PALMER, Doris Irene 1918-2006
PALMER, PARKER
Posted By: S. Bell
Date: 4/12/2015 at 00:03:23
[Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Wednesday, August 16, 2006]
Doris Irene Palmer lived a graceful, faithful life. She was born in Waterloo, Iowa, on April 5, 1918, and died in Waterloo on July 13, 2006. In the intervening 88 years, Doris lived a life of devotion - devotion to her family, her neighbors, her Rath Packing Co. colleagues, the First United Methodist Church, her West High Class of 1936 and her many, many friends, including those at Friendship Village where she spent the last three years of her life.
Doris' parents were Jesse Clair Palmer and Jennie Matilda Parker Palmer. She grew up on Grant Street in Waterloo where she lived with her parents and cared for them until their deaths. From her senior year in high school until her retirement in 1983, Doris worked in the payroll department at Rath Packing Co. Her brother, Max J. Palmer (d. 1994), moved to Chicago after graduation from West High (1930). There he married LaVerne Hickman (d. 2003), and they gave Doris a nephew and two nieces who knew and loved her as "Aunt Dody."
Aunt Dody was a gentle, glowing beauty, inside and out. With her boundless generosity, her always-ready sense of humor, her openness to the world and her never-failing love, Dody gave all of us a model of a life lived well. She was and always will be at the heart of the Palmer family.
Aunt Dody's surviving nephew and nieces, and all who loved her, will forever hold her in their hearts with deep gratitude for her life-giving spirit. They are Parker J. (Sharon) Palmer of Madison, Wis., and Sharon J. (William) Wallin and Susan J. Palmer, both of Wilmette, Ill. Doris also leaves behind great-nieces and nephews, Brent (Cathy) Palmer, Todd (Rayne) Palmer, Kevin (Regina) Crosby, Carrie (Jeff) Gransee, Jennie Crosby, Amy Wallin, Geoffrey Wallin, Jonathan Wallin and Michael Palmer. Also surviving are great-great-nieces and nephews, Heather Palmer, Skylar Gransee, Aidan Crosby, Benjamin Crosby, Colton Crosby and newborn Naiya Palmer. Dody's extended family includes Max (Nasrine) Gross, Loel Gross, Keith (late Dorothy) Ostrander, Paul (Janice) Ostrander, Robert (Verna) Ostrander, Gladys Ostrander, Sarah Hartley Palmer and Rodney Crosby. Doris is further survived by the families of Parker, Clair, Harry and Edwin Davis, late of Fayette County.
Doris Palmer left behind a world of wonderful friends. Of those closest to her were longtime friends and recent neighbors at Friendship Village, Agnes Terry and Mavis Kallem. Bob Harbaugh and his late wife, Fern, were two of Doris' lifelong friends, and they regarded each other as cousins. Karla Harkin was a sweet and cheery visitor during Doris' last days. Doris was so grateful, as is her family, to the staff of Friendship Village and Cedar Valley Hospice who served her so compassionately.
The family invites you to join them in a celebration of Doris Irene Palmer's life at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19, at the church that was so central to her life from baptism onward: First United Methodist Church, 614 Randolph, Waterloo, IA 50702. All are invited to the luncheon at the church that will follow the service. The family will gather later for private interment at Grandview Cemetery, Fayette, Iowa.
In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate memorial gifts to the First United Methodist Church of Waterloo, or the Cedar Valley Hospice, P.O. Box 2880, Waterloo, Iowa 50704.
Black Hawk Obituaries maintained by Karen De Groote.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen