Florence (Waters) Denbow

Florence Marie (Waters) Denbow, age 87 of Cedar Rapids, passed away on Tuesday, April 15, 2025 at her son’s home in Toledo, IA.

Born Florence Marie Waters on November 12, 1937 to Chester and Lura (Crosby) Waters in Chicago, IL. She graduated in the Class of 1955 at Roosevelt High School in Cedar Rapids.

Florence met a young man, E. Ray Denbow, that she lovingly called Red. On June 30, 1956, Florence and Ray were united in marriage. They built their life together in Cedar Rapids, where they welcomed two sons, Michael and David; they later moved to New Mexico for new and better opportunities.

Florence loved poring over maps, driving as fast as possible and reading piles of books. She revered books and their authors, and was never happier than with a new stack to devour from the library. She wrote and self-published three books of family history and was working on others. The Midwest was her first and last home, but the southwest, especially New Mexico, had her heart for many years. While in NM, she worked several years and with pride at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Florence took frequent trips to Colorado to see family that fed her pioneer spirit after moving back to the Midwest.

Florence was a proud member of Daughters of the American Revolution and the Mayflower Society. She traveled all over the USA following genealogy trails and unearthing new relatives and friends to connect with; she loved bringing people together. In recent years, she enjoyed being an administrator for various Facebook groups focused on local Iowa history. She enjoyed everywhere she traveled, made countless quilts and once researched and wrote an entire semester of curriculum of Iowa history for her grandchildren. She was quite the keeper of family lore and the librarian of our collective families’ histories.

Aside from her love of family, she was quite the conversationalist with everyone around her. Florence was a positive force; at the end, she was determined she could improve her health to move back to her home if she just tried hard enough.

Florence was preceded in death by her parents, Chester and Lura (Crosby) Waters; her husband E. Ray Denbow who passed in 2018; and a nephew, TJ Parmer. Left to cherish her memory are her sons, Michael (Jennifer) Denbow of Toledo and David (Susan Reed) Denbow of Brighton, CO; her grandchildren, Jessie (Tim) Lewis of Auburn, WA, Aslan Denbow of Minneapolis, MN, Grace Denbow of Cedar Rapids, IA, Riff Denbow of Cortez, CO, Bree Denbow of Colorado Springs, CO and Megan Reed of Denver, CO; her sister, Margaret Waters (Tom) Parmer. She is also survived by her nephews, Dan (Beth) Parmer and their daughter, Tabitha, and Doug (Donna) Parmer and their children, Daniel Thomas, Christopher and Amelia; also other many beloved family members and friends.

Per Florence’s wishes, cremation rites have taken place. A Celebration of Life will be held later this summer in Cedar Rapids. Mitchell Family Funeral Home has been entrusted to care for Florence and her family. To leave online condolences, please visit www.mitchellfh.com. Ph. 641-844-1234.