Arthur Davidson

Arthur Verne Davidson, 78, of Atlantic, Iowa, passed away Thursday, January 10, 2013, at the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic.

Verne was born March 15, 1934, east of Bedford, Iowa, to Court Boyd and Bethel Mary (Bradley) Davidson, on the family farm. He attended country school and graduated from Bedford High School with the class of 1953. In March of 1955, he enlisted in the United States Army and served for 2 years at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, as a radar specialist. On December 28, 1958, he was united in marriage to Rosemary Pearson at the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Anita, Iowa.

In March of 1960 Verne and Rosemary moved to a farm located west of Cumberland where he farmed and shelled corn. In 1975 Verne began working at Dahl Air Conditioning and Heating in Van Meter, Iowa. He suffered a stroke in September of 1979 which left him disabled and forced him to retire.

Verne was a member of the First Evangelical Lutheran Church south of Wiota since 1960. He and Rosemary belonged to the Circle 71 Square Dance Club. Verne was also a member of the Elm Park Pinochle Club.


He was a good neighbor and always willing to help everyone. Verne enjoyed boating and camping trips with cousins at Lake Okoboji. In December 2007, Verne became a resident at Heritage House in Atlantic, Iowa. One of the things he enjoyed was riding his scooter around Atlantic. Verne loved spending time with family, especially his grandchildren. Another joy of his was having his favorite cat, Ramona, sit on his lap.


Surviving Verne are his wife, Rosemary, of 54 years, of Atlantic, Iowa; his sons, Reverend Ken (Alice) Davidson of Atlantic and Roger (Phuong) Davidson of New Albany, Ohio; his grandchildren, Justin, Jeannie, Jessica, Elizabeth, Matthew and Timothy, all of Atlantic; sister-in-law, Mary Ellen Wright; brother-in-law, Clifford Fries of Anita; aunt, Sadie Wesack of Adair; several nieces, cousins and many friends.

Preceding him in death were his parents; his brother-in-law, John Pearson; and sister-in-law, Barbara Fries.

Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m., Monday, January 14, 2013, at First Evangelical Lutheran Church south of Wiota, Iowa.

Visitation with family will be from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m., with a prayer service at 7:00 p.m., Sunday, January 13, 2013, at Hockenberry Family Care in Atlantic.

Burial will be in the Evergreen Cemetery, in Anita, Iowa


Hockenberry Family Care in Atlantic, Iowa, is in charge of the arrangements.