Mary Josephine Dickman, age 78, of Sac City, IA, passed away at Black Hawk Life Care Center in Lake View, Iowa on Friday, January 16, 2015.  Mary was born on April 5, 1936 to Edward and Dorothy (Albers) Eischen in Cherokee.   Mary grew up in Cherokee, Iowa, attended school at Immaculate Conception School and graduated as Valedictorian in 1954. 

   While working at one of the banks in Cherokee, she met Lee on a blind date and later they were married at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church on September 28, 1955.  They made their lives together in Cherokee and were blessed with their first three children: Joan, Kathy, and Nancy.  They later moved to Sac City in 1964 where their other two children, Mike and Ann, were born.  They lived in the same house all that time.  While living in Sac City, Mary worked at Fister’s Department Store for quite a few years.

   Mary loved playing card games and she shared her hobby with family and friends but most especially euchre with Melva and Virgil and canasta with Linda and Joe. Mary was an accomplished seamstress and made many outfits for her children. She was also an avid reader.

   Mary and Lee went on many trips all over the world with the Iowa State Bank Friendship Club.  From the Panama Canal and England, to Hawaii and throughout the United States. Most recently they also enjoyed a cruise to Mexico with Mike and Todd and Joe and Linda.

   She was a great cook and enjoyed looking through magazines and cookbooks for a new recipe to try.  She worked for many years as a cook in the kitchen at Loring Hospital.  Many meals were prepared and the family still laughs at the story about orange jello. After retiring, she also helped prepare the senior meals in Sac City.

   Mary was also an avid garage sale shopper. She would plan her route after looking through the garage sale ads in the paper and often would have a bag of “bargains” she had found for family members when they came to visit or when she visited them.

   Survivors include her husband Lee Dickman; son Mike (Todd Rydstrom) Dickman of Oakland, CA; daughters: Joan (Charlie) Ockenfels of Iowa City, IA; Kathy (Dave) Lohf of Luzerne, IA; Nancy (Doug) Sackett of Palm Springs, CA; Ann Straus of Lemoore, CA; brother Louis Eischen of Cherokee, IA; sister Margo Eischen of Cherokee, IA; grandchildren: Tony (Jen) Hutchinson of Meridian, ID; Jeremy (Lisa) Hutchinson of Lake City, IA; Andy Hutchinson of Rockwell City, IA; Ian Sackett of Boulder, CO; Ray Ockenfels of Iowa City, IA; Andrea Lohf of Luzerne, IA; Abby Lohf of Berea, KT; Brad Ockenfels of Iowa City, IA; Devin Straus of Lemoore, CA; great-grandchildren: Jaycob, Tori, Alyssa, Miya, Anthony, Addison, and Brooklyn.

   She was preceded in death by her parents Edward and Dorothy Eischen; and brother Ron Eischen.