Cleo Katherine (Staudt) Hebert, 98, of Charles City, Iowa, passed away on June 18, 2025, at the Nora Springs Care Center in Nora Springs, Iowa.
A funeral Mass for Cleo Hebert will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 26, 2025, at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Charles City with Reverend Tom Heathershaw celebrating the Mass. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery.
Friends may call from 4-6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at Hauser Weishaar Funeral Home in Charles City, Iowa, where a Rosary will be prayed at 3:30 p.m. Visitation will continue one hour before the service at the church on Thursday. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be donated to Messiah’s Food Pantry.
Cleo Katherine (Staudt) Hebert was born at home in Marble Rock, Iowa, August 8, 1926, a daughter of Leo and Anna (Hermann) Staudt. Cleo attended St. Mary’s Academy at Roseville, Iowa, and graduated from Marble Rock High School in 1943. In 1951 she married James Duane Hebert at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Roseville, Iowa. They had four children, Julie, Mary Ellen, Robert and Patrice.
As a young woman, Cleo worked at the family business, Staudt Hatchery, Marble Rock, and later worked at Piper, Jaffrey and Hopwood as a market reporter. She also was employed in the corporate office of White Farm Equipment in Charles City. Cleo and her husband also established a home and farming business near Charles City.
Cleo loved people, and was always ready to lend a helping hand. She was actively involved in Rosary Society, Sacred Heart Church Guild, St. Theresa Circle, and served as a CCD teacher. Cleo also gave of her time, talents and heart while serving on Parish Council, the Immaculate Conception School Board, along with volunteering at Hospice for nine years. When her children were in 4-H, she was a long-time 4-H leader and was a Floyd County Extension Council member. She was named “Woman of the Year” by the Charles City Women’s Club .
Most important to her was making a comfortable and happy home for her family; she was a talented baker, making breads and pastries a rainy-day event. Her flower gardens were exceptional.
Cleo Hebert is survived by her children Julie (Thomas) Stevens Missoula, MT, Mary Ellen (William) Staebler, Columbus, OH, Robert, Charles City, Patrice (Phillip) Wichmann Atascadero CA. Also surviving are granddaughter Bristol Horton, Missoula, MT, sister Ellen O’Connell, Evanston, IL, sisters-in-law Mary Ann Hebert Baldwin, Ellie Hebert, Gloria Hebert and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her loving husband of 52 years, James Duane Hebert, her parents Leo and Anna Staudt, her in laws, Meddie and Blanche Hebert, her brother Leo Staudt and her sister Frances Dolan, along with six sisters-in-law and nine brothers-in-law.
Those who knew Cleo will remember her fondly for her positivity, her powerhouse work ethic, her abiding religious faith and her quiet and private acts of generosity. Our family would like to thank the Nora Springs Care Center and St. Croix Hospice for providing skilled care and comfort during her last months.
Old folklore says that visits from cardinals are considered to be messengers from heaven. On her last two days of life, scores of cardinals visited the bird feeder outside her nursing home window. To us, these sightings were a sign of positivity and hope. Although her physical existence no longer honors our lives, her spirit, teachings, and loving example will continue to be a template for a life well-lived. May her memory and servant’s heart be a blessing, and may we carry forth her legacy of love and service.
Hauser Weishaar Funeral Home, (641) 228-2323, 1205 South Main Street, Charles City, Iowa 50616 is in charge of local arrangements. Online condolences may be left on the Tribute Wall for the family at www.hauserfh.com.
