Zelma Spurgeon

Zelma “Pearl” Spurgeon, 84, of Saint Louis and formerly of Clark County, passed away at 11:07 am on Tuesday, August 24, 2021, at Mercy Hospital South in Saint Louis.

Pearl was born on November 15, 1936, in Canton, the daughter of the late Jim and Marguerite (Wright) Rennaker. She married Gene Spurgeon on August 30, 1956 at the First Baptist Church in Kahoka and he survives.

Mrs. Spurgeon obtained a Doctorate of Philosophy from Oxford University in Oxford, England, a Doctorate in Biblical Counseling from the Divinity School, and a Masters Degree in Education from Webster University with a Lifetime Teaching Certificate. She was a schoolteacher for many years at Clark County RR 1 school district and at Kara Baptist Academy in Alexandria. In her later years, she worked on the assembly line for General Motors until her retirement. Pearl was an avid golfer; she would usually win when she would play against Gene and his friends. Pearl enjoyed flowers and gardening, loved celebrating the holidays, enjoyed baseball, softball and bowling in her younger days, reading, puzzles and games, Cardinals baseball, her swimming pool and spending time with friends, but above all, she loved her family and the Lord the most.

In addition to her husband of nearly 65 years, Gene, she is survived by two sons; Jim (Sarah Conant) Spurgeon of Imperial and Joe (Heather) Spurgeon of Festus, a daughter; Vicki (Cory Ransdell) Miller of West Point, Iowa, eight grandchildren; Lacy, Rachel, Olivia, Curtis, Brenden, Kaleb, Madison and Mackenzie, six great grandchildren, a brother; Jack (Cheryl) Rennaker of Branson, a sister; Ann Brookhart of Memphis and by several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents.

Funeral services honoring the life of Pearl were conducted at 12:00 pm on Wednesday, September 1, 2021 at the Wilson & Triplett Funeral Home in Kahoka. Rev. Gene Longo officiated the service. Interment followed at Frazee Cemetery. A visitation was held from 10:00 am until the time of services on Wednesday. Memorial contributions in memory of Pearl were suggested to the family. You are invited to share your memories of Pearl and leave a condolence at www.wilsontriplett.com