Wauneta Ione (Gorrell) Wiederaenders (86) of Dubuque, IA died April 1, 2014 at Ennoble Manor Care Center. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Charles Wiederaenders and is survived by her son, Paul Wiederaenders of Sterling IL, her daughters Catherine Dello (Jim) of Chicago IL and Claudia Wiederaenders (Marty Schechtel) of Schaumburg IL, her son Carl Wiederaenders (Melissa Watson) of Des Moines IA and her foster-daughter Cindy Wall Perkins (Kevin) of Uncasville CT; Grandchildren Nicole and Jacob Wiederaenders, Nicholas Watson and Benjamin Wiederaenders; great grandchildren, Marco and Chelsea Wiederaenders; her brother Ken Gorrell (Donna).
Nita was born July 23, 1927 to Ray and Lieurena Gorrell at the King family homestead in Saluda Township, Jefferson County IN. During World War II, she entertained troops at USO centers with her parents and brother. She studied three years at Illinois Institute of Technology, majoring in bacteriology, and for a period of time worked at Libby McNeill and Libby in Blue Island IL as a bacteriologist.
She married Reverend Robert Wiederaenders on June 15, 1951 at Rockefeller Chapel, University of Chicago. They served at various churches in Illinois before they moved to Dubuque, IA in 1964. They joined Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, where they remained active members for 50 years.
Nita has had varied interests during this time. She worked as a house mother at Finley Hospital and for 18 years at Hempstead High School in various capacities. At home she was a creative cook, creating new meals for her family to name. As an adept seamstress, Nita sewed clothing for her family- Halloween costumes and much more. She sewed also for local theatrical productions. She and Bob were very interested in local theater and on their 50th Anniversary attended a Fly by Night production where she was amazed to find her wedding dress (with multiple alterations) on stage. She also made wedding outfits for a photo booth in a mall kiosk.
Nita was a member of the Audubon Society for over 40 years, many of those years as a board member. She helped develop the annual Bald Eagle Watch and was listed in the Dubuque phonebook as a bird identification consultant. She served for 15 years on the Dubuque County Conservation board and was a member of Dubuque’s Environmental Task Force. She wrote articles such as Special Appeal promotions for Lutheran World Relief and Bread for the World.
With lifelong interest and creative skill in quilting, Nita was a founding mother of Cable Car Quilters in Dubuque and won multiple awards for her quilting.
Memorial services will be held at 11:00 on Friday, April 4, 2014 at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church. A visitation will be held from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m., Friday at the Church. The Egelhof, Siegert & Casper Westview Funeral Home and Crematory, 2659 John F Kennedy Road is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.egelhofsiegertcasper.com. Memorials may be given to Holy Trinity Quilters for Lutheran World Relief, The Dubuque Rescue Mission, The Dubuque County Conservation Board/Wetlands Acquisition and Preservation, The Dubuque Audubon Society and Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.