Shirley Biggart

Shirley Biggart, 86, of Anamosa, died Friday night, Aug. 18, 2023, at her home with her family by her side, following an extended illness. Life Celebration services will be held 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 24, at the Goettsch Funeral Home, Anamosa, where friends may call from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday. Interment will be in the Wilcox Cemetery, rural Anamosa. Jim and Kris May will officiate at the services. Thoughts, memories and condolences may be left at www. goettschonline.com. Surviving are her three children, Carolyn, Betty and Lloyd (Sherry) Biggart; five grandchildren, Melinda, Alex, Kyra, Ally and Chris, five great-grandchildren; a special son, Darin Matthiessen; and a brother, Luke Seeley. She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband. Shirley Jean Williamson was born June 2, 1937, at Troy Mills in the family home. She was the daughter of Chester Lloyd and Velma Bige, Williamson. She started at Linn-Mar grade school and completed her education in 1957 when she graduated from Marion High School. She then started working at Farmers State Bank in Marion. Shirley married Richard Biggart on Aug. 2, 1959, at the Prairie Chapel Church in rural Linn County. They lived a brief time in Indiana while Richard was in service. They returned home and lived in Whittier. In 1968 they moved to a farm in the Viola/Stone City area. Shirley tended to her cats and pigmy goats. In 1974 she went to work at the Viola Schools where she was Ma Biggart to 300 children that went through the Viola school. Shirley took a job at Linn-Mar school where she was the secretary for the Math, VoAg and P.E. departments. Besides the farm and her job Shirley and Richard hosted a number, of foreign exchange students, three of them were Eddy Martinez from the Dominican Republic, Inger Lene Omholsteen from Norway and Hanoch Ehrlich from Israel. She always enjoyed company, baking, gardening, and handwriting letters, thank you notes and notes of encouragement. One of her last notes: Things I am happy for, a good husband, three good children, all my grandchildren, a comfortable home, good neighbors, a good town to live in, good nieces and nephews, good food, good nurses, pretty flowers, two cats, country western music and visiting with Angus Wacker.