Joel E. Harris

Joel Harris, 81, of Winterset, died, Thursday, April 13, 2017, at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines. A visitation will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Monday, April 17, at the New Bridge Church, Winterset, where the family will be present during this time. Funeral services will begin at 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, April 18, at New Bridge Church. Burial will be in the Oakland Cemetery of Princeton, Illinois at a later date. Memorials may be directed to New Bridge Church’s Parking Lot Fund or Illinois Elks Children’s Care Corporation. Online condolences may be left for the family at ochiltree.com. Joel Edward Harris was born November 16, 1935 in Princeton, Illinois to Roger and Esther (Nichols) Harris. Joel graduated from Princeton High School in 1953 and attended Bradley University in Peoria, before enlisting in the Air Force. He served during the Korean Conflict. Joel was united in marriage to Linda Anderson on September 7, 1958 in Princeton, Illinois and she preceded him in death in 1998. His marriage to Patricia Howell took place on November 29, 2003 at the First Baptist Church in Winterset and couple has lived in Winterset since. During his working years, Joel was an operating engineer for Advance Asphalt and later he was a salesman for Lawson Products both of Princeton. Joel was a member of the Hampshire Colony Congregational Church and Elks Lodge #1461 both of Princeton. After his marriage to Pat, he moved to Winterset and was a member of the New Bridge Church. Joel enjoyed the outdoors and was an avid fisherman and duck hunter. He was a member and past president of the Princeton Fish and Game Club. He was a Master Gardener and loved to share the harvest from his garden with friends and family. All this said, he loved any time spent with his family and especially his grandchildren. Those left to cherish his memory are his wife, Pat Harris of Winterset; his two daughters, Terry (Rodney) Johnson of Princeton, IL, Lisa (Ron) Cruse of Geneva, IL; five step-children, David (Mary) Howell, Susan Sorensen, Diana (Lee) Wenger, Linda (Joe) Franc and Steven (Elizabeth) Howell; three grandchildren, Aaron Johnson and Matthew and Alyssa Cruse; 14 step-grandchildren and 13 step-great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, first wife, Linda, and two brothers, Roger and David Harris.