Arlin Merle Harvey was born on October 12, 1940, to Marvin Merle and Hazel (Miers) Harvey on a farm near Newton, Iowa. He had an older sister and brother, Mariln and Connie and a younger sister Mary. When he was quite young, the family settled on a farm near Bussey, Iowa. In 1956, the family moved to Oskaloosa, where he graduated from high school. While in high school he started working at Hy-Vee. After graduation he attended William Penn for a short period and then joined the National Guard. He served six years and enjoyed the experience. On August 14, 1960, he married the love of his life, Jackie Smith. They had two daughters, Kathy and Karla and always had time for them. He continued to work at Hy-Vee for a total of seven years. During this time he obtained his accounting degree from AIB and LaSalle University in Chicago. In January of 1963, he started working at Pella Corp as an accountant. In 1975, he began his career in Human Resources and enjoyed this job very much. He retired from Pella Corp in 2002 after 39 years.

He became a member of the First Baptist Church in Pella in 1963, and served as Sunday School superintendent for many years. He was very active in the life of his church.

His favorite hobby was woodworking and had such joy in making gifts for his five grandchildren. He was very proud of his part in Habitat for Humanity and the many projects he helped with at the Baptist Forest Lake Camp. He was an active member of the Pella Lion's Club for many years.

He enjoyed traveling and his favorite kind of traveling was cruising. So many of the countries they visited were by cruising, and they visited all 50 states.

On February 7, 2023, he entered the Oskaloosa Care Center following a stroke. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2002, and fought bravely for 21 years.

He is survived by his wife, Jackie of 62 years and their family:

Kathy and Ken DeVos, Pella

Kourtney and Torsten Copeland

Kayley DeVos

Klaire DeVos

Karla and Vince Nossaman, Pella

Hillary Nossaman

Payson and Ciara Nossaman

He is also survived by his brother, Connie Harvey, Cookeville, Tennessee, and sister Mary and Larry Estevez also of Cookeville, and several nieces and nephews.

Arlin was preceded in death by his parents Marvin and Hazel Harvey, his sister and husband Mariln and George Walker, his parents-in-law James and Cecile Smith, his brother-in-law Dan Smith, and three granddaughters: Kelby, Kathy, and Kaylene DeVos.

First Baptist Church
Pella IA

Forest Lake Church Camp
Bloomfield IA