Shirley Ann Schilling, age 89, died peacefully on Tuesday, October 31, 2023 at Cambridge Senior Living in Rice Lake, Wisconsin.

Although she had Alzheimer’s dementia the last several years, Shirley’s world was a happy place until she decided it was time to pass.

Shirley was born on September 11, 1934 near Wheatland, Iowa to Ludwig and Ella (Dierksen) Finis and graduated from high school there in 1952. She left the farm at age 18 and moved to New York City where she worked for United Airlines as a reservationist at LaGuardia Airport. She later transferred to the airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa where she met her future husband, Dennis L. Schilling, while he was serving in the Air Force. They married on December 16, 1955 in his home town of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Shirley and Dennis moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where he attended the Milwaukee School of Engineering and she worked on campus as a secretary. Milwaukee is also where they welcomed their two children. They moved to Poughkeepsie, New York in July of 1960 where Dennis worked at IBM and Shirley was a stay-at-home mom. In 1963 the family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, then in 1965 to Rochester, Minnesota. Shirley worked for the Rochester Public school system for nearly 20 years as a teacher’s aide. On two occasions IBM sent Shirley and Dennis abroad, once to London, England and then to Rome, Italy. After their return from Rome in 1991, they both retired. Shirley loved to travel, collected seashells on beaches around the world and could make a “good friend’ in about two minutes. She was the consummate letter writer and sender of greeting cards and newspaper clippings. She also enjoyed cooking, dancing, card playing, volunteering at church and school, and spending time with family. She always had a craft project in progress and readily shared her talents.

Shirley is survived by children Julie (Michael) Ulbrich of Birchwood, Wisconsin and Jeff (Cynthia) of Boulder, Colorado; grandchildren Jason Ulbrich of Camarillo, California, Lauren Ulbrich of Birchwood, Wisconsin, and Raili (Henry) Flores of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and great grandson, Dean Flores.

She was preceded in death by her parents, and brother, Don Finis.

She will be cremated and then interned together with her husband, Dennis, at Zion Lutheran Cemetery in Cleghorn, Wisconsin when the weather is warmer in 2024. In the meantime, they will hang out with a view of the woods and birds in Julie’s sunroom.

Memorials are suggested in Shirley’s honor to the Alzheimer’s Association, https://act.alz.org or Mayo Clinic, https://philanthropy.mayoclinic.org/hope. Kindly send notifications to Julie Ulbrich, N7827 County Road F, Birchwood, Wisconsin, 54817.

Appleyard’s Home for Funerals in Rice Lake, WI is assisting and serving the family with the arrangements.

Last Update: Nov 09, 2023 12:29 pm CST