Mary Margaret Sudbeck 1929 - 2019

SUDBECK, MCGOWEN

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 9/22/2019 at 21:51:46

Sioux City Journal
12 May 2019

Sioux City

Mary Margaret Sudbeck, 89, of Sioux City, passed peacefully in her sleep on the morning of May 9, 2019, at Holy Spirit Retirement Home.

Public visitation will be 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 15, with the family present 5 to 7 p.m. To honor Mary Margaret’s deep love for the Blessed Mother, the Catholic Daughters of America will lead a Rosary at 5 p.m.; a second Rosary will begin at 7 p.m. Arrangements are under the direction of Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel.

Mary Margaret came into this world on May 21, 1929, in Laurel, Neb., the daughter of James and Rose McGowen. She graduated from Cedar Catholic High School in 1947 and taught at the Tip Top Country School from 1947 to 1948. Before meeting her spouse, she worked as a bookkeeper for her uncle, Benny McGuirk. Mary Margaret married Duane Sudbeck on Aug. 21, 1950, and the two remained united in marriage until Duane’s death in 2012. In 2000, they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with friends and family.

Mary Margaret was a longtime member of the Cathedral of the Epiphany Catholic Church, where she served on many committees and sang in the choir. Upon her death, she belonged to St. Michael’s Catholic Church.

Throughout her life, she was a voracious volunteer, serving on the board of directors for the Birthright of Siouxland, the Blue Army, the Catholic Daughters of America, and the Carmel Board for the Carmelite Monastery. For many years, she helped her husband care for the grounds of Trinity Heights.

Mary Margaret was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and aunt.

Her strength and faith will be forever missed. She will be remembered for her smile, her infamous hugs, her unwavering generosity, her love of the Rosary, and her homemade bread, cinnamon rolls, and hot-and-cold chocolate cake. Her passionate cheerleading at sports games and motherly tending to her grandkids bathing them, singing to them in her creaky wooden rocking chair will always be special memories for her loved ones.

Survivors include four sons and nine daughters, Jim Sudbeck (Penny) of Burlington, Iowa, Jane Kirwan (Kevin) of Sioux City; Therese Giorsetti (Phil) of Flagstaff, Ariz., Tom Sudbeck (Annette) of Stafford, Va., Tim Sudbeck (Cindy) of Kingsley, Iowa, Bernadette Borgard (Matt) of Downers Grove, Ill., Marie Possley (Tom) of Wheaton, Ill., Maureen Shell (Greg) of Adel, Iowa, Margaret Picker (Randy) of Castle Rock, Colo., Sarah Miller (Chuck) of Golden, Colo., Mary Adams (Mickey) of Flagstaff, Ariz., Rosemary Morrison (Greg) of Omaha, and David Sudbeck (Laura) of Easley, S.C.

Mary Margaret is also survived by her sister, Sister Bernadette McGowen of Yankton, S.D.; her daughter-in-law, Barb Sudbeck, of Tucson; 46 grandchildren; and 51 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, James and Rose McGowen; her husband, Duane; two of her sons, Daniel and John; and her siblings, Catherine (Kitty Ann) Uhrich, Helen Sudbeck, and Sister Jane McGowen.