Terry (Terrence) Lessmeier

TERRY (TERRENCE) LESSMEIER

Mount Vernon

Terry (Terrence) Lessmeier, 70, of Mount Vernon, passed away on Thursday, March 18, 2021, at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City. A Memorial Service will take place this summer to celebrate and honor the life

of Terry. Stewart Baxter Funeral & Memorial

Services, Mount Vernon, is caring for Terry and his family.

Survivors include his children, Maggie (Nate) Willems of Mount Vernon and Michael Lessmeier (Nicole Welsh) of Washington, D.C.; his grandchildren, whom he spoiled and loved with extraordinary devotion, Ava (12), Emery (11), and Marlie Jo Willems (8); siblings, Christine and Steven; and many extended family and friends.

He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Mary Jo (Smith), in 2015; his father, Harold Dean; mother, Bonita; and his siblings, Russell and Gina.

Terrence Dean Lessmeier was born Feb. 11, 1951, in Fort Dodge, to Harold and Bonita (Sutcliffe) Lessmeier. He was a proud alumnus of Fort Dodge Saint Edmond High School, graduating in 1969, alongside Mary Jo. Mary Jo and Terry married on Aug. 21, 1971, at Corpus Christi in Fort Dodge. Terry earned his initial undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa in 1973, and after a brief and quickly rejected stint at Iowa Law, he returned to Iowa to earn his teaching degree. He also earned his Master's degree, at the U of I in 1990. He began teaching at the Lincoln Community School District (now North Cedar) in 1976, and devoted his entire teaching, coaching and administrative career to the district, retiring to care for Mary Jo when her health declined.

For 44 wedded years, Terry and Mary Jo built a life together, full of friendship, mutual love and respect and this folded into a lively and loving extended family. Nothing was more important to Terry than honoring and leaning into authentic relationships, in his many roles as a husband, a father, an in-law, a teacher and a coach. When you were loved by Terry, it was notable, and often expressed with his unique humor paired with true loyalty. Terry enjoyed golfing, gardening, storytelling, and was a longtime member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Mount Vernon.

Memorials may be directed to the Victory for Terry fund at Bridge Bank in Mount Vernon.

Please share your support and memories with Terry's family on his tribute wall at www.stewartbaxter.com under obituaries.