RYE, Claudia A. 1924 - 2016

RYE, ALDRICH, MILLS, HAYES, MEINDL, RAMAEKER, HOFLER, RIGDON

Posted By: Pat Ludeke (email)
Date: 1/9/2018 at 23:27:38

Claudia A. Rye, 92, of Mason City, died Friday, April 15, 2016, of natural causes, at Muse-Norris Hospice Inpatient Unit in Mason City.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 19, 2016, at Epiphany Parish St. Joseph Catholic Church, 302 Fifth St. S.E., Mason City, with the Rev. Neil Manternach officiating. Burial will be in Elmwood-St. Joseph Cemetery, Mason City.

Visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. Monday, April 18, 2016, at Hogan-Bremer-Moore Colonial Chapel, 126 Third St. N.E., Mason City. A Scriptural Wake Service will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a Rosary to follow Monday evening at the funeral home. Family suggests memorial contributions to Hospice of North Iowa.

Claudia Agnes (Mills) Rye was born Feb. 18, 1924, the daughter of Everett and Winifred (Aldrich) Mills in rural Worth County. Claudia was the first of five children. She graduated from St. Joseph Catholic School in Mason City in 1943 and worked in sales at Younkers.

Claudia met Thomas Rye at the Surf Ballroom in 1944 and they were married on Jan. 29, 1945, at the Base Chapel at Camp Lejeune Marine Base, Parris Island, SC, where her husband was a Marine Corps drill instructor following World War II. They returned to Mason City with their first child, Sue Ann Rye, in 1947. They had six additional children born in Mason City. In 1948, Tom and Claudia built their first of three homes along the banks of Willow Creek. As the family grew, they built progressively larger homes.

Claudia was a very talented artist who instilled a love beautiful things, works of art and creative endeavors, in her children. She was proud to exhibit her paintings on various occasions at the MacNider Art Museum and the Mason City Public Library. She was always willing to take on a new project and develop a new artistic direction. Her children have fond memories of their mother pursuing various artistic techniques, such as painting, jewelry making, clay and bronze sculpting, drawing, picture framing, and floral arrangement. They remember going out on cold autumn days to search the ditches for dried material for seasonal arrangements. She also loved antique buying, selling, and collecting.

Raising seven children was a challenge, but Claudia insisted that her family enjoy vacationing and travel; which meant camping. A group that large was an enjoyable experience for the kids, but a monumental challenge for the parents that included sleeping on the ground, cooking over sterno stoves, and using laundromats. Only on very rare occasions were restaurants visited in those early years of camping. Her family fondly remembers discovering the wonderful locations that were accessible by automobile on those annual vacations.

Claudia was always proud of her clean and well maintained home and was an avid decorator. She loved to rearrange furniture and decorate for the different seasons. She was an excellent seamstress and enjoyed making and altering clothes for her girls and herself. All of her children know how to use a needle and thread, at least for minor repairs or to replace a button. She taught her children self-reliance and ingenuity. She believed that if you could read, you could learn anything. She was devoted to and loved by her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Claudia was an active member of St. Joseph Catholic Church and served in the St. Francis Circle. She enjoyed reading, genealogy, visiting and spending time with her friends and family. She especially enjoyed getting together with their card club, which started over 35 years ago.

Claudia is survived by seven children, Sue Ann (Dr. Daniel) Hayes of Mason City, Robert T. (Linda) Rye of Placerville, CA, William M. (Cherie) Rye of Mason City, Chris D. (Julie) Rye of Mason City, Steve P. (Vicky) Rye of Mason City, Julie M. (Dr. Martin) Meindl of Mason City, and Jennifer A. (Daniel) Ramaeker of Mason City; 19 grandchildren, Traci Kendrick, Melissa Alexander, Mark Eatman, Colleen Hayes, Michael Rye, Carl Rye, Andy Rye, Allan Rye, Sara Thomas, Rachel Rye, Mike Reindl, Matthew Reindl, Jocelyn Johansen, Thomas Johansen, Shane Ramaeker, Seth Ramaeker, Dr. Devon Ramaeker, David Meindl, and Brian Meindl; many great-grandchildren; several great-great grandchildren; a sister, Pat Hofler, and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas M. Rye in 1993; parents, Everett and Winifred Mills; a mother-in-law, Margaret Rye and father-in-law, Carl Rye; a sister, Mary Rigdon; two brothers, Jim and Donald Mills; a sister-in-law, Shirley (Midge) Mills; a brother-in-law, Don Rigdon; brothers-in-law, Donald and Curtis Rye; daughter-in-law, Jacquelyn Rye; a grandson, Daniel Eatman; a great-grandson, Logan Ray Lester; and three nephews, Danny Mills, Bobby Hegenbarth and Rolland Mills.

Hogan-Bremer-Moore Colonial Chapel, 126 Third St. N.E., Mason City, 641-423-2372, ColonialChapels.com.