MRS. WILLIAM E. (Elinor M. Madden) McDEVITT

MURRAY, MADDEN, MCDEVITT, FREEMAN, WALTER, AHLQUIST, GIBEAU, HIGDON, FOLLMAN, DE HAAS

Posted By: Mary Durr (email)
Date: 2/12/2003 at 14:51:23

MRS. WILLIAM E. (Elinor M. Madden) McDEVITT

Telegraph Herald - Wednesday, February 5, 2003

BERNARD, Iowa - Elinor M. "Pete" McDevitt, 82, of 28976 127th Ave., Bernard, died at 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 2, 2003, at home, surrounded by her family, after a courageous yearlong battle with thyroid cancer.

Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Assumption Church, Sylvia Switch, rural Zwingle, with burial in the church cemetery. Friends may call from 3 to 8 p.m. today at Leonard Funeral Home & Crematory, 2595 Rockdale Road, Dubuque, where there will be a rosary at 7:30 p.m. with family members present.

She was born on March 1, 1920, in Omaha, Neb., daughter of Francis and Edith (Murray) Madden. She worked for the FBI in Washington from 1941 to 1947.

She married William E. McDevitt on Feb. 28, 1946, in Omaha. They moved to a farm close to Bernard in 1957. In addition to raising seven children, she worked for Roshek's/Armstrongs as a department manager for many years.

She enjoyed family, friends, dancing, listening to music, praying and bird watching. She was a very kind, compassionate loving person who always found the best in others.

Surviving are her husband, William; a son-in-law, Steve Freeman, of Mendham, N.J.; her children, Nicki (Chuck) Walter, of Lincoln, Neb., Bill (Kim) McDevitt, of Columbus, Ohio, Tim McDevitt, of Bloomington, Minn., Dave (Michele) McDevitt and Melissa (Troy) Ahlquist, both of Sioux City, and Pete (Jane) McDevitt, of Urbandale; 13 grandchildren; and four sisters, Merge Gibeau, of Donna, Texas, Mandy (Jim) Higdon, of El Paso, Texas, Reene Follman, of Tampa, Fla., and Joyce James (Frans) de Haas, of Cuernavaca, Mexico.

She was preceded in death by her parents; and a daughter, Elinor.

Memorials may be given to Assumption Catholic Church Rosary Society; Elinor McDevitt Freeman Scholarship Fund (Briar Cliff University); and Hospice of Dubuque.

A special thank-you to Assumption Church Rosary Society members, Hospice of Dubuque, and family, friends and neighbors for their assistance and care for Elinor.