Wilma Rees, aged 96, passed away September 8th, 2019 in Peoria, Arizona.
For family, friends and others who wish to celebrate Wilma’s life a funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on September 21, 2019, at Hitchcock Funeral Home in Burwell, Nebraska; Wilma’s final chosen resting place will be at Cottonwood Cemetery in Burwell. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Avenue Of Flags at Cottonwood Cemetery. A memorial service will be held on October 19th, 2019 in Peoria, Arizona for those unable to attend the funeral service.
Wilma was born January 4th, 1923 in Burwell, Nebraska to her parents Emma and William Mathauser, she and her twin were the youngest of 4 children. After graduating from Burwell Sr. High School, Wilma and her twin Amelia Kizer contributed to the war effort by helping construct B-17 bombers in Renton, Washington. Wilma and her first husband, Robert O. Rees spent several years in Nebraska where they had 6 children before moving to Colorado where they had 2 more daughters. With 6 surviving children to keep track of, she often got their attention by listing several names before ending with “You know what your name is!” Wilma remarried to V. Carrol Donner with whom she spent her golden years RVing across the continental United States, and welcomed into her family Carrol’s two children. Wilma lived life to the fullest, dedicating her final years to the American Rosie the Riveter Association, and increasing awareness about the vital role women played in securing victory in WWII.
Wilma could always be found wherever there was a game of cribbage to be played or a puzzle to be completed. She delighted in life’s small treasures, fishing in a quiet lake, indulging in caramel dumplings, and having her grandchildren seated closest to her. She taught her family that newspaper cartoons make the best wrapping paper and that a handmade card is the purest form of love.
Wilma is survived by her six children, Marilyn “Mandy” Marie Cooley, Julie Ann Cooley, James C Rees, Ruby Mason, Kathrine “Charlie” Shafton, and Jo Ann “Jo” Fisher and two stepchildren Aaron Donner and Pamela “Pam” Donner and her numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces, and nephews and in-laws and outlaws.
Though Wilma is now square dancing with her two Nebraska Cowboys in heaven, her legacy will continue in the many lives she touched and in the eternal love of her family.
