and wives Alice and Janice Jacobsen.

She is survived by her children: Joan and husband Dr. Dana Shaffer of Pikeville, Kentucky; Barbara Jacobsen of Audubon; Rebecca and husband Ronald Conatser of Cumming, Georgia; Donald and wife Sharon Jacobsen of Crosslake, Minnesota; Robert and wife Connie Jacobsen of Audubon, Iowa; and Tony and wife Jodi Jacobsen of Manson, Iowa; 12 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; her brother-in-law, William and wife Virginia Jacobsen of Des Moines, Iowa; as well as nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

A private family funeral service will be held at the Kessler Funeral Home in Audubon, Iowa with Pastor Dan Beattie officiating. Interment will be in the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery in Kimballton.

The casket bearers will be her grandchildren, Sarah Jacobsen, Tyler Jacobsen, Alex Jacobsen, Matthew Jacobsen, Adam Jacobsen, Katelyn Jacobsen, Cheryl Zinke, Royce Shaffer, Kirsten Heard, Andrea Hitchcock, Susan James, and Nicole Benton.

Blanche Jacobsen's funeral service will be streamed via Zoom on Thursday, May 14, 2020 at 10:00 A.M. Please follow the below steps to access the broadcast:

1. Copy and paste the following URL into any web browser on your device: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/71312246400?pwd=MGUvcUM3TXJ0VlBmVHIwcW9LNXdPZz09

2. If a brief download does not start, click the blue link to launch the program.

3. Enter the following password when/if prompted: 4Kz3Gm

4. Select your audio option (most common is to use computer settings.

5. You will be entered into the broadcast.