Obituaries : Adah Lois Schminke

Adah Lois Schminke, 88, of Independence, Iowa, died Wednesday, April 19, 2023, at her home in Prairie Hills Assisted Living Center in Independence, Iowa.

Adah was born on Sept. 12, 1934, in Cameron, Mo., the daughter of Jackson and Joy E. (Neff) Doyel. She attended the Vinton Schools, and married Gerald E. Schminke on June 11, 1951. She was employed with Collins Radio in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for 13 years. Adah and Jerry owned and operated the Dairy Queen in Independence, Iowa, for a few years, later purchasing the Independence Paint Store. After selling the paint store the family moved to Belle Plaine, Iowa, to farm with Jerry’s brother Glenn. In 1982 they purchased the Dairy Queen in Waverly, Iowa, operating it until their retirement in 1993, at which time they returned to Independence, Iowa.

She is survived by her children, Connie Rowald, Independence, Iowa, Rosie (Jim) Greiner, Henrico, N.C., Geri (John) Lemon, Springville, Iowa, Judy (Tom) Pfeifer, Osage, Iowa; a foster daughter, Pat (Larry) Hunziker, Shellsburg, Iowa; 18 grandchildren, 31 great-grandchildren, three great-great-grandchildren; and a sister, Erma Neve, Vinton, Iowa.

Adah was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Jerry in 2003; two sisters, Oma Geiger and Velma Petersen; her brother, Nathan Doyel; a son-in-law, Terry Rowald; granddaughters, Hannah Pfeifer and Sadie Lemon; and a special friend, Dick Bridge.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at the Reiff Family Center in Independence with Rev. Bret Trasamar, with burial in the Mt. Hope Cemetery, Independence, Iowa. Friends may call from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and from 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Reiff Family Center in Independence, Iowa.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Cedar Valley Hospice, 801 First St. E. Independence, IA 50644.

To leave an online condolence, please go to www.reifffamilycenter.com under obituaries.