Robert H. Manke

Robert “Bob” Herman Manke, Jr., the son of Robert R. and Gladys (McLeish) Manke, was born on April 25, 1927 in Portage, Wisconsin. Robert died October 5, 2007 at the Corning Nursing Rehab Center in Corning, Iowa, at the age of eighty years.
Bob attended grade school Arlington, Wisconsin and was baptized and confirmed at St. Peters Lutheran Church, also in Arlington. He graduated from Poynette High School with the class of 1944. Bob farmed with his father and brother for a year until enlisting in the U.S. Navy, April 1945, prior to his 18th birthday. Bob served in the Pacific and Atlantic and was discharged in February, 1948. He returned to the family farm, following his fathers example as a conscientious, dedicated farmer. He was an early adopter of low till farming practices. Another phase of farming that made an impact on Bob was weed management, especially Canada thistles. However, there was one special “thistle” in his life; he married Shirley Ruth Thistle in 1950. To this union three children were born, Dana, Dennis and Richard.
Bob became a leader in the National Farmers Organization (NFO) traveling from his home in Wisconsin to the NFO home office in Corning for several years before moving to Corning in 1968. Bob served as a National Director for the NFO for a number of years. He also was interested in natural wildlife and started a leased-land pheasant hunting business called Pheasants Galore.
His beloved wife, Shirley, passed away in 1995. Bob found solace in the familiar things, his home, the farm, his ponds, trees, the purple martins and his garden. Following health problems Bob entered the Corning Nursing Rehab Center.
Bob leaves to cherish his memory: his daughter Dana (husband David) Bode, Oconomowoc, WI; son Dennis (wife Darla) Manke, Wantonga, OK; son Richard (wife Julie) Manke, Hastings, MN; seven grandchildren: Matthew Bode and Bryan Bode; Brandon Manke and Sherry Cowan; and Drew Manke, Reed Manke, and Lane Manke.
He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Shirley on February 8, 1995; brother-in-law, David Rouse; sisters-in-law, Virginia Manke and Carol Manke; and nieces, Annette Rouse and Rebecca Manke.