Mildred "Shorty" Schmitz

Mildred “Shorty” Schmitz, age 91, of Carroll, Iowa, and formerly of Rockwell City and Grinnell, died Thursday evening, May 20, 2010, at St. Anthony Nursing Home in Carroll. Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 A.M., Tuesday, May 25, 2010, at St. Mary Catholic Church, 1002 Broad St., Grinnell, Iowa 50112. The Celebrant will be Father Nicholas Adam. Lector will be a granddaughter, Jennifer Sibenaller. Gift Bearers will be great grandchildren, Will Schmitz, Slade Sibenaller, and Morgan Stork. A eulogy will be delivered by a son, Richard Schmitz. Eucharistic Ministers will be Jim Stork and Jane Schmitz. Music will be by St. Mary Choir with John Landkamer as organist. Casket Bearers will be grandchildren, Jeff Stork, Jennifer Sibenaller, Tony Schmitz, Jamie Stork, Adam Schmitz, Betsy McCarren, Laurie Schmitz, Sarah Smith, and Rachael Schmitz. Burial will be at Hazelwood Cemetery in Grinnell. Visitation will begin at 10 A.M. Tuesday at St. Mary Church and last until the time of the funeral mass. The Sharp Funeral Home of Carroll is in charge of funeral arrangements. Mildred was born on February 20, 1919, at Grinnell, Iowa, the daughter of Louis and Catherine (Devereux) Higdon. She grew up in the Grinnell community and graduated from high school in Victor. On April 2, 1945, she was married to Paul Schmitz at St. Mary Church in Grinnell. The couple lived in Grinnell until 1959 when they moved to Rockwell City. Mildred was a homemaker and has lived in Carroll since February 2010. She was a former member of St. Francis Parish and Parish Altar Society at Rockwell City. Mildred enjoyed playing golf, playing cards, and socializing with her family and friends. Survivors include her daughter, Jane Stork and husband Jim of Carroll; sons, Dennis Schmitz and wife Roxie of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Sam Schmitz and Susan Cull of Rockford, Illinois, and Richard Schmitz and wife Jane of Pittsburgh, Penn.; her grandchildren, Jeff Stork, Jennifer Sibenaller and husband Brian, Jamie Stork and wife Tina, Adam Schmitz and Catherine Fiss, Laurie Schmitz and Terri Harnell, Tony Schmitz and wife Katie, Betsy McCarren and husband Mike, Sarah Smith and husband Dustin, and Rachael Schmitz; eight great grandchildren; and sisters-in-law, Mary Comerford of Grinnell, Ruth Higdon of Grinnell, and Eileen Schmitz of Des Moines. She was preceded in death by her husband, Paul Schmitz, in September 1987; her parents; a son, Daniel Schmitz, in infancy; her brothers, James, Frank, John, and Joseph Higdon; and sisters, Sister Annette Higdon, Sister Louise Higdon, and Elizabeth Goreham.

Mildred "Shorty" Schmitz

February 20, 1919 - May 20, 2010