Mary Gantz

MARY GANTZ

Iowa City

Mary Katherine DeJong Gantz died April 14, 2016, from complications of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), surrounded by her loving family and lots of sunlight. Mary was a respected community leader and volunteer, and a beloved wife, mother, grandmother and loyal friend to many.

A memorial service to celebrate Mary's life will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 8, at Agudas Achim Congregation, 401 Oakdale Blvd., Iowa City, IA 52241. A reception for family and friends will follow.

Mary was born April 4, 1949, in Dallas, Texas, to Bernard and Winifred DeJong. She spent her early years in northwest Iowa, but the family moved to Des Moines during her teenage years. Her fondness for Iowa City began during college at the University of Iowa (B.S.N. '71, M.S. '78). This is where she met her husband, Bruce. A whirlwind courtship of two weeks resulted in 44 wonderful years of marriage. Mary and Bruce lived in Iowa City for that duration, with the exception of one year in Salt Lake City and a year in Zurich, Switzerland, during Bruce's medical training. Over the years, Mary and Bruce traveled around the world, but always came home to Iowa City.

Mary celebrated education. While earning a master's degree in nursing, she taught at the University of Iowa College of Nursing for 12 years, all the while supporting her husband's training and children's schooling. During this time she also worked at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics as a nurse in the intensive care unit. Mary also taught nursing students while working at the University of Utah College of Nursing. Later in life, Mary's educational development continued as an active member of the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council and the Nineteenth Century Club, a historical local women's club.

Mary's participation in the Iowa City community was far-reaching in the areas of education, the arts and grant making. She was a graduate of the Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program. Most recently she was a board member of the Iowa Women's Foundation and chaired the organization's grants committee; she was a board member at the Englert Theatre (where she was on the founding board during the restoration); and she was a grant reader for the Johnson County Community Foundation. Previous leadership roles included president of the Iowa City Community School District parents' organization; president of the Hancher Guild; founding president of the F.W. Olin College parent organization in Needham, Mass., where her son, Jay, attended college; board member of the Preucil School of Music and Friends of Preucil School of Music; and member of the Iowa City Public Library Friends Foundation. Mary also participated on the Oaknoll Board of Directors and Foundation board.

Mary loved to garden and it was no surprise that she became active on the Project GREEN steering committee, having been the GREEN grants coordinator for many years. One project, the Kindergarten Tree Program, earned an Iowa Urban and Community Forestry Award in 2012. For many years, Mary was an active alumna of the Delta Gamma Sorority, assisting with oversight of the local chapter. She also worked as UNICEF coordinator of community volunteers. One of Mary's favorite projects was the ladybug release during the children's activity for the Iowa City Arts Festival. Mary's family is incredibly proud of her work; they know that her selfless leadership and rare ability to offer big ideas without missing the smallest of details has made Iowa City an immeasurably richer community. She had a quiet way of ensuring everyone was included in her thoughts.

Family was of the utmost importance to Mary. She was an amazing advocate for her children and was involved in all aspects of their lives. Her true legacy is her grandchildren, and interacting with all six of them brought Mary her greatest joy. The family home in Door County, Wis., was a special place of peace for Mary, and she treasured her time there with both family and friends.

Mary was preceded in death by both of her parents.

She is remembered with great love by her husband, Bruce; her children, Ellen (Sean) Stiller, Jessica (Stephen) Sauter and Jay (Aura) Gantz. Grammie Mary will be missed and celebrated by her grandchildren, Charles and Genevieve (Vivi) Sauter, Rose, Sadie and Tobias Stiller and Maya Gantz.

Mary's family would like to thank Iowa City Hospice, Homewatch CareGivers and Drs. M. Gwen Beck, Timothy Thompson and Ann Broderick for their compassionate care.

Contributions in Mary's honor should be directed to Project GREEN (www.projectgreen.org), The Iowa Women's Foundation (www.iawf.org), and/or Iowa City Hospice (www.iowacityhospice.org).

Online condolences and memories may be left for the family at www.lensingfuneral.com.