Leon R. Larson

Leon R. Larson, 88, formerly of Moline, Illinois, died Friday, November 30, 2018, in Illini Restorative Care, Silvis, Illinois.

Services are 11 a.m. Friday at Broadway Presbyterian Church, Rock Island, with visitation one hour before the services. Burial is in Rock Island Memorial Park. Trimble Funeral Home, Moline, is assisting the family. Memorials may be made to the Broadway Church or a favorite charity.

Leon Robert Larson was born December 5, 1929, in Moline, to Olaf and Anna Persson Larson. He was a 1948 graduate of Moline High School, and served in the US Army Occupation Forces in Germany from 1951 to 1953. He worked for several local nurseries in the Quad Cities, and in 1960 purchased the Ninth Street Nursery in Rock Island. For 35 years he owned and operated this business, growing and retailing bedding plants and rose bushes. He married Lois G. Miller of Rock Island on July 8, 1967. Together they operated ten greenhouses until they retired in 1995.

Leon was a past president of the Tri-City Men's Rose and Garden Club; a charter member and co-founder of the Rock Island Horticulture Club; and served for four years on the Rock Island Extension Council. He served as a Deacon at his church, and designed a Memorial Garden for the church, He was a long-time member of the American Legion Post 246. Leon enjoyed gardening, photography, and drawing. He traveled to 48 states, and visited Sweden three times.

Survivors include his wife, Lois; daughters, Anita Mickelson and her husband Neil, and Julia Larson and her partner Melissa Barthelemy; and grandchildren, Aaron and Anna Mickelson. He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Dorothy Efflandt.

Condolences may be shared at TrimbleFuneralHomes.com.