Bernadette F. Reilly

A celebration of life for Bernadette Reilly will be 10:30 AM Saturday, at St. Cecelia Catholic Church in Algona. Inurnment will be in Calvary Cemetery, Algona. Her family will greet friends from 5 to 8 PM on Friday, at Oakcrest Funeral Services of Algona. There will be a Scripture Prayer Service and Rosary beginning at 7 PM. Bernadette Florence Reilly, 89, formerly of Algona, IA, died January 24, 2012 in Calvert County, Maryland with family by her side. She had been admitted to Calvert County Hospital on December 28th, and later transferred to Washington Hospital Center, Washington DC, where she was treated for heart-related illness. She was preceded in death by her husband Louis Henry Reilly, who died in Algona, IA, in 1970. Mrs. Reilly is survived by her 17 children; Mary and Roger Flann of Pasadena, CA; Edward and Elaine Reilly of Sunderland, MD; Michael and Lisa Reilly of Dunkirk, MD; Eileen Warshaw of Tucson, AZ; Sharon and Bruce Loeschen of Austin, MN, Kathleen Rossell of Duvall, WA, Chris and Marilyn Reilly of Idaho Falls, ID, Mark and Peg Reilly of San Diego, CA, Matt and Felicia Reilly of St. Paul, MN, Bernadette and Jim Fisher of Elk River, MN, Therese Reilly and...[more]

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hn Hostvedt of Langley, WA, Angela and John Burgess of Long Beach, CA, Shaun Reilly of Cedar Rapids, IA, Maureen and Ron Cobas of Pomona, CA, Michele Hall of Arlington, VA, Shannon and Alex Reilly of Topeka, KS, Patty and Chris Davis of Cedar Falls, IA. She is also survived by 38 Grandchildren and 25 Great-Grandchildren. Bernadette was born Bernadette Florence Zook on July 8, 1922, in El Cajon, CA, to parents J.T. and Mary Zook. She had one older sibling, Mary Zook Dolci, who died in the 1983. Bernadette attended Our Lady of Peace School in San Diego, CA, graduating in 1939. At the outset of World War II, Bernadette worked for Bell Telephone in San Diego and was among the very first Americans to hear the tragic news of the bombing Pearl Harbor as emergency calls flooded the switchboards. Bernadette met Louis Reilly at a United Service Organization (USO) event and married him in 1943. When they met, Lou was a Marine stationed at San Diego's Camp Elliot. Three years later in 1946, they moved to Louis's home town of Lone Rock, IA, where they tended the Reilly family farm. After the birth of their tenth child, the Reilly's moved to 115 W. Nebraska St. in Algona where Louis worked as a farming representative and life insurance agent while Bernadette worked as a bookkeeper. The family grew to 17 children by 1966. After her husband's death, Bernadette raised the youngest 10 children on her own. Bernadette was a member of the Jesus of the Good Shepard Catholic Church of Owings, MD, where she participated in the Red Hat Society, the Widows Group and the Tuesday Morning Prayer Group. While in Algona, she was active member of St. Cecelia Catholic Church in Algona, IA. She was a past regent of the Catholic Daughters of America. Every one of her 17 children graduated from Bishop Garrigan High School of Algona. She was our Mother, our friend our strength. The Reilly clan wishes to thank everyone that helped to make her last days an inspiration to all. She will always be remembered in the hearts and minds of the generations that follow her.