Darlene L. Scull, 85, of Grinnell and formerly of Lynnville, died Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, under the care of Wesley Life Hospice at The Cottages in Pella. Memorials may be designated to the Darlene Scull Memorial Fund and mailed in care of LeAnn Pederson, PO Box 111, Lynnville, IA 50153. A celebration of life will be held later in the spring of this year. Memories and condolences may be shared with Darlene's family on the Smith Funeral Home and Crematory website at www.smithfh.com.
Darlene was born the daughter of Oliver and Cynthia (Hasley) Cook on July 25, 1940, in Montezuma. She was raised in Searsboro until her teens and later graduated from Montezuma High School in 1958. She joined the United States Navy from September 1958-September 1961 serving ashore as a Navy Hospital Corpsman. She proudly spoke of her service to her country and that she loved singing in the Naval Choir where she was stationed.
Darlene was united in marriage to Kenneth L. Scull on June 29, 1963, at the Little Brown Church in Nashua. They were blessed with five children: Gregory, Kristine, LeAnn, Stephanie, and Steven. Mom lovingly stayed at home to raise her children until returning to the workforce in 1975. She waitressed at the Longhorn for a few years and worked at GTE/Iowa Telecom from 1979 to 2008.
Mom loved her family, her wonderful friends, Christmas, and her pets (Toby and Punkin) as well as gardening. She had a small floral shop in Lynnville for a time. She loved creating beautiful floral arrangements for her family and friends. She had an amazing talent that blessed many.
Darlene is survived by her five children: Greg (Jane) Scull of Anniston, AL, Kristine Potter of Westborough, MA, LeAnn (Dana) Pederson of Grinnell, Stephanie Wilson of Grinnell, and Steven Scull of Lynnville; eight grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband Kenneth, parents, and brother Jimmy Cook of Montezuma.
