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Mary Ness
MARY NESS
Iowa City
Mary Marjorie Ness, 83, of Iowa City, passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday, March 16, 2016. A memorial service to celebrate Mary's life will be 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 22, at Zion Lutheran Church, 310 N. Johnson St., Iowa City. The family will greet friends from 10 a.m. until service time. Burial will follow at 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 23, at Oakridge Cemetery in West Liberty.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Heifer International, Friends of The Animal Center Foundation of Johnson County, or Zion Lutheran Church.
Mary was born May 10, 1932, in Iowa City, the daughter of Raymond and Marjorie (Williams) Lewis. She was raised south of West Liberty and was a graduate of West Liberty High School. Following high school Mary attended Iowa Wesleyan College, but her dream of becoming a teacher was interrupted by her epilepsy. She later attended Iowa City Commercial College, where she met Darwin Ness. The couple later married in 1957. Darwin and Mary opened Iowa City Typewriter Co. and continued to own and operate it together for over 30 years.
Mary was a very active lady and continued that way throughout her life. She was a longtime member of Zion Lutheran Church. She and her family also were members of the Iowa Mountaineers and enjoyed many activities together with the organization. Mary also spent many years as a crossing guard and a library aide for Horace Mann School in Iowa City.
In her free time, Mary enjoyed sewing, bowling and playing tennis (which she continued up until her death). She also enjoyed watching Iowa Hawkeye sports.
She will be dearly missed.
Survivors include her four children, David (Barb) of Iowa City, Christy Ness-Ashton (Clark) of Sandy, Utah, Joe (Diane) of San Antonio, Texas, and Warren (Cindy) of Iowa City; nine grandchildren, Jacob, Anna, Peter, Julie, Victoria, Isaiah, Savannah, Katie and Nicki; and 11 great-grandchildren.
Mary was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Darwin; a brother, George; a sister, Catherine Hladky; and a grandchild, Jesse Ness.
Online condolences may be left for the family at www.lensingfuneral.com.
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