Obituary of Mary Jane Schuster

Mary Jane "Dolly" Schuster, a lifelong resident of Dyersville, died on Saturday, January 27, at Oak Crest Manor, in Dyersville, of complications of Alzheimer's. Mrs. Schuster, who was 87, had been a resident of Oak Crest since September 2003. She is survived by five children, Karolyn (Bob) Harwood, of Woodbridge, Connecticut; Norma (Frank) Monahan, of Washington, D.C., Linda (Gary) Weckwerth, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, David (Diane) Schuster, of Dyersville, Dan (Janice) Schuster, of West Lafayette, Indiana, four grandsons and seven granddaughters; her brothers, Dr. Robert N. (Betty) Evers, of Vero Beach, Florida; John E. Evers, of Somerset, New Jersey and Thomas C. (Audrey) Evers, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; , and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 55 years, who died in 1996, and an infant son, who died in 1945, and a sister-in-law, Mary Lou Evers. She was born on November 16, 1919, the first-born child of Edward J. and Stella (Cunningham) Evers, at the home of her maternal grandparents, Nora and Sam Cunningham, on the west side of Dyersville. She graduated from Xavier High School in 1936, where she was elected senior class president. She was awarded a full scholarship to Briar Cliff College and had her bags packed to leave but at the last minute was convinced to stay on the farm to help with the field work because her father was ill. She eventually got her teachers certification from Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls (1938) and taught in a one-room Delaware County school house. For a short time, she also operated an ice cream parlor called the Terrace Inn on Main Street one door east of the Plaza Theater and a block away from Schuster Hardware. Walter J. Schuster was the shop's best customer. A grand opening ice cream special, published in a May 1940 edition of the Dyersville Commercial, was two double-dip cones for six cents. Dolly's brother, Bob, who was listed in the advertisement along with Dolly as a proprietor, says he doesn't recall doing much work or being very involved in the business although his mother, Stella Evers, who was an excellent cook, made the pies that they sold in the shop. "I do remember we didn't make a cent," he recalled. When asked why, he said, "Well, I ate a lot of ice cream and Dolly did, too, and we never charged Wally for his coffee - and he drank a lot of coffee." Dolly married Wally Schuster on August 19, 1941. The only time she lived away from Dyersville was when her husband was in the U.S. Navy during World War II. During that time, she lived in Rhode Island. She was a member of the Catholic Daughters of America, the American Legion Auxiliary, the Resurrection Choir, the Dyersville Golf and Country Club, and the Emporium bowling team. Friends may call from 3 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, January 28 at the Kramer Funeral Home, in Dyersville where an American Legion Auxiliary/Catholic Daughters of America Rosary will be recited at 4 p.m. and a parish scripture service will be held at 5 p.m. The funeral mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday, January 29, 2007 in St. Francis Xavier Basilica in Dyersville. Burial will follow immediately in St. Francis Cemetery.