Messer, Mary Louise 1904-1979

MESSER, HARRIS, BYERS, VAN ERSVELDE, SANDERS, HICKS, WOLFE, GOODLOW, COLE

Posted By: Marilyn Holmes (email)
Date: 10/3/2010 at 18:44:38

MRS. EMMETT MESSER

Funeral services were held Thursday afternoon, Oct. 11, at the Steffy Funeral Home, Montezuma, for Mrs. Emmett (Mary Louise) Messer, 75, who died Monday, Oct. 8, 1979, at Grinnell General Hospital.

Rev. Fred Pierce officiated at the services and Mrs. Verla Van Dee was organist. Burial was in the Masonic IOOF cemetery, Montezuma. Casketbearers were Jack Byers, Marvin Byers, Elvin Cole, Richard Hicks, Clyde Sanders, Henry Schmidt, and Dale Wolfe.

Mrs. Messer was born on the home place in Jackson Township, Oct. 3, 1904 to John and Ella Harris Byers. She was the youngest daughter in a family of 13 children. She attended rural school.

On Feb. 8, 1933, she was married to Emmett Messer at the Montezuma Methodist Parsonage. They farmed a few years south of Brooklyn and then farmed 37 years east of Deep River.

She is survived by her husband, Emmett; a daughter and her husband, Louise and Roger Van Ersvelde of Brooklyn; two sisters, Mrs. Robert (Lela) Sanders of Barnes City and Mrs. Clifford (Byrdie) Hicks of Montezuma; two brothers, Harold Byers of Montezuma and Perry Byers of Grinnell, and several nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by two infant daughters; her parents; three sisters, Anna Wolfe, Nina Goodlow and Mamie Cole; and five brothers, Charles Byers, Russell Byers, Cecil Byers, Thomas Byers, and Raymond Byers.