Terri J. Whitehurst

Terri J. Whitehurst, 79, of Garner, passed away Friday, July 26, 2024, at MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center in Mason City.

A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 31, 2024, at the United Presbyterian Church in Garner with Pastor David Skilling officiating. Burial will be at a later date in Concord Township Cemetery.

A memorial visitation will be held from 4 to 7 p.m., Tuesday, July 30th at Cataldo Funeral Chapel, 160 E. 4th St., Garner.

Memorials may be directed to Heifer International Foundation, 1 World Avenue, Little Rock, AR 72202 in memory of Terri.

Terri Joan Whitehurst, the daughter of Lawrence and Dorothy (Bridge) Lubbock, was born June 16, 1945, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She attended and graduated from Shellsburg High School in 1963. Terri continued her education in nurses training at St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, where she was introduced to the love of her life on a blind date, and on January 17, 1965, she was married to Butch Whitehurst at the First Presbyterian Church in Shellsburg. They lived in Texas and later Utah while Butch served his country in the United States Air Force. Upon his honorable discharge in 1970, they moved to Garner where they raised their family. Terri worked as a nurse and office manager for Dr. Fuller for 19 years and then began a long career as a daycare provider in her home for many children. She was very active as a volunteer for Heifer International and traveled for them and personally to 59 countries. Terri enjoyed furniture restoration, cross stitching, embroidering dish towels, knitting, sewing, making hundreds of pillowcases for Ryan's Case for Smiles and made many quilts for her family, jewelry making, making her own greeting cards, gardening and planting flowers, traveling, photography, cooking and baking... she loved combing through cookbooks and magazines and picking out new recipes. She continued doing all these things for the last few years with the help of Butch. But most of all, she loved spending time with her family. She was thrilled with each phone call and visit. 

She was a member of the United Presbyterian Church and UPW, serving as a choir member, Sunday School Teacher, and in 1985 took on the role of Women's Mission Director. This is where her passion for helping women and children through Heifer International began. 

Terri is survived by her husband of 59 years, Butch of Garner; daughter, Shelley (Mark) Haugland of Garner; son, Shane of Woodward; grandson, Tyler (Michelle) Haugland of Gretna, NE and their children, Tristen, Hayden, and Presten; granddaughter, Alyssa (Jeff) Anderson of Polk City and their children, Harper, Jackson, Beckett, and Lincoln; grandson, Connor (Madi) Haugland of Paola, KS and their children, Cooper and Cade; a brother, Paul (Di) Lubbock of Cedar Rapids; a sister-in-law, April Lubbock; two brothers-in-law, Richard (Jeanette) Whitehurst of Mason City and Rollin Whitehurst of Mason City; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by parents-in-law, John and Marie Whitehurst; parents, Lawrence and Dorothy Lubbock; infant daughter, Shannon Whitehurst; nephew, Richard Whitehurst; brother-in-law, Robert Whitehurst; sister-in-law, Sandy Whitehurst; brother, David Lubbock; and sister-in-law, Madonna Whitehurst; 

Terri touched many lives and will be missed.