Shirley L. Rees

Shirley L. Rees, 71, of Sioux City, IA, passed away unexpectedly December 21, 2021.  A memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM, Monday, December 27 at Meyer Brothers Morningside Chapel.  Visitation will be one hour prior at the funeral home.  Burial will be at Memorial Park Cemetery.  Online condolences may be made to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

Shirley was born on March 8, 1950 in Atlantic, IA to Gerald and Rosella (McCain) Wittmuss. She grew up in Atlantic and Western Iowa before moving to Sioux City in 1970. She was united in marriage to Kenneth Rees on September 10, 1971 in Sioux City where they were blessed with two boys, Kevin and Keith Rees. Shirley enjoyed shopping (for anything!!), parades, festivals, concerts, music and spending time with her niece (Roxanne), grandchildren and great granddaughter. With the kindest soul and a heart of gold, she enjoyed brightening everyone’s day by offering a smile, hug or small gift every chance she got. You could see how making others smile made her happy by the way she giggled and grinned ear-to-ear seeing how her small gesture brightened their day. Shirley was also quite the cook! As a homemaker most of her life, she was always whipping up tasty meals and treats for the family and their friends to enjoy. Breakfasts were her specialty and in particular her pancakes were legendary amongst her boys and their friends growing up. An avid dog lover, Shirley is reunited in eternal life with her beloved Priscilla to go on endless walks, cozy cuddles and wet nose kisses. Having a bit of a green thumb, she loved flowers (her favorite being tulips) and enjoyed tending to them during the growing season so everyone could enjoy them as much as she did. Spending time outside and enjoying nature was a passion of hers. It didn’t matter if it was picnicking, camping, fishing or anything else because if she was outside, she was enjoying it. Riding her bike brought her great joy and now she and her husband Kenneth can ride together again like they did when they were younger.    

Those left to honor her memory include her two brothers, Richard Wittmuss and Lowell Wittmuss; two sisters, Sharon (Wittmuss) Hare and Delores (Wittmuss) Hoover; two sons, Kevin Rees and Keith (Tabitha) Rees; five grandchildren, Christin (Rees) Clark, Caitlin, Carson, Ian and Braelyn Rees; 1 great granddaughter, Emma Clark.

She is preceded in death by her parents and husband Kenneth.