Margaret Harms

Margaret Harms, age 81 of Lytton, passed away on Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, at the Paula J. Baber Hospice House in Fort Dodge, surrounded by family.

Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 3, at the Emanuel-St. John Lutheran Church in Lytton, with Reverend Ben Worley officiating. Burial will take place at the St. John Lutheran Cemetery in Lytton. Visitation will be from 5:30 p.m. 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 2, at the Farber & Otteman Funeral Home in Sac City.

Margaret Elaine was born on May 17, 1940, along with her twin sister, to parents Herman and Evelyn (Lane) Seil in Lake City. She grew up in Lohrville, where she attended grade school and graduated from Lohrville High School with the class of 1958. After graduation, both Margaret and Mary worked at Montgomery Ward prior to attending AIB School of Business in Des Moines.

Also, at the age of 18, Margaret and Mary won the “Most Alike Twins Contest” at the Iowa State Fair.

On Sept. 7, 1963, Margaret was united in marriage to Jim Harms in Farnhamville. This union was blessed with two children: Sandra and Mark. They raised their family in Lytton, where Margaret and Jim owned Harms Hardware and Harms Circle Steel where they sold and serviced grain bins.

Margaret also worked at Harvest Acres outside of Rockwell City for several years where she enjoyed developing relationships with the kids and staff. Margaret loved spending time with family and friends. Her happy place was the lake house at Twin Lakes where she loved relaxing and entertaining. She liked playing cards with family and friends where she was known to cheat. Margaret enjoyed traveling and spending time in Colorado Springs where she and Jim owned and operated the Travelers Uptown Motel with Jim’s brother Irv and wife Ruth.

Margaret also enjoyed her visits to Arizona, where her younger sister Pat resides. Her family meant the world to her.

Margaret made so many great memories with them that they will forever hold dear to their hearts. One of Margaret’s favorite things to do was to dress up for Halloween with her sister Mary. They enjoyed going out in public, messing with people and loved getting reactions. Margaret loved pranks, and she and Mary were known to switch places with each other to see if they could get away with it.

In her younger years, Margaret was on the Lytton women’s softball team where she was known to be a great pitcher. Margaret also would host a happy hour with the neighborhood ladies, many of whom were her dear friends.

Those left to cherish her memory include her children: Sandra (Lee DePrenger) Gibson of Otley, IA, and Mark (Angie) Harms of Manson, IA; grandchildren: Matt (Eli Conway) Gibson, Brandon Gibson, Anthony Cordova, Dani Jud, and Brenna Allard; great-grandson Alex Cordova; sister Pat Koroulis of Gilbert, AZ; brother-in-law Darwin Matter of Lytton, IA; many extended family members and several friends.

Margaret was preceded in death by her husband Jim Harms; parents Herman and Evelyn Seil; twin sister Mary Matter; brothers: Henry, Herman (Glenda), and Jeff Seil; brother-in-law Nick Koroulis. 

Visit Farber & Otteman Funeral Homes by clicking here.