Family expands business in 5th generation

MARENGO — Powell Funeral Home has expanded its business into Marengo as a fifth generation joins the industry.

The Powell family business, now in the hands of Kim and Kenton Dehrmann and Bowen and Katelin Healey Yoder, began working out of the former Kloster Funeral Home at 298 W. Washington in Marengo this month.

The phone number remains the same, but services will be under the direction of a fourth and fifth generation of Powells and the Kloster web address will take visitors to the Powell website.

This is the eighth location for the funeral home that began in South English in 1911. Founded by Lewis J. Powell, Sr. in the era of horse-drawn hearses, Lewis also owned a pump and repair service and a hardware store, according to a history of the business provided by the Yoders.

In 1946, Lewis and his wife, Ida, purchased Bidwell Funeral Home in Wellman. Their son, Lewis Powell, Jr., a graduate of Goshen College, returned to South English with his wife, Rachel, and their children to work beside his parents as funeral director.

The South English funeral home merged with the North English facility, established in 1957, after the purchase of Mahannah Funeral Home.

In 1955, Lewis and Rachel moved to Keota to purchase the Marsh Funeral Home. Their son, Jared “Jerry” Powell, graduated from Goshen college and the Wisconsin Institute of Mortuary Science before joining the business in 1964 with his wife Jacque Conrad Powell.

In 1999, they relocated to Williamsburg, expanding the business.

Kimberly Powell Doehrmann became the fourth generation of licensed funeral directors. She earned her degree from the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science and took over management, with her husband Kenton, of Uhlmann-Powell Funeral Home in Williamsburg in 1989.

In 1993 Powell Funeral Home established the Yoder-Powell Funeral Home in Kalona under the direction of Charles Yoder.

Bowen Yoder, Kimberly Doehrmann’s son, didn’t initially follow his mother into the funeral business. “I went to college for criminal justice,” Bowen said. He was a reserve deputy for the Iowa County Sheriff for a few years, then went to Kirkwood Community College to learn about John Deere GPS technology and work for Sinclair tractor.

Eventually Bowen decided to join the family business. He earned a degree in mortuary science from Des Moines Area Community College in 2020. His grandfather was retiring, so the timing was right for Bowen to step in, he said.

Bowen said what he loves about the family business is helping people in their time of need.

Bowen’s wife, Katelin, formerly Healey, is from Marengo, and she’s happy to return to her hometown.

When Bowen graduated from DMACC, he worked as director at Kalona and Wellman, said Katelin, so the couple moved to Williamsburg.

Katelin graduated from Kirkwood and worked as a physical therapist assistant for the University of Iowa from 2016-2022 before going to work for the funeral home.

Bowen said it’s getting harder to find directors for funeral homes in small towns. Funeral directors work odd hours, and they work long hours with grieving families to plan funerals and hold visitations.

Powell Funeral Home has eight locations in Southeast Iowa: Marengo, Williamsburg, North English, Sigourney, Keota, Wellman, Kalona and Mt. Pleasant.

With six full-time licensed funeral directors and additional support staff, the Powell family can serve several communities. “All of us help each other out,” said Katelin. “One of us is always driving to another location to help out.”

Powell Funeral Homes own their own crematories, so bodies never leave their care, said Katelin. “The body is always with us.”

Having both services available allows people to have a visitation with the body and have the ashes in an urn in time for the funeral, said Bowen.

“It just gives us more tools to help out families,” Bowen said.

Another tool is the funeral home’s data files. The hardest part of funeral arrangements is getting the family history for obituaries, Bowen said. People are grieving and can’t always remember details, such as how to spell names.

Powell funeral homes allow families to keep obituary information with the funeral home free of charge so they don’t have to remember the information when the time comes for a funeral, Bowen said.

The public is welcome to stop by to meet the Bowens and see the funeral home, said Bowen. “We’re happy to be back in town.”

“This is my hometown,” said Katelin. She’s excited to be back.