Peters, Mary Grace

Mary Grace Peters, 87, died peacefully on Saturday, Nov. 6, with her nieces and nephews around her, at West Ridge Care Center in Cedar Rapids. Her death was a result of complications with Alzheimer's disease. Mary Grace's life and reunion with family and friends in heaven will be celebrated with a funeral mass at St. Patrick Church in Cedar Rapids. The mass will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 10,  at 10 a.m., with interment immediately following the services at Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery. Friends and relatives may visit on Tuesday, Nov. 9, from 4 to 7:30 p.m. at Cedar Memorial Westside Chapel. A rosary will be prayed at 5 p.m., followed by a prayer service at 6:30 p.m.

Mary Grace was born Dec. 6, 1922, to Anton and Mary Palumbo. Her family ran a neighborhood grocery store on the corner of First Avenue and 10th Street West, where she resided for nearly the first 50 years of her life. It was then that she married her loving husband, Cecil N. Peters, on Sept. 25, 1970. Mary Grace and ‘Pete' enjoyed buying and developing new homes until their eventual retirements.

Mary Grace was a graduate of St. Patrick School, class of 1941. She loved her school years and she loved the Sisters of the BVM who taught her. She went on to obtain a business school degree from Mount Mercy and went on to a very successful career as a secretary, retiring from Rockwell Collins in 1983.

Mary Grace was an extraordinary secretary and prided herself as a true professional at her craft. In 1966, she was recognized as a ‘Certified Professional Secretary' by the national organization. This was an honor held by only two secretaries in all of Rockwell Collins (known as Collins Radio at that time) and only a few thousand nationwide. Although her brother, Joe, was a high school English teacher, there was no doubt who the nieces and nephews turned to when they had a paper that needed to be edited for grammar and punctuation. We wish she were here now.

Other than her career, Mary Grace had three things she focused on and loved with all her heart. You might call them the three F's: Faith, Family and Friends.  She was a devout Catholic, and was devoted to her family and friends. No holiday or special event was complete without her special charms and gracious hospitality. Her quick mind and zest for life will be missed by all.

Mary Grace was preceded in death by her parents, Anton and Mary; her husband, Pete; three brothers, Anthony, Johnny and Joe Palumbo; and her two sisters and their husbands, Josephine (Kenneth) Krumbholz and Mercedes (Daniel) Pfiffner.

Mary Grace is survived by her 12 nieces and nephews, Mike (JoAnn) Krumbholz of Crescent, Iowa, Steve (Dianne) Krumbholz of Coralville,  Chris (Dan) Peck of Fairfax, John (Mary) Krumbholz of Cedar Rapids, Cheryl (Doug) Hoover of Branson, Mo., Neal (Patsy) Krumbholz of Cedar Rapids,  Jeff Krumbholz and Sue Hickman of Robins, Kevin (Jane) of Ankeny, Kraig (Katie) Pfiffner of Dubuque, John (Ann) Pfiffner of Cedar Rapids,  Dave (Cindy) Pfiffner of Marion,  and Michael (Carolyn) Pfiffner of Brook Park, Ohio. In addition, Mary Grace is survived by numerous grandnieces and great-grandnieces and nephews as well as several cousins she was close to her entire life.

Although Mary Grace never had children of her own, she cared for her nieces and nephews as if they were her own. No small part of her legacy was passed on to the Krumbholz boys and their love of Hawkeye football, which had its roots in Aunt Mary Grace's willingness to take two of them at a time to “knothole football games' at Kinnick Stadium in the late 1950s and early 1960s. And to the Pfiffner clan, she passed her love of family, Italian cooking and baking as evidenced in countless holiday preparations with Mary Grace, Merce, and Uncle Joe.

A very special thank you goes out to Mercy Hospice and the staff at West Ridge Care Center for their wonderful care during the last weeks of Mary Grace's life.

Memorials will be forwarded to Mercy Hospice and the Alzheimer's Association in an attempt to help rid the world of this dreadful disease.