Leonard Farnham, 95 of Le Mars, Iowa, passed away Monday, June 17, 2019 at Accura HealthCare of Le Mars.

Funeral Service will be 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at Rexwinkel Funeral Home in Le Mars. Burial will be at Memorial Park Cemetery in Sioux City, Iowa. Visitation with the family present will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday at the funeral home. Expressions of sympathy may be expressed to the family through www.rexwinkelfh.com .

Leonard Farnham was born on July 2, 1923 to Frank and Mary (Duvall) Farnham in Audubon, Iowa. He graduated from Audubon High School in 1942.

Leonard enlisted in the United States Army on February 10, 1943. Assigned to the 350th Infantry Regiment under the 88th Infantry Division, Leonard was a private first class with the Fighting Blue Devils that pushed northward during the Rome Arno campaign. The Rome Arno campaign was essentially an infantryman's war: many small battles waged under World War II's worst weather and difficult terrain. It was won by young men sacrificing their lives to gain inches of ground.

Leonard was a member of a light machine gun crew and fired the 30-caliber gun in support of Infantry attacks on enemy positions. He acted as a messenger, relaying messages between the section sergeant to the squad leader and oversaw the ammunition.

October 31, 1944, Leonard was injured when a German hand grenade was thrown into his foxhole. While his comrades perished, Leonard survived to be pulled out of the foxhole by the Germans. They intended to take him as a prisoner of war but were forced to leave him behind. He laid still, riddled with German shrapnel, until the morning of November 1, 1944, when he was taken back to the Allied lines.

Leonard was evacuated to Rome, and eventually returned to the United States where he recuperated at Camp Carson, Colorado. He was awarded the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, the Good Conduct Ribbon, the Combat Infantry Badge, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart before being honorably discharged on June 21, 1945.

Leonard met a Patricia Plummer at a church picnic in late summer 1950, and married her on February 25, 1951 in Sioux City, Iowa.  Leonard and Patricia made their home in Plymouth County, Iowa. In his time in the military, Leonard became interested in flying and became an avid pilot. He worked at the Sioux City Stockyards and farmed until 1979 when he retired and settled in Le Mars. Two weeks shy of their 67th anniversary, Patricia passed away on February 11, 2018. Leonard survived the more than 480,000 Germans in the Rome Arno campaign, but he never got over the heartbreak of losing Patricia.

Leonard is survived by two sons: Robert (Nicole) Farnham of Cheyenne, WY; Jeffery (Debbie) Farnham of Bellevue, NE; 7 grandchildren: Aaron (Kinzy) Farnham, Amber (and Don) Ehle, Autumn Farnham, Jordan Farnham, Sara Farnham, Gracelyn Farnham, and Wyatt Farnham; and 4 great grandchildren: Cameron Ehle, Emily Ehle, Ivan Farnham, and Keegan Farnham; sisters: Marjorie St. Peter and Sylvia Christensen; sister in law: Wadene Shaw; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Leonard is preceded in death by his parents; wife, Patricia; son, Scott Farnham; and sister, Leona.