Doris McCready

Doris McCready, 95, peacefully released this earthly life on the first day of spring, March 20, 2025, at Heritage Care and Rehabilitation Center, Mason City, lowa. A service celebrating her life will be held Saturday, May 3rd, 2025, at 11:00 A.M., at First Congregational United Church of Christ, 100 1st St. NE, Mason City. Visitation will be held at the church one hour prior to the service. A luncheon will be served at the church following the service, with inurnment at Sunset Rest Cemetery, 210 3rd St, N., Northwood. The family requests that any memorials are given to an animal rescue organization of your choice, your local Humane Society, or to your local food bank in memory of Doris McCready.

Doris McCready (née van Schellenbeck) was born on October 30, 1929, in Wetzlar, Germany. One month before her 10th birthday, World War II began on September 1st, 1939. Doris and her mother lived through the bombings, the hunger, and the trauma of World War II. She often recounted how scary it was to cross the bridge on the way to the bomb shelter, hoping the Allied planes overhead would not bomb her or her mother. As a young teen, Mom enjoyed swimming on a competitive swim team. The team traveled by train to different cities, which was exciting. Mom said that all ended when bombs blew up the train tracks.

Doris grew up in a household that valued classical music. Her mother was an accomplished pianist and her father enjoyed listening to opera music. It is then, no surprise that Doris loved music, especially the music of J.S. Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart and Beethoven. She took violin and piano lessons, but she preferred to sing. One of her special teenage memories was singing the 4th movement, An die Freude (Ode to Joy), of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, with full concert choir and orchestra. She could play the harmonica and had a special talent for whistling. When her elementary music teacher heard her whistle, he asked her to whistle a song in front of the entire class.

Doris graduated from high school in Wetzlar. She then earned her 2-year degree at a business college in Giessen, where she learned typing, bookkeeping, shorthand and dictation. She then worked as a stenographer at the Spinnerei und Weberei Wetzlar (a spinning and weaving mill, which her paternal grandfather co-owned).

After WW II ended on September 2, 1945, the U.S. Army Occupation Forces rolled into Wetzlar. She met SFC Donald W. McCready, from Plymouth, Iowa on a blind date. They were engaged in 1950 and married in 1952 in Wetzlar. On September 18, 1952, they boarded the USNS General Alexander M. Patch and sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to America. On September 26, they landed in New York. Mom was then processed at Ellis Island as an immigrant. After completing citizenship classes in Osage, Iowa, she became a U.S. citizen. There she met many other female immigrants from Estonia, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Germany who became her life-long friends.

Mom and Dad made their home on a farm north of Nora Springs where they raised four daughters. Mom took on the role of farm wife, mother, and homemaker. She was an excellent cook and knew how to make delicious food from scratch. In addition to cooking 3 meals every day for her family, she often had extra cooking when Dad hired help to complete his farm work: 10:00 am coffee/cake breaks, 12:00 pm meals, and afternoon coffee breaks.

Doris was fluent in German and English, but was also familiar with French, Spanish and Italian. It was important to her that her children knew how to read, write and speak English at the highest level. She had a better command of English grammar than many native English speakers. As one of the "German War Brides" in North lowa, she translated family letters and documents for many people through the years. Some of her translations were published in Signs of Life: The Correspondence of German POWs at Camp Algona, lowa 1943-46 by Michael Luick-Thrams.

Mom was a member of the Sunshine Circle (a group that started in 1913) from 1956 until 2018 (as an Honorary Member until 2020). She took great pleasure in entertaining and setting a beautiful table for her guests, complete with a white linen tablecloth, fine china and fresh flowers. She will be remembered for her delicious open-faced sandwiches, her beautiful table settings, her sense of humor and the laughter that they shared.

Doris, Don and their children attended Plymouth United Methodist Church, where Doris later became the director of the children's choir. She loved the kids, and they loved her back. As her own children left the nest, she put her culinary skills to work as a cook at the North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) dorms, where she worked for approximately 8 years until Don’s passing. She also worked at Younkers as a gift wrapper during the Christmas season, which she really enjoyed. She enjoyed meeting people and creating beautifully-wrapped packages. But her favorite job of all was being Oma (“grandma” in German) to her grandchildren. After Don's sudden death in 1991, Doris moved from the farm where she had lived for 40 years and bought her own house in Mason City. She loved her new home and decorated it with style and elegance. This home became the "hub"for holidays and birthdays.

Doris will be remembered by her daughters Carolyn Ryan, Chris McCready, Cathleen (Patrick) Harris; son-in-law Don (Marg) Richards; grandchildren Kyle Richards, Erin (Brent) Taylor, Jenna Snow, Richard (Abby) Ryan, Alexander Ryan, Ryan McCready (Sarah Fatino), Sean and Liam Harris; great-grandchildren Cahlen Richards, Ava and Elise Snow, Cash and Collins Ryan, and Vada McCready; brothers Helmuth, Horst and Kurt van Schellenbeck; many nieces and nephews, and her beloved cat, Taffy. She was preceded in death by her husband Donald McCready, daughter Cynthia Richards, parents Eugen van Schellenbeck and Annemarie Rall, parents-in-law Blair and Anna McCready, stepfather Max Rall, stepmother Charlotte van Schellenbeck, and her beloved fur babies: Lovey, Max, and Benny.

Auf Wiedersehen! Alles Gute!

I LOVE YOU MORE!