Mary Ann Eckes

Aberdeen: The funeral service for Mary Ann Eckes, 95, will be 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9, 2010, at Spitzer-Miller Funeral Home, 1111 S. Main St., with Father Joe Holzhauser, celebrant. Burial will be at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery. Mary Ann died at her home in Aberdeen on Oct. 6, 2010.

Visitation will be from 11 a.m. until the time of service on Saturday at the funeral home.

Mary Ann Eckes was born June 5, 1915, near Hosmer, S.D. She was the oldest of seven children of Alexander Mardian and Elizabeth (Schwan) Mardian. The family moved to Aberdeen when she was four years old and she grew up near St. Mary's Church.

Her first marriage was to Joe Kramer of Ipswich, S.D., with whom she had five daughters and one son. Her second marriage was to Lawrence Eckes of Marshfield, Wis., with whom she had one daughter and one son. During her full life, she had many jobs including working at the Black Hawk CafŽ, Combs CafŽ, The Virginian CafŽ, Jack and Jill Clothing store, K.O. Lee and also at St. Luke's annex during World War II with children suffering from Polio.

Mary Ann loved visiting with her family and friends over coffee and a game of marbles at her kitchen table. In her later years, she especially loved visits with her little great- and great-great-grandchildren to watch them play.

Mary Ann was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church of Aberdeen. She was a past member of the Moose Lodge. She enjoyed sewing and crocheting. She also liked gardening, canning and working in her yard.

Mary Ann was preceded in death by her parents; both husbands; and two children, who died in childhood, Bernice Kramer and Agnes Katherine Kramer.

She is survived by her remaining children, Rita Marie (Kramer) Hoeft, Rosemary (Kramer) Rux, Gladys (Kramer) Youngstrom, Ronald James Kramer, Linda (Eckes) Tampary and Lawrence Eckes. She is also survived by 29 grandchildren, 64 greatgrandchildren, 25 great-great-grandchildren and two great-great-great-grandchildren  . . . and she wanted to say “I did it my way." spitzerfuneralhome.com

This obituary was originally published in the Aberdeen American News.