Sarah Sommer

Mrs. Sarah Rachel (Hansen) Sommer, age 84, formerly of Stanton, passed away Sunday, Oct. 15, 2006 at Alden Long Grove Rehabilitation & Care Center, Long Grove, Illinois. The youngest child of John Peter & Nielsine Petrea Sine (Christiansen) Hansen, she was born on April 4, 1922 in Stanton. After graduating from Stanton, she, along with her sister, Vernice, enlisted in the U.S. Army and were both stationed in the Panama Canal Zone during World War II. She rose to the rank of sergeant and was stationed at the Pentagon, until she was discharged so she could return home to help care for her dying mother. She then returned to the U.S. Army as a civilian employee with the 70th Division in Livonia, retiring in 1982. On Nov. 17, 1958, in Gaylord, she married Gerald Ernest Sommer. In retirement, they wintered on Marco Island, Florida, where she enjoyed walks on the beach and her lunches with the ladies tea club from the Marco Lutheran Church. She was preceded in death by her father, John P. Hansen in 1946, and her mother, Sine Hansen in 1958; six sisters, Hannah Bills, Vernice Young, Georgia Hansen, Lena Hansen, Anna Carlson, and Martha Jackson; and four brothers, Carl Hansen, Frederick Hansen, Edward Hansen, and Daniel Hansen. Surviving are her husband of almost 48 years, Gerald Ernest Sommer of Cape Coral, Florida; their daughter, Cheryl Lynn Sommer of Lake Barrington, Ill.; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2006 at the First Congregational Church, 305 N. Camburn, Stanton, with Pastor Jamey Nichols officiating. Burial will follow at North Sidney Cemetery. Visitation is Saturday from 12 Noon to 1:00 p.m. at the church. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Sarah Sommer, please visit our flower store.