Joan M. Schwade

Thursday, July 30, 2015 7:21 pm

Joan M. Schwade, 83, of Protivin, died Tuesday, July 28, 2015, at the Hawkeye Care Center in Cresco. A Mass of Christian Burial is at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Protivin, with Rev. Nick March celebrating the Mass. Interment is in the church cemetery. Friends may greet the family 4-8 p.m. Friday, July 31, at Hugeback’s Protivin Funeral Home, where there is a 4 p.m. rosary and a 7:30 p.m. parish scripture service. Visitation continues beginning at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.  Online condolences for Joan’s family may be left at hugebackfuneralhome.com.

Joan Marie Schwade was born Oct. 2, 1931, in Ossian, the daughter of Alphonso and Amelia (Herold) Wiltgen. She received her education in Ossian and graduated from St. Francis DeSales High School in 1948. Following high school, Joan went to work in Cedar Rapids for the Wilson Company and returned home a year later to help with the family business and care for her younger siblings. She married Eugene W. Schwade Oct. 29, 1955, at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church, Spillville. To this union four children were born. Joan worked for several places in the area including the school lunchroom in Protivin, the Farmers Mill, Camcar in Decorah and Sara Lee in New Hampton until retirement. Joan also read the water meters in Protivin for 44 years. Mostly, Joan was the best of all mothers to her children. She loved going to bingo, fishing, traveling and spending time with all her ever-growing family. Joan was loved by so many with her smile and kind words. She will be dearly missed.

Survivors include one son, Keith (Lisa) Schwade of Rochester, Minn.; three daughters, Trudy (Louie) Smith of Ft. Atkinson, Vicki (Kaiser) Fleming of Glennville, Ga., Wanda (Tom) Stevenson of Ransom, Ill.; daughter-in-law, Julie Schwade of Cresco; 15 grandchildren; 28 great-grandchildren; one brother, Roger Wiltgen of Cedar Rapids; three sisters, Katy Strub of Sarasota, Fla., Judy (Cliff) Klaisle of Eldorado Hills, Calif., Dawn (Dale) Haugen of Auburndale, Fla.; sister-in-law, Carole Wiltgen of Cedar Rapids.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Eugene, Oct. 10, 1989; a granddaughter, Michelle Smith; brother, Guy Wiltgen; sister-in-law, Dorothy Wiltgen.