Millie Hoerner

Millie Hoerner, 91, of Dubuque, Iowa, died on February 7, 2018, at Stonehill Care Center.  

The funeral mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday, February 12, at St. Joseph Church Key West with Rev. Rodney Allers officiating. Burial will follow in Mount Olivet Cemetery. Visitation will be from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Sunday, February 11, at Leonard Funeral Home & Crematory, 2595 Rockdale Road, Key West, IA, where a prayer service will be held at 1:00 p.m.  

Millie was born on November 14, 1926, in Dubuque, Iowa, the daughter of Roy and Minnie (Kramer) Frederick. After graduating from Dubuque Senior High School, Millie worked as a secretary for Farley and Loetscher Manufacturing Company.

She married Robert “Bob” Hoerner on May 16, 1949, in Sioux Falls, SD, and soon after mothering and homemaking became her highest priority.

Once her children were grown, Millie was easeful, graceful, and useful in her role as teacher’s aide for learning disabled children in the Dubuque Community Schools, nurturing the students she worked with as if they were her own. Special friendships were formed during those years that remain today, and working with special needs children was one more way for Millie to share joy and love, changing lives with her positive influence.

Millie also enjoyed playing cards, caring for birds and flowers, dancing, traveling with her husband, and spending time with friends and family. Her grandchildren brightened her life and gave her great-grandchildren to add even more fun. She lived the last years of her life for the pleasure of being with her brood and flock. 

She was a member of the St. Gerard’s Mother’s Club, the Rosary Society in Key West, was active in her support of Area Residential Care, and volunteered in countless anonymous public and private situations.

Surviving are six of Millie and Bob’s seven children: Julie Lester (special friend Leonel Vasquez), of Iowa City; Jerry (Marianne) Hoerner, of Key West, IA; Ted (Stacy) Hoerner, of Pittsburgh, PA; Dan (Linda) Hoerner, of Dubuque; Marianne Maili, of Chicago, IL; and Nancy (Al) Ronek, of Peosta, IA. Her heart also remains in her grandchildren: Jared and Audrey Lester; Adam (Stephanie) Hoerner, Callie (Bobby) Schauer, and Luke Hoerner; Jason, Jordan and Abbie Hoerner; Carlie and Greta Hoerner;  Yancy and Axel (Irène) Choquet; and Quinn, Max, Lori and Sadie Ronek; and in her beloved great-grandchildren Faith, Eddie, and Isabelle Millie Schauer; and Dominic, Brody, Paisley, and Ethan Hoerner. Her surviving sisters and brothers in-law are Jean and Ruth Frederick; Phyllis Hoerner; Jim and Sally Hoerner; Darlene (Hoerner) and Donny Schmitt; and Ann (Bob) Lambe. many nieces, nephews, cousins, and their children.  

She was preceded in death by her parents, Minnie and Roy; her husband Bob; her first-born, son Tommy, on Feb. 23, 1961; two brothers Bud and Eldie Frederick; and several extended family and life-long friends.   

The family wishes to thank the compassionate caregivers at Stonehill Care Center and Hospice of Dubuque, along with countless friends and family who brightened and warmed Millie's life and have offered support and kindness to her family.

In lieu of flowers, a Millie Hoerner Memorial Fund has been established which the family will distribute among organizations close to Millie’s heart.  

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