Obituaries : Jimolene W. Walston

Jimolene W. Walston, age 94 of Ames, Iowa, passed away peacefully on September 16, 2025 at Bethany Life in Story City, Iowa. After a full and lively life, she is now as alive as ever in her eternal home with Jesus. Funeral services will begin at 10:30 am Monday, September 22, 2025 at the New Life Fellowship Church in New Sharon followed by a luncheon at the McVay Center in New Sharon. Burial will be held in the Forest Cemetery in Oskaloosa. Visitation will be held on Sunday, September 21, 2025 at the Holland-Coble Funeral Home in New Sharon from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Memorials may be directed to New Life Fellowship Church, Barnes City Fire Department or a memorial of family’s choice. Holland-Coble Funeral Home of New Sharon is in charge of arrangements.    

Jimolene W. Walston, the daughter of Wesley and Ethel (Davis) Clancy, was born on December 6, 1930, at Moulton, Iowa.  On September 5, 1948, she was united in marriage with Wilmore E. Walston (Bill).  They farmed in New Sharon on the home place until 1949, then moved to Barnes City in 1951 and farmed until 1991.  Bill passed away on March 4, 1997.  Jimolene remained on the farm until 2009 when she moved to New Sharon, Iowa.

Jimolene attended New Sharon High School where she met Bill.  In her younger years, Jimolene served alongside her mother at the nursing home in New Sharon.  She assisted her mother with several births and would enjoy remembering the names and places of various ones they cared for over the years.  Jimolene was also an active member of the Barnes City United Methodist Church and later at the New Sharon Methodist Church and Wesley United Methodist Church in Vinton.   She served right alongside Bill on the farm in rural Barnes City for many years.  Later on, she worked at various restaurants in Gibson, Keswick, and Montezuma as a waitress.  She greatly enjoyed her interaction with others in these places. She also served as an assistant 4-H leader with the Pleasant Grove Happy Homemakers, with the Barnes City Ruritan and also on the Barnes City Betterment Club. 

She made numerous friends as she resided in various cities. She left the farm in Barnes City in 2009 where she and Bill had lived for 58 years. She moved to New Sharon, later to Vinton to be close to Greg and Diane and finally to live in Ames with Terry and Debbie.   At each new place, she enjoyed meeting and interacting with new people.  

Her family includes one daughter and two sons, Debra (Terry) Martens of Ames, Iowa, Rod (Deb) Walston of Jamestown, Kentucky, and Greg (Diane) Walston of Vinton, Iowa; thirteen grandchildren and seventeen great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, one brother, Wesley (Jean) Clancy, two sisters, Maxine (Gilbert) Phipps and Nadine (Junior) Stanford, daughter-in-law, Anita Walston and granddaughter, Angel Walston.  As well as her in-law parents and siblings: Kenneth (Joyce) Walston, Carrol (Mary) Walston, Iva (Dean) Anderson, Norma (Leroy) Patterson and Gary Walston. Berdene Walston survives as her sister-in-law.