Harold E. O'Brien

MASON CITY: Harold E. OBrien, 91, of Mason City, died Thursday, January 28, 2010 at the Iowa Veterans Home, Marshalltown. A funeral mass will be held 10:00 AM Saturday, January 30, 2010 at St. Patricks Catholic Church, 1405 N. Federal Street, Hampton with Rev. Bernard Grady officiating. Interment will be in the Hampton Cemetery. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. Memorials may be given to the Harold E. OBrien Memorial Fund. Harold was born December 4, 1918 in Geneva, Iowa the son of Edward W. and Mary Angeline (VanHouten) OBrien. He graduated from Geneva High School. Harold moved to Mason City in 1940 and attended Hamilton Business College. Harold then served in the US Army during WW II. He worked as a truck driver at Lehigh Portland Cement Company for 30 years. Harold retired from Lehigh in 1981. He married Norma E. (Carson) Ketchum January 31, 1987 at Holy Family Catholic Church in Mason City. He was a member of Holy Family Catholic Church, life member of the Knights of Columbus, and a member of the VFW. Harold umpired little league baseball games for 15 years, enjoyed bowling, where he was Mason City Senior Champion in 1984. Harold will be most remembered for his love of checkers. He was a former Iowa state champion in checkers and competed nationally at the age of 82. The Checker King a documentary chronicling Harolds journey through a national tournament received national attention. The last few years, Harold lived in the Iowa Veterans Home, Marshalltown.

Harold is survived by 2 sisters, Mary Ann Oppold of Raleigh, North Carolina and Julia Kastner of Sheboygan, Wisconsin; many nieces and nephews.

Harold was preceded in death by his parents, wife, Norma; brothers, Bernard, Phillip, Edward, and James; sisters, Rose Kelley and Sr. Juana (Rita) OBrien