Iona P. Charles

Iona Pauline Charles, 93, of Sioux City, passed away Tuesday, October 14, 2014 at a local hospital. Funeral services will be 10:30 A.M. Friday, October 17, 2014 at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel. Visitation will be Thursday, October 16, 2014 from 4 to 8 P.M. with the family present from 6 to 8 P.M. and a prayer service at 7 P.M. at the funeral home. Burial will be at Memorial Park Cemetery. Online condolences can be directed to meyerbroschapels.com. Iona was born to Christian and Pauline (Diede) Geigle on December 10, 1920 in Tripp, South Dakota. She was raised in Tripp and graduated from Tripp High School. She worked as a telephone operator before attending college. She attended college at Nettleton Business College in Sioux Falls. Upon graduation, she accepted a job at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. It was there that she met Edward L. Charles. Ed and Iona were married on July 7, 1946 in Pennsylvania. They lived there until after the birth of their first child, Diane. They moved to South Dakota in 1950 where they welcomed their second child, Debra. The family then moved to Sioux City in 1952, where their third child, Donna was born. While in Sioux City, Ed worked for BNSF Railroad. Iona was a housewife before going to work at Zenith. Iona was an avid volunteer at Mercy Medical Center for many years, where she earned Volunteer of the Year awards. Her husband, Ed passed away in 1995. Iona liked to travel, do crossword puzzles, and volunteer. She cherished spending time with her daughters, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Those left to honor her memory are her daughters, Diane (Dennis) Hieb, Debra Charles (Tina), Donna (Ray) Richtermeier; grandchildren, Jackie (Craig) Plendl, Troy Jones, Christy Blume (Mark Hamann), Cyndi (Tyler) Zellmer, Rachel (Joe) Casper, Reann (Cody) Jaminet, and Ryan Richtermeier (Riley Drury); 11 Great-Grandchildren; four Great-Great Grandchildren; nine nieces; and seven nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Ed; one brother, Elmer; two sisters, Viola and Beverly; one nephew, Danny; three sisters-in-law; and three brothers-in-law.