Clotilda Owen

Clotilda Owen, 95, of Marshalltown, died late Monday night, April 4, at the Hospice of the Valley in Mesa, AZ. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 2:00 p.m. Thursday, April 14, at St. Marys Catholic Church with Fr. Jim Miller officiating. Visitation will be held from noon until the service time at the church. She will be laid to rest at the Calvary Cemetery in McGregor, Iowa, on Friday. For condolences, please visit www.mitchellfh.com. The Mitchell Family Funeral Home is caring for Clotilda and her family. Ph 641-844-1234. Clotilda Marie Stroschein Owen was born September 21, 1915 to Anna & William Stroschein. Tillie, as she was known by her friends, had one older brother, Leander (Tommy) Stroschein.Tillie attended all 8 grades in a country schoolhouse. The family lived on a 160 Acre farmbordered on the East by the Volga River, & on the Southwest by the wooded hills of Clayton County. Corn & soybeans were grown on the level land close to the river. As was the norm for family farms during that era, they raised hogs & maintained a chicken coop full of egg-laying hens. The family kept a small herd of dairy cows which they milked by hand morning & night.After Tillie graduated from Elkport H.S. She obtained a teaching certificate from Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls, Iowa. At the age of l8 she started teaching in a one-room country schoolhouse!At a dance one night, a group of Tillie's friends introduced her to a young man who was teaching & coaching in a nearby High School. It was "love at first sight", & Bill continued teaching & coaching, but courted Tillie as often as possible. When Bill asked Tillie to marry him, she said "Yes!", but they had two problems to overcome. Bill Owen was not Catholic, but he started taking instructions from the parish priest & soon became a Catholic. (Bill often said that he had to learn fast because Father Horsfield quickly gave him instructions so they could spend the rest of the time playing chess!!) The second problem to solve was that Tillie's parents did not want her to get married while she was still a teenager! That is why they got married on September 21, 1935, which was the date of Tillie's 20th Birthday!! Tillie & Bill's 1st home was in back of the butcher shop in Elkport, Iowa, where daughter Marilyn Marie was born on January 24, 1937. When Bill was offered the job as High School Principal in Marquette, Iowa, they moved to a 2nd floor apartment in an old red brick downtown building. Later they moved to "the Bench", which was located high on the hillside overlooking the Mississippi River & the huge railroad station terminal. Robert William Owen entered their world on may 29, 1941. Bill accepted the job as H.S. Principal in Waukon, Iowa, a position he held for 10 years. Tillie started teaching again in a country school about 10 miles N.W. of Waukon. Because the roads were dirt & gravel, driving was difficult at times. Bill solved that by buying an old Model T Ford for Tillie. This Model T got Tillie through the Winter snowdrifts & the rutted muddy roads in the Spring! Tillie & Bill moved next to Council Bluffs, Charles City & back to McGregor when Bill took jobs as H.S. Principal in these towns. After almost 60 years of marriage, Bill passed away May 21, 1995. Tillie continued living in McGregor for awhile and then decided to move to Marshalltown to be closer to son Bob. Tillie was blessed with good health most of her life except for her poor hearing. She led a wonderful life as a good Mother, Wife, & devoted Catholic. At the age of 95, on April 14, 2011, Tillie left her "Earthly Home" for her "Heavenly Home". Her 2 kids, 12 Grandchildren & 20 Great Grandchildren , & her many friends will miss her, but we will see her again in Heaven. We know Tillie will continue to enjoy sewing, making quilts & rosaries, playing the piano, scrabble & bridge in her Heavenly Home!God Bless you Tillie!.... We will miss you. Goodbye, until we meet again.