On February 16, 2024, our Lord sent His angel to escort Clara Lucille “Lucy” Grout to her heavenly home. She passed peacefully at the Rainy River Long-Term Care Home with her daughter Kathy by her side.
Lucy was born July 2, 1933, in Kalona, Iowa, to Walther and Esther Speas. She was the oldest of four children and the only daughter. She graduated from Kalona High School, and spent the next few years schooling and working in Iowa City, Kalona, and Washington, Iowa. In June of 1954 she moved to Riverside, California, to live with her Aunt Elsie. Aunt Elsie was very instrumental in introducing Lucy to her future husband, Ronald Grout. (Aunt Elsie said she would have taken him for herself, but he was too young). Ron and Lucy were married August 21, 1955, at the Trinity Lutheran Church, Riverside, Calif.
While Ron was going to university and seminary, Lucy worked in the secretarial field. One of her jobs was at the naval base, Treasure Island. Lucy became a pastor’s wife when Ron was ordained at the Trinity Lutheran Church, Riverside, on May 27, 1962. Their first parish was in Lundar, Man., from 1962 to 1966. In January of 1966, they moved to Fort Frances, Ont., where they spent 12 years raising their family and serving the congregations of Zion Lutheran Church, Fort Frances, and Trinity Lutheran Church, Bergland, Ont. Their next move in January of 1978 was to Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Winnipeg, Man. With their children mostly raised, Lucy took a job outside the home at the Manitoba/Northwestern Ontario Synod office. In 1985, they moved to Kenora, Ont., to serve the Betheseda Lutheran congregation. She worked as church secretary there. When Lucy was growing up in Kalona, she always heard of Kenora as “the place” to vacation, and now she was living there! They retired to Morson, Ont., in 1997 where they became part of the family at Trinity Lutheran Church, Bergland.
Lucy was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother. She was an organizer and a planner. Supper was always ready at a specific time. If anyone needed to know a date or place of an event, past or present, they just had to ask Lucy and she would have the answer.
Lucy always felt very blessed to have been able to do a lot of travelling. In her lifetime, she and Ron visited five Canadian provinces, and all but 10 of the U.S. States, the majority of these trips being road trips with the family, pulling a pop-up trailer and camping. Lucy made eight trips to the Holy Land as a tour host from 1979-1987. Ron accompanied her on the first three and the last one. They also made trips to Brighton, England, where they met some of Ron’s family, and to Cameroon, Africa, on mission trips. Lucy and Ron organized many church youth group trips over the years, some to their cabin on Rainy Lake, others to Lucy’s hometown of Kalona. These were memorable times for many.
When she wasn’t travelling, working, or raising her family, Lucy enjoyed sewing (many of her family’s clothes were made by her), quilting, crocheting and plastic canvas. Game nights were important to her too. A favourite family game was Dutch Blitz. Even though she rarely won, she loved playing.
Lucy is survived by her children Greg (Sherree), Ralph (Colleen), Kathy Moen (Rockford), and Ruth Kerner (Alfonso); her grandchildren Jasmine Grout (Manny), Curtis Grout (Katie), Cory Grout, Ashley Shields (Adam), Anders Moen (Sara), Kristin Moen, Jacquelyn Kerner (Zack), Jessica Ortiz (Emilio), Jennifer Ledford (Thomas); her brothers Everett Speas (Karen) and Ralph Speas (Janet); and numerous great-grandchildren, and nieces and nephews.
She was predeceased by her husband Ronald Grout; her parents Walther and Esther Speas; her brother Robert Speas; and her daughter-in-law Penny Mackintosh Grout.
A Celebration of Life will be held March 2, 2024, at the Trinity Lutheran Church, Bergland, Ont., at 3:00 pm. A luncheon will follow at the Bergland Hall.
As per the family’s wishes, memorial donations may be made to the Trinity Lutheran Church, or to the Rainy River Long-Term Care, c/o Northridge Funeral Home, PO Box 89, Emo, Ont., P0W 1E0.
