Virginia Spiker

Virginia Ann Neary Spiker, age 97,
of Atlantic, Iowa, passed away Sunday, September 11, 2011, at Heritage House in Atlantic
. Virginia, daughter of Marten R. and
Emma L. Roberts Neary was born July 10, 1914 on her parents' farm in Cass County, Iowa south of Cumberland.
She graduated from the Atlantic High
School in
1931 and attended the Red Oak Junior College and the South Dakota State College
at Madison. She was a
teacher for six years in Cass and Adams Counties Country Schools and at Grant,
Iowa. In later
years she did substitute teaching in the Atlantic School system.
She was married to Louis F. Spiker June 4, 1939 at the Presbyterian Church in Atlantic. Their only child, a son,
Steven, was born in November, 1941.
She and Louis were in the electrical
and plumbing business at Grant, Iowa before moving to Atlantic in 1957. In Grant she was very
active in School and Church affairs. The
family lived in Des
Moines for six
years where she was employed by Iowa Children's Home Society and General
Management Corporation. In Atlantic she was employed for ten years at Hallmark Card and Gift Shop.
Virginia and Louis did much
traveling to almost every State and many foreign counties. Their son, Steven and wife, Jennifer gave
them the rare opportunity to visit Lebanon's ancient ruins and Biblical sites. Later they were
accompanied by her grandson, Ben, who took them to European Countries and Magical
Ireland, the homeland of Virginia's ancestors.
She was the family historian -
spending much time researching the Neary and Roberts families of Cornwall England and Galway,
Ireland as far back as the 1600's. She also spent thoughtful time compiling
albums and scrapbooks.
She enjoyed reading mysteries and
historical novels, golf and all card games.
She was a member of the Atlantic First Methodist Church, the Cass County Memorial Hospital Auxiliary and the
Nishna Hills Golf Club. She has lived at
Heritage House since 2002.
She is survived by her son Steven
and his wife Jennifer and grandson, Benjamin and his wife Lauren, all of Raleigh, N.C.; and many nieces and nephews.
Preceding her in death were her
husband of 57 years, Louis who died March 19, 1996; her parents; three sisters,
Opal, in infancy, Jennie Miller and Helen Henningsen; four brothers, Patrick,
Walter, Russell and Kenneth Neary.
There will be a Family visitation for Virginia at the Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Friday, September 16th. A Committal Service will be held 10:00 a.m. on Saturday 17th September at the Grant Cemetery west of Grant, Iowa followed by an 11:00 a.m. Memorial Service at the Heritage House in Atlantic with Pastor Lannette Plambeck of the First United Methodist Church in Atlantic officiating.Condolences may be left in her guest book at the Guestbook tab above.