Glen E. Elliott, Founder & Chairman of Elliott Equipment Company passes away

Obituary

Glen Eugene Elliott was born July 5, 1928 in Oelwein, Iowa to Joe and Ethel Elliott. Glen’s mother passed away in child birth when Glen was 5 years old. Glen’s grandparents raised him on the farm with his brothers and sister for four years. The family was reunited when Glen’s father remarried, but family circumstances eventually resulted in Glen becoming solely independent at an early age.

On June 2, 1948 Glen married Eilene Blumenthal of Sioux City, Iowa at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Sioux City. For the next 74 years, Glen proudly stated that this was “the best thing he had ever done in his life!” The newlyweds started their life in Cedar Rapids, where Glen had a job at Wilson Packing Plant and Eilene had a bookkeeping job at a local construction machinery dealership. As luck would have it, when there was an opening for a salesman at the construction dealership, Glen got the opportunity and his selling career began. He worked there for several years before landing a job at Hanstrum Hubley Tractor Company in Marion, Iowa, selling large construction equipment. Glen and Eilene moved to Fairfield, Iowa to be close to the territory Glen covered.

While in Fairfield he helped to build a new Missouri Synod Lutheran church called Immanuel Lutheran Church and laid the cornerstone in the new building on the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated. On February 26, 1962, their son Eugene Glen Elliott was born in Fairfield. “Gene” was the apple of his parents’ eye as they were married 14 years before having him. Glen was a wonderful loving father who cherished everything Gene did, especially golf. Family vacations were usually to Northern Minnesota or Ontario, Canada fishing, as that was all the family could afford.

Glen was at Hanstrum Hubley for 16 years and in 1969 with $6,600.00 owed to him in commissions, the dealership went bankrupt. That was a lot of money in those days as their Fairfield home cost $14,000. Glen had to find a job and thought he might be able to start a company selling garbage trucks and street sweepers. But, he warned Eilene, that if they tried this, they could lose everything they had. Eilene said that she didn’t think he would do that and told him to try and get the lines of equipment to sell. He worked hard for several months to convince Elgin Sweepers and Leach garbage truck manufacturers to take a chance on him.

So, in April 1970, Elliott Equipment Company was formed out of their home in Fairfield. Glen was on the road selling to cities and contractors in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois and Eilene did the bookkeeping and answering the phone in their home. Demand for the equipment grew as he was on the road selling Monday through Friday and even weekends, so the family moved to Bettendorf, Iowa in 1972. A building was acquired in Davenport, and, as they say, the rest is history! Today, Elliott Equipment Company is 52 years old, employs 45 people, has five locations across the Midwest and covers seven states. Glen’s son Gene proudly followed in his father’s footsteps working for the company and now serves as CEO.

In 1980, Glen started I.D.S., Industrial Disposal Service that hauled waste from commercial accounts like Alcoa, J.I. Case and International Harvester. The hauling company grew quickly and after four years, IDS was purchased by BFI, Browning and Ferris Industries, a national waste hauler.

Glen and Eilene lived in Davenport and the Quad Cities area for 46 years before moving to West Des Moines, Iowa at Edgewater Senior Living community in 2018. Glen passed away there at 94 years old on November 2, 2022. The staff and caregivers loved his stories and jokes.

Glen was a self-made man who loved golf, hunting and fishing and any sport his son played. Even though he was on the road and gone a lot, somehow, he was able to make most of Gene’s games and activities. He followed Gene’s golf from junior golf, high school golf, college golf and even professional golf. Gene was inducted into the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame in 2012, a day Glen was very proud of. Glen made six hole-in-ones of his own and was a member of Crow Valley Golf Club for over 30 years. In their later years, Glen and Eilene enjoyed wintering in Florida on a golf course, near the Fort Meyers area. He loved when the grandchildren visited in Florida or their home on Crow Valley Golf Club. He would fish and catch critters in the water with Gene ll and Sam and go on golf cart rides. He really enjoyed that. Glen and Eilene were members of Holy Cross Lutheran Church for many years and Glen served as an elder and was also a member of Scott County Rotary.

Glen is survived by his loving wife of 74 years, Eilene; his son, Eugene and wife DaLena; grandsons, Eugene ll and fiancé Valerie, Samuel and wife Alexa; granddaughter, Samantha and fiancé Logan. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Stanley and Jack; and sister, Shirley.

Services will be held at Hamilton’s on Westown Parkway, 3601 Westown Parkway in West Des Moines on Friday, November 11, 2022 at 12:00 noon with visitation prior from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. A celebration of life will be held in the Quad Cities at a later date.