Aberdeen: Mass of Christian burial for Myrtis L. Peck, 90, Aberdeen, will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Aberdeen, with Fr. Shane Stevens as celebrant. Burial at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Myrtis died Monday, Jan. 21, at her home.
Visitation will be from 1 to 6 p.m., with family present from 4 to 6 p.m. and a liturgical wake with rosary at 6 p.m. Friday at Spitzer-Miller Funeral Home's fellowship hall.
Myrtis Lorraine Lowe was born Dec. 3, 1922, in Aberdeen, to Clarence and Hilda (Werth) Lowe.
She attended country schools, including Brookside; Helen Bergh was her favorite teacher. She graduated from Aberdeen Central High School, and later attended Aberdeen Commercial College. The family were members of the Zion Lutheran Church.
She grew up in the Dirty Thirties. She learned to cook at a young age; her mother often commented, Myrtis could make a meal out of nothing.
As a young woman, she and her brother, Clarence Jr. Swing, lived on farms in the Aberdeen area, where she herded cattle on horseback. She worked at Harms Furniture, walking house to house collecting payments. Myrtis and her mother cleaned several country schools in the area. She enjoyed working at Socony Vacuum Oil Company, running a posting machine, turning down a promotion because she loved her job.
Myrtis and Lawrence Peck met while being neighbors in Aberdeen and were married Dec. 29, 1943, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. They were happily married for 65 years. Their dairy operation lasted 40 years, selling milk to DeVries Dairy. She worked side by side with her husband, with Myrtis washing milk equipment daily and bringing hot meals to the fields during harvest. She sold chickens and eggs to Mae's Caf and eggs to Arcola and Piggly Wiggly grocery stores. She kept thorough records when tagging and vaccinating cattle, keeping a watchful eye during calving season, once spotting a bobcat.
She was meticulous in her house and yard work, using a mowsal push mower and trimming the hedges, painting the house and other buildings and canning and freezing vegetables from her garden.
They worked together as county assessors for Brown County School District for several years. Her favorite things were bookkeeping and balancing monthly checkbooks with her adding machine.
Throughout her lifetime, one thing was always constant with Myrtis, her family. She thoroughly enjoyed family gatherings, preparing marvelous meals for special occasions and holidays, which included family favorites, such as bump cake, Christmas cookies, caramel rolls and butterhorns. She was an incredible cook.
Other activities included playing piano, reading, square dancing, roller-skating, barn dances and attending her children's and grandchildren's baseball and soccer games, 4-H, with horse shows and rodeo events being their vacation time.
She loved coffee, Kesslers' tomato soup, pancakes, watching Mannix, Gunsmoke, Lawrence Welk, Daniel O'Donnell, the Rev. Schuller, Wheel of Fortune, The Five and the Minnesota Vikings.
Taking the family dog Ginger, on walks and later car rides around town and Wylie Park and sitting in her chair with her cat PeeWee.
After spending a lifetime on the family farm, she moved to town with her daughter Vicki, where she enjoyed the view from the apartment windows.
Myrtis was a faithful member of Sacred Heart Church of Aberdeen. She had a great love for her Lord and Savior.
She always gave more than 100 percent, not giving into shortcuts, putting the needs of others before her own. Myrtis very lovingly took care of her mother and then her husband for many years at home. She was strong willed, independent, hardworking, and a dedicated perfectionist who didn't waste time.
Her caring ways, encouragement, guidance and unselfish things she did meant so much to us. Her patience, understanding, love, hard work and integrity touched all of us and was held firm in our family life.
Thanks Mom, for the wonderful life you and Dad gave us growing up on the farm. We will truly miss and cherish the memories for all eternity.
The family prefers memorials be sent to PO Box 834, Aberdeen, SD, 57401.
Thankful for having shared Myrtis' life are her children: Allan (Kathy) Peck, Lynda Smith, Kathy (Eldon) Besler, Vicki Peck, and David (Tracy) Peck; grandchildren: Jennifer (Jance) Miller, Gage (Elizabeth) Hadden-Peck, Brian Smith, Lori Smith, Christina (Mike) Johnson, Brad (Lauren) Besler, Bobbie Jo Besler (Adriel Mendoza), Trent Huettl-Peck; great-grandchildren: Hunter, Conner, Sabrina, Dominic, Isaac, Mya, Kaitlyn, Cayden, Finn and Ilsa; nephew, Robert Lowe; and niece, Arlys Johnson.
Preceding her in death were her husband, Lawrence; parents, Clarence and Hilda Lowe; and brother, Clarence Lowe, Jr.
spitzerfuneralhome.com