Mary L. Hester

Mary L. Hester
July 04, 1917 - January 04, 2014
North English, Iowa
Visitation: 4 PM to 7 PM January 07, 2014 at Powell Funeral Home & Cremation Service, North English, IA
Funeral Service: 10:30 A.M. January 08, 2014 at St. Joseph Catholic Church, North English, Iowa
Interment: January 08, 2014 at North English Cemetery, North English, IA
Mary Louise Hester, 96, of Iowa City, Iowa, formerly of North English, Iowa died Saturday, January 4, 2014. A funeral mass will be celebrated at St. Joseph Catholic Church in North English on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 at 10:30 AM. Interment will be in North English Cemetery. Visitation will be at Powell Funeral Home in North English from 4:00 to 7:00 Tuesday, January 7, 2014. Memorials may be made to the Bill and Mary Hester Scholarship for English Valley Citizens Scholarship Foundation (EVCSF). Mary Louise Barron was born July 4, 1917 in Fort Madison, Iowa. Mary was the daughter of James and Sarah (Stark) Barron. Mary graduated from Ft. Madison High School in 1935. She then graduated at the top of her class from St. Joseph Nursing School in Ottumwa, Iowa in 1938. After graduation, Mary worked as a nurse at Mercy Hospital in Cedar Rapids. While living and working in Cedar Rapids, she met William Hester. Bill and Mary were married on April 9, 1942 just before Bill was shipped out for wartime naval duty. After the war in 1947, Mary and Bill moved to North English, Iowa where they lived until 2006. In 2006 they moved to Iowa City to live with their daughter Rosemary. Mary worked as a nurse at Sigourney Hospital for several years and then for Dr. Larry Miller in North English until her retirement at the age of 71. Mary dedicated her life to health care, helping others, and raising her family. Mary and Bill raised six children, Terry (Sharon) of Davenport, Tom (deceased), John (Linda) of Lone Tree, Jim (Candy) of Des Moines, Francis (deceased), Rosemary Adam of Iowa City and a special daughter Sandy Hester of North English. They were blessed with 12 grandchildren and 26 great grandchildren. Mary was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Bill of 65 years, brother Joe, sisters Marguerite and Agnes, sons Francis and Tom, and grand daughter Tracy.