Darlene Marie (Kruser) Thomas

Darlene Marie Thomas, 69, of Dubuque, Iowa passed away on Monday, March 5th, 2018 at home.

Family and special friends are invited to a committal service at 11:30 a.m. on March 23rd, 2018 at Mount Calvary Cemetery.  Interment will follow, where her family will reunite Darlene with her husband, Mark on the 21st anniversary of his death.  Leonard Funeral Home & Crematory, 2595 Rockdale Road is assisting the family.

She was born on December 15, 1948, in Dubuque the daughter of Charles and Elaine (Tigges) Kruser. She married Mark E. Thomas, September 10, 1966, Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Dubuque. She was employed at Flexsteel Industries prior to reaching retirement.

Darlene enjoyed spending time with family and playing bingo with her mother, daughters and eventually her grandchildren. Since retirement she particularly enjoyed playing cards, doing puzzles and trips to the casino with her parents, spending time with grandchildren, and playing with her 4-legged furry friend, “Mikey”, who she adopted just a couple of years ago. She became the primary caretaker of her parents as their health declined and was such a loving person with a huge heart. She always welcomed you at the door with open and loving arms, a caring smile, and fed you until you were uncomfortably full. She will be sadly missed by family and friends and is now reunited and back in the comforting arms of her loving husband and parents.

She is survived by 2 daughters - Tracy (Richard) Stoppelmoor of San Antonio, TX and Linda (Paul) Schroeder of Dubuque, IA; 4 grandchildren – Corey Wainwright and Brandon Stoppelmoor of San Antonio, TX; and Holly Schroeder and Mason Schroeder of Dubuque, IA; Siblings – a sister, Shirley Boland of Amarillo, TX; and three brothers, Charles (Wilma) Kruser of Dubuque, IA; Raymond (Linda) Kruser of Janesville, WI; and Terrance (Rio) Kruser of Federal Way, WA

She was preceded in death by her parents, Charles and Elaine Kruser; her loving husband, Mark Thomas; mother-in-law, Helen (Ulrich) Thomas; and father-in-law, Donald Thomas, Sr.

In lieu of flowers a memorial fund has been established and can be directed to the care of Leonard Funeral Home, 2595 Rockdale Road, Dubuque, IA 52003.

We would like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Cao and Dr. Ricketts for their persistence in trying to find ways to help Darlene through her medical journey and to Ennoble Manor who graciously welcomed Darlene when visiting her parents while they resided there. A special heartfelt thank you from Mark and Darlene’s daughters to the Leonard Funeral Home team for their assistance in bringing their parents together again. 

The family would also like to thank those special and close friends of Darlene who comforted her, took the time to have a cup of coffee and chat, and most importantly looked after her for the last 20 years following her husband’s early death.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.