Roger Winslow Obituary

Roger Allen Winslow, 89, of Corydon, IA, died June 25, 2025 at The Village in Indianola. He was a generous man of warmth, intelligence, and integrity and will be greatly missed.
Roger was born on September 1, 1935, in Evanston, Illinois, to Irma Wille Winslow and Harry C. Winslow. He joined older sisters Shirley and Pat. The family moved to Floral Park, New York, on Long Island, where they lived for the next 15 years.
Roger was a mischievous, clever, and energetic child who once painted all the doorbells in the neighborhood orange, straightened his own teeth with braces he secretly made of rubber bands and wires from milk bottles, and kept an eye out for enemy planes during World War II. In high school he spent summers visiting relatives and painting barns near Corydon. So, in 1951, when his father decided to move to southern Iowa to farm, Roger was ready to give up pestering his sisters' boyfriends and relocate.
On his first day at Corydon High School, Roger met Janet Fry, a lovely and intelligent 17-year-old who was also the youngest professional photographer in Iowa. He was impressed! After he graduated in 1953 he joined her at Iowa State College. They were married on September 2, 1956.
He graduated from ISC in 1957, having studied engineering and business. After six months of US Army active duty at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey and the birth of their first child, Meg, Roger and Jan returned to make their home in Corydon. His father-in-law, L.L Fry, became his boss when Roger joined Voltmaster Batteries as plant employee number 11.
Although he was hired to work in the manufacturing plant, Roger had an idea for a way to increase the company's sales. He asked to be given a sales route to work one week a month. Before the first year was over, he was outselling all the other salespeople by taking advance sales orders and focusing on selling to local auto parts stores rather than filling stations. Roger loved selling and enjoyed visiting small towns all over Iowa.
In 1964 he and a colleague formed Voltmaster Corporation, a separate battery sales company. Later, in 1972, he purchased the manufacturing business from L.L Fry.
Meanwhile, their family was also growing. Twins Mark and Mairi were born in 1959, Laura in 1961, and Anne in 1965. Although Roger was very busy with batteries, he loved his children and made time for them, attending school events, sharing family meals and discussions, and taking them on long and interesting vacations every summer. Every vacation, however, included at least one stop at a battery factory or lead smelter somewhere along the way!
As Voltmaster grew, so did Roger's involvement in the battery industry as a whole. He was an officer and board member of two international trade associations, serving as president of both Battery Council International and the Independent Battery Manufacturer's Association. He worked on establishing standards and guidelines for US battery manufacturing and testified before a Senate committee to explain the industry's system for reclaiming and recycling batteries.
Roger always cared deeply about his employees and being accessible to them was very important to him. As Voltmaster grew and needed to run three shifts, he learned that if he slept a little longer in the morning, he could stretch his workday so he could be in the office at least part of each shift. Of course, it helped that he was a natural night owl: many people passing by Voltmaster in the wee hours of the morning noticed Roger's office light still shining.
Roger truly loved his work and loved making batteries, but by 2000 he knew Voltmaster would need more capitalization to continue operating into the future. In 2006 Roger and Jan announced the sale of Voltmaster to East Penn Manufacturing, a family-owned business that would continue to build batteries in Wayne County. Rather than retiring, however, Roger kept busy with Richardson Molding, which manufactured battery cases at injection molding plants in Mississippi and Indiana, and with Cornerstone Financial Services.
For 13 years Roger was a captain in the US Army Reserve, first for Company A, 328th Engineer Battalion, 103rd Infantry Division in Centerville, IA, then as Communications Officer of the 372nd Engineer Group, XIV Corp in Des Moines. He had tremendous respect and affection for all the men with whom he served.
Roger threw himself wholeheartedly into whatever he did, from organizing class reunions; to leading a Boy Scout troop; to zipping around on a bicycle during the Corydon Old Settlers parades during his 20 years as president of the Old Settlers Committee; to building his dream house; to serving 50 years as an official for the Drake Relays; to serving the Corydon United Methodist church; to participating in Rotary and Friday Club. He was always learning and teaching and asking questions.
Roger loved Jan, his family, his community, his work, and... ice cream. He had an instinct for finding good ice cream shops all over the country and was always happy to share their locations. However, his willingness to buy ice cream for everyone was not the same as an offer to buy sherbet, as several prospective sons-in-law learned, to their chagrin. He also enjoyed skiing, traveling, and trying to do good things for his community. He delighted in driving cross-country and stopping by to visit extended family and friends. He also loved his grandchildren and great-grandchildren and one way he showed it was by frequently taking them out... for ice cream.
Roger was preceded in death by his parents, his parents-in-law, his sister Pat Anton, his brothers-in-law Vern Webb and Bob Pratt, his sister-in-law Heidy Fry, and his son-in-law Bob Maffitt.
He is survived by his beloved wife of nearly 70 years; his children Meg Maffitt of Overland Park, KS, Mark Winslow (Jeanne) of Corydon, Mairi Winslow (John Epperson) of Indianola, Laura Bertelson (Chris) of Winterset, and Anne Winslow (Doug Miller) of Des Moines; his sister Shirley Pratt; brothers-in-law Dick Fry and Stan Anton; sister-in-law Virginia Webb; his 13 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and many friends and relatives.
His funeral will be held on Friday July 25, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. at the Corydon United Methodist Church, with a light luncheon and time to visit with Jan following the service. The visitation will be on Thursday July 24 at Thomas Funeral Home in Corydon, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.
Memorial gifts may be made to the Corydon United Methodist Church, Planned Parenthood North Central States, or the Prairie Trails Museum and mailed to Thomas Funeral Home Attn: Winslow Family 303 E. Jefferson St. Corydon, IA 50060. Condolences may be shared on our website at www.thomasfh.com or facebook.com/thomasfuneralhome.
Roger Winslow was an intelligent, analytical, caring man, someone people could – and did – turn to when things got rough. He enjoyed people and was interested in them. He wanted to make life better. The world is diminished by his death.
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