Obituary for Marlys Jean Hovey

Memorial Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Thursday at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Cresco. Visitation will be held from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the funeral home and again for one hour prior to services at the church. Inurnment will take place in the spring in New Oregon Cemetery. Marlys Jean Hovey was born June 22, 1933 at Waterloo, Iowa, the daughter of Ola and Etta Dewater, the 12th of 14 children. Marlys left the family home at the age of 12 so that she could go to school. While in high school she worked at Sears, Roebuck and Company as a bookkeeper, and graduated from East High School in Waterloo in 1952. After that, she worked at Rath Packing Company for nine years. It was there that she met Donald Hovey. On February 4, 1956 she and Don were married at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa. On December 10, 1956 their daughter Debra Jean was born. They lived in Waterloo, Evansdale and Washburn, Iowa until 1961 when they moved to Hutchinson, Kansas. In 1962 they moved to Cresco, Iowa where they have remained living. During their married life in Cresco, Marlys worked at Jack & Jill grocery store for three years and then she was the Deputy Clerk of District Court in Howard County Iowa for 12 ½ years before becoming ill with leukemia. On February 5, 1982 their only grandchild, Kelsey Jean Tuchek, was born and she was the light of her life. Marlys was a very active member of the community, always putting others before herself. She was a Sunday School teacher for many years as well as a Blue Bird and Campfire Girl Leader. She served several years as a volunteer probation aid of Howard County where she developed a very special lifelong friendship with one of her clients. She was an organizer for the Dixie Dancers’ sponsored by the VFW Auxiliary #4561 for 10 years. She was an honorary 4H member/leader, a life member of the VFW Auxiliary #4561, a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church and member of the Mary Circle. She founded HOCA (Howard Cancer Association) in 1993 and was past HOCA president. Marlys served on the Board of the Howard County Chapter of the American Cancer Society for 22 years, was a member of the Cresco Saddle Club and was Treasurer of the New Oregon Cemetery Auxiliary. Last year at the age of 73, Marlys pursued a new career as a substitute teacher’s associate for the special education students at the Decorah Schools. Marlys died on December 8, 2007 after a courageous battle with a second leukemia. Her family and friends will miss her tremendously. She was preceded in death by her father, mother, four brothers, and seven sisters. Survivors include her husband Donald, daughter, Debra and granddaughter Kelsey, all of Cresco. Also surviving are her sisters, Rhea Brawner of Hutchinson, Kansas and Dolly Anthony of Shingletown, California.