Sibyl M. Christensen

CHRISTENSEN, HERKELMANN, KAUFFMAN, RICH, SMITH

Posted By: Harvey W. Henry (email)
Date: 3/17/2009 at 09:40:02

Sibyl M. Christensen
Born: November 23, 1926
Died: February 26, 2009
Services:A Memorial Service will be held at 11 am on Thursday, March 26 at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church,Iowa City. A luncheon will be held at the church following the service.
Visitation:Visitation will be held from 10-11 am at the church.
Sibyl M. Christensen, 82, of 762 Linder Road NE, Iowa City, passed away Thursday, February 26, at Mercy Hospital in Iowa City from complications of cancer. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service of Iowa City is handling the arrangements.

Sibyl was born on November 23, 1926, in Cedar Rapids to Urbane and Eunice (Herkelmann) Christensen. She grew up in Lost Nation, Iowa, where she worked in the post office before attending the University of Iowa, from which she received bachelor’s (1958) and master’s (1968) degrees. A trailblazing adult student, she was particularly proud of paying her own way through college and earning membership in Phi Beta Kappa.

She taught English at Central Junior High in Iowa City and was the librarian at Mid-Prairie Junior High in Kalona before her retirement. She was an avid supporter of the Iowa Hawkeyes and the arts, especially the Iowa City Community Theatre. She enjoyed outdoor activities, including hiking and mountaineering during summers at The Teachers’ Lounge, the cabin she shared with Pat Bruning and Celia Eckey in the Wyoming Tetons. She was a member of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church.

Sibyl was passionate about her pets and adopted many rescued animals that needed her special care. She was also a caring and kind friend and was devoted to her extended family. Even though she was a small woman, she was “Big Sibyl,” the aunt her nieces and nephews loved and will deeply miss.

Preceding her in death were her parents and her special friends and housemates, Patricia Bruning and Celia Eckey. Survivors include her stepmother, Carol Christensen, Iowa City; her sister, Wanda Y. Kauffman, Des Moines; and her brother, Neil D. Christensen (Denise), Calamus. She also leaves seven nieces, Gretchen Kauffman, Des Moines; Jane Rich, Fort Worth, Texas; Sibyl Smith (Walt), Newton; Annette Renfrew (Corby), Minneapolis; Erin Holst (Gerrit), Davenport; Leah Christensen, Davenport; and Megan Christensen, Calamus; one nephew, Richard Kauffman (Kathy), Des Moines; two great-nephews; five great-nieces; three great-great-nephews; and two great-great-nieces. Others left to mourn her are an uncle, her cousins, her dear friend Evelyn Stanske, her many friends in Iowa City and across the country, and her pets.

Please honor Sibyl’s life with a contribution to Camp Courageous in Monticello, the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center, The University of Iowa Foundation, or a charity of your choice.