Allen Wiens

Allen Wiens, 83, of Marion passed away at his home under hospice care on Feb. 14th. Funeral Services will be Monday, Feb. 19th, at 10 am at the Walter Funeral Chapel in Marion. Visitation will be from 9-10 am on Monday at the Funeral Chapel prior to the Funeral Service.

Allen Duane Wiens was born on March 22, 1940, to Abraham and Luella (Ensz) Wiens. He grew up working hard on the farm. He married Sonja (Ekern) and joined the Navy. They were wed on September 21, 1958.

He worked many years for Harvester Grain Bins as a salesman followed by many years as a salesman for various farm seed companies and then for the Marion Co-op until he retired. 

Allen could talk to anyone and always had a story to tell. He grew up in a musical family and continued playing and singing with his own family. Entertaining people, and connecting with them, gave him some of the greatest joys of his life. He was one of those rare people who could pick up any instrument, and within a few minutes could figure out how to play the song he had in his head.  He instilled a great love of music and musical performance in his children, forming the Wiens family band, the Sunshine Troubadours, to play music and sing in good Samaritan centers every Friday night through most of the 1970s and 1980s with songs like Old Rugged Cross, Daddy Sang Bass, This World is Not my Home and Precious Memories. As his children moved away from home, he and his devoted wife, Sonja, along with their lifelong friends continued to play music together and give back to the Senior community through entertainment.

He taught his children how to grow food, take care of, and appreciate animals. We worked hard, and it set us up to be the persevering people we have become. He made sure we had the things we needed, which says quite a lot for a single earner with a wife and five children. Later in life, he continued to serve the older community by educating them about Medicare to ensure they knew of the healthcare benefits they had access to, in order to take care of themselves. He was always eager to give someone a smile and lend an ear to those needing someone to talk to.

He is survived by his five children, six grandchildren,  and one great-grandchild .