Catherine "Cathy" Irene Krischel, age 85, passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on Wednesday, August 28, 2024. Catherine was born in St. Joseph, Iowa on June 6, 1939, to Frank and Frances (Geishecker) Hilbert. She graduated from St. Joseph's Catholic High School in 1957 and went on to St. Joseph Mercy Nursing School in Sioux City, Iowa which began a decades-long career caring for patients.

On July 8, 1961, Catherine married Jerry Krischel at St. Joseph's Catholic Church. They had a beautiful marriage for over 50 years. The couple raised their five children on the family farm where they lived until moving to Pocahontas, Iowa in 2001. It was her and Jerry's belief that their greatest accomplishment was how close their five children and large family were; nothing made them prouder. A devoted Catholic, she was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Mallard, Iowa while they lived on the farm and Resurrection of Our Lord Catholic Church in Pocahontas.

She enjoyed spending time with friends, spoiling her grandkids, and wintering with Jerry in Arizona. She was beautiful, independent, smart, and had a special kind of sheer stubborn grit. In her later years, when she broke her hip and doctors said she would never walk again, she was showing off high kicks with a grin on her face just weeks later.

She made the world's best (and most labor-intensive) chocolate chip cookies, which she was always sure to have stocked in the downstairs freezer, carefully placed so her grandkids could sneak them without their parents knowing. She cooked every meal, washed every dish, and made hosting holidays for a big, loud Catholic family look easy. She never shied away from helping out on the farm. She conquered colon cancer and losing the love of her life with immense grace.

A nurse by trade, she was a caretaker to others her whole life; it was an honor for her family to care for her until the very end. We loved her so very much.

Survivors include her children, Sherry (Paul) Bollard of Chandler, Arizona; David (Wendy) of Rolfe, Iowa; Joan Rudolf (Mike Smiley) of West Des Moines, Iowa; Lori Hartman of West Des Moines, Iowa; and Patrick Krischel of Excelsior, Minnesota. Her eleven grandchildren include Amanda (Ben) Harrison and Andrew Bollard; Tyler (Ashley) Krischel and Morgan (Avery) Aden; Cassandra Rudolf and Alexandra (Anthony) Graham; Kirsten (Lucas) West, Samuel Hartman, and Brandon Hartman; Julia Krischel and Louis Krischel. Her eight great-grandchildren are Harper and Henry Harrison, Hudson and Hayden Graham, Rylee Aden, Cooper and Chloe Krischel, and Vivian West. She was preceded in death by her husband, Jerry Krischel and by her brothers, Gordon Hilbert and Jim Hilbert.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family requests memorial contributions to be made in Catherine's name to Pocahontas Catholic School. Donations can be mailed to: Pocahontas Catholic School, 305 SW 3rd Street, Pocahontas, Iowa 50574.