T-R PHOTOS BY ROBERT MAHARRY Approximately 30 members of the Sheeler family stopped by the Iowa Veterans Home on Monday to tour the building named after the late Dr. Ivan Sheeler, a veteran of WWI and WWII who served as the medical director at IVH into his 80s before passing away at the age of 105 in 1997.

Dr. Ivan Sheeler, a veteran of both World Wars, left a towering legacy when he passed away in 1997 at the age of 105, and it lives on to this day through the administration building named after him at the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown. On Monday afternoon, approximately 30 of his family members from at least five states who were in town for a funeral took a tour of the building and the campus at large.

After retiring from the VA in Des Moines, Ivan Sheeler came up to Marshalltown on what he initially believed would be a temporary, short-term basis but ultimately spent over two decades as the medical director and worked into his 80s. He later returned to IVH once more as a resident before passing away in 1997.

Commandant Todd Jacobus noted that other than the Fox Building, which is named after the home’s first ever resident, all of the other buildings at IVH are named for past commandants other than Sheeler, where the commandant himself now keeps his office.

“That’s unique and special,” he said. “He left a big impression here through his longtime service, you know, World War I all the way up until he was in his mid 80s, so that’s just an incredible life of service.”

One of his grandsons, Dan Sheeler, is a current resident at IVH, and Jacobus described Dan as “a great person to have around.” When one relative asked if she could work at the facility, he put in a plug that they’re currently hiring and, despite having the capacity for 447 residents, there are only 371 currently housed there with a five-month waiting list due to a shortage of staff.

“We’re short on LPNs, CNAs and RNs, and that’s the long pole in our tent right now,” he said. “And as a result, some residents are waiting for a long time to get in here.”

The proud family members took time to reflect on Ivan’s accomplishments after visiting his grave at the IVH Cemetery, and of course, they made sure to pose for a photo next to the Sheeler sign.