Irene was born on the family Farm to Lewis and Esther Berhow 12 Dec.1907; the last of 11 children. She grew up playing with her nieces who were of the same age. She learned the art of Norwegian culinary skills from her mother and was kept busy preparing meals for hired hands and baking pies starting at the age of 9. She was baptized in the Lutheran Church in Huxley where she later was married. There was not much time to be a child as her mother who helped run the farm kept her very busy attending to the many chores. Her mother was very active in the Huxley community as a midwife and at Ladies Aid Society. Esther's quilts won Blue Ribbons at the County State Fair and Irene cut out the pieces for the many quilts that had to be perfect to pass her mother's inspection. The skills she learned on the farm she kept throughout her life. Irene was very proud of her full-blooded Norwegian Heritage.

She graduated from Huxley-Ballard School in 1925 and went to Northwestern Medical Institute, Minneapolis to get a degree as an Assistant Medical Technologist. She graduated 1929 and returned to the farm. With her Mother and father's advancing age, the farm was sold to an older brother and they moved into the town of Huxley where she helped her mother care for her father who had developed stomach cancer. She and her mother nursed him until he died on Dec. 7th, 1935. Her mother Esther died in 1950.

While attending a dance in Huxley in 1937 she met Walter Bappe, who was in the band playing bass. It was a mutual attraction and they were married in Huxley on Oct. 2, 1938.

They moved to Ames and lived there until their deaths. The land they bought and built on was called the "Sunn Side Edition" which matched their sunny dispositions. They both married late due to respective family obligations. Walter was 39 and Irene was 30 years old . Their first child was born on their 1st wedding anniversary and Walter always said "Life sure does begin at 40". Irene was in her home until age 91 when she had a stroke. She died at age 93 at Riverside Manor in Ames, that last living member of her Berhow family. She nursed her husband after he became a amputee. An active member of the Lincoln School PTA Hospitality Team, Boy Scout Den Mother; active in Luther League Program and Bethesda Church's Norwegian Day's and sang in the choir at Bethesda Lutheran Church. She had a beautiful operatic voice which harmonized with Walter's tenor voice, enjoyed when they would sing Happy Birthday to their family. She was a devoted and loving wife, nurse, mother, daughter, sister, aunt and friend. Had a deep love and faith in her savior, Jesus Christ.

SIblings: Seward Olai, Orland Benjamin, Sophes Harold, Clarence Milford, Walter Edward, Frederick Conrad, Emilia Bernetta (Millie)Ersland, Eva Lenora Olson, Florence Georgeana Berhow (died in childhood), Florence Bessie Rebecca Miller

(written by her Daughter, Rita Bappe Holmes)