Ilaruth Burke

November 17, 1924 - February 3, 2021

Ilaruth Burke, 96, of Oskaloosa, died Wednesday, February 3, 2021, at the Northern Mahaska Specialty Care Center in Oskaloosa, Iowa. She was born Monday, November 17, 1924, in Tracy, Iowa, the daughter of John Wesley and Edith (Barnes) Binns. She graduated from Tracy High School with the class of 1943. On Christmas day in 1942, she was united in marriage to Forrest E. Burke Jr. in Lincoln, Nebraska. Following their marriage, the couple moved to Tracy, Iowa. To this union John and Joyce were born. In the late1940’s, Forrest and Ilaruth owned and operated a restaurant in Tracy. In 1960, Ilaruth went to work as a records clerk JC Penney’s in Oskaloosa. She retired from there in June of 1995 after working for 41 years. On January 2, 2003, Forrest passed away. Ilaruth was a collector of Betty Boop and Santa figurines. Ilaruth and Forrest enjoyed dancing, they looked forward to traveling to various towns in southeast Iowa to attend dances. She was a bird watcher and especially enjoyed seeing cardinals in her yard. She was a basketball player in high school and always enjoyed watching basketball. Ilaruth was a talented seamstress and could make a pattern for nearly anything. Her family includes her two children, John (Carolyn) Burke of Yulee, Florida and Joyce (Charles “Chuck”) Webb of Oskaloosa; five grandchildren; John (Cindy) Burke Jr., Scott (Kristina) Burke, David (Sarah) Burke, Andrea (Mike) Gerritson, Adam (Jackie) Webb; great grandchildren, Lindsey Burke, Cole Webb-Jones, Riley Webb, Gabriel Gerritson, Devin Burke, Jessi Gerritson, Sierra Webb, and Avery Webb. In addition to her husband Forrest, Ilaruth was preceded in death by her parents; a granddaughter, Jessica Webb, three sisters, Juanita Mabee, Iola Mae Thayer and Beulah Sherman. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, February 10, 2021, at 10:30 a.m. in the Bates Funeral Chapel with Deacon Lowell Van Wyk officiating. Burial will be in the Forest Cemetery in Oskaloosa. The Bates Funeral Chapel is in charge of the arrangements. According to the rules put in place by the Iowa Department of Public Health, proper social distancing and reasonable personal protective equipment is advised for attending a religious public event. The funeral will be posted to the Bates Funeral Chapel’s YouTube page for those unable to attend. Visitation will begin Tuesday after 11:00 am in the Bates Funeral Chapel and the family will be at the funeral chapel from 6:00 to 7:30 Tuesday evening to greet friends and relatives. Memorials may be made to The Ecumenical Cupboard in Oskaloosa.