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Doris Mae Thilges

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July 23, 1928 - January 26, 2022

A funeral Mass for Doris will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Divine Mercy Parish St. John’s Catholic Church in Bancroft. The funeral will be livestreamed on the Divine Mercy YouTube page. Burial will be in St. John’s Catholic Cemetery. Visitation will be from 9 until 10:45 a.m. on Saturday at Oakcrest Funeral Services of Bancroft.

Doris Mae Thilges was born July 23, 1928, in Minatare, Neb. to Henry and Amelia (Geier) Pfenning. Spending her adolescent years working on various family farms, she embraced a deep attachment to nature, gardening and spending time outdoors. Doris’ work in the beet fields began when she was six years old. It was hard work for the entire family, which she spoke of with genuine pride throughout her adult years.  

At the time, basketball was not deemed a suitable pastime for young females at Bayard High School, but Doris played regularly in a pick-up league until she graduated at age 17. Throughout the years following, she hopped between Oakland, Calif., Scott’s Bluff, Neb., and Denver, Colo., working multiple jobs and exploring the Western United States.  

While living in Denver, she met Hank Thilges, whom she married in 1953, in St. Joseph. Doris adored Hank’s happy demeanor and ability to make her laugh. She spoke of him with deep affection until her passing.

Hank and Doris embraced farm life, their ideal state of living, in Northern Iowa, eventually settling in Burt, where they worked the land until their retirement in 1993. They had two sons, David and John, in 1954 and 1958, respectively. Though Doris had lived on several farms by the time she created their haven in Burt, it was this place specifically that she always considered home. It became a symbol of love, comfort and natural beauty in the Thilges family that would hold sentimental value throughout four generations.  The place was simply special, and she never seemed to run out of new stories to tell about its wonderful produce, enormous flower garden and favored farm dog, Charlie.  

Following Hank’s death, Doris moved to Algona in 1997 to her sweet, mint colored house where she started yet another unbelievable flower garden and developed life-long friendships with her neighbors. Here she enjoyed her time knitting on her back patio and baking her infamous sour cream twists.

In 2011, Doris overcame significant health challenges and made one last move to the Des Moines area to be closer to her son John and his family.

Summer sunshine, baseball games, working for her local Catholic church, playing in card clubs, visiting her family in Arizona, and excelling in essentially any kind of craft were among Doris’ favorite moments in life. Still, anyone lucky enough to be acquainted with her knew that nothing made her quite as happy as a fresh garden vegetable, which she proudly grew herself through the summer of 2021.  

Doris passed away peacefully at home on the evening of Jan.  26, 2022.  

Doris is preceded in death by her beloved husband Hank, her parents Henry and Amelia Pfenning, her brother Roy Pfenning and her sister Lee Childers.  

She is survived by her sons Dave Thilges (Sharon) of Mesa, Ariz. and John Thilges (Cathy) of Des Moines; her sisters Shirley Hardt and Betty Garvin of Scotts Bluff, Neb., as well as her three grandchildren, Scott Thilges of Mesa, Ariz., Dawn (Seth) Gregar of Flagstaff, Ariz., Natalie Thilges of Seattle, Wash., and three great -grandchildren, Henry and Evelyn of Flagstaff, Ariz. and Brycen of Mesa, Ariz.. Online condolences may be left at www.oakcrestfuneralservcies.com.

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