Wanda Whitehill

MASON CITY ? Wanda L. Whitehill, 78 of Mason City died Monday, June 6, 2005 at the Muse Norris Hospice Inpatient Unit. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 AM, Thursday, June 9, 2005 at St. James Lutheran Church, 1148 ? 4th Street SE with Pastor Paul Nelson and Pastor Tom Healy officiating. A gathering of family friends will be from 5 ? 7 PM on Wednesday at Major Erickson Funeral Home, 111 North Pennsylvania Avenue. Interment will be in Elmwood ? St. Joseph Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to Hospice of North Iowa. Wanda was born September 6, 1926 in Burt, Iowa the daughter of Charley Wayne and Hazel Mathilda (Thompson) Mann. Wanda was born and raised on the family farm near Burt. She attended school in Burt and later attended the Iowa Normal School for one year to earn her teaching certificate. From a very young age Wanda shared her talents for cooking, baking and sewing with her family and friends. Often her two sisters would be working out on the farm and Wanda would be inside busy baking and sewing. She was united in marriage to Claude C. Whitehill on July 28, 1946 at the Little Brown Church in Nashua. Wanda began her teaching career in a one-room school-house. She also taught school and worked as a secretary on and off for forty years in the Wapsie Valley School System and several other area schools. Throughout her life Wanda?s top priority was her family and this continued after she and Claude had seven children. In the later years she made it important to keep in touch with her family. Wanda was known in her family as a master seamstress. She was also an active member of St. James Lutheran Church. Wanda is survived by her three daughters: Cynthia Landau and husband Alan of San Diego, California, Cheryl Cooke and husband Earl of Mason City, Christine Barfoot and Dave Baker of Milford, Iowa; four sons, Ed Whitehill of Mason City, Steve Whitehill and wife Debbie of Las Animas, Colorado, Craig Whitehill and wife JoAnn of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Creighton Whitehill and wife Rhonda of Des Moines; sixteen grandchildren and five great grandchildren; two sisters, Joan Paterson and husband Scotty of Coeur d?Alene, Idaho, Gwen Kruger and husband Don of Sheldon, Iowa; sister-in-law, Sally Tabako of Garden Grove, Calfornia as well as many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Claude in 2003 and one grandson, Jeffrey.

Visitation:
5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at on June 8, 2005 (map/driving directions) 1:00 PM to 1:00 PM at on June 6, 2005 (map/driving directions)

Service:
10:30 AM at 1148 - 4th Street SE on June 9, 2005 (map/driving directions)