Rhoda Lubich, age 99, of River Falls, WI passed away November 5, 2015 at Kinnic Health & Rehab in River Falls. She was born on June 9, 1916 in the small town of Reeve, WI, the fourth of 8 children to Charles Gammel Daniel and Ethel May (Buck) Daniel. By the time she started school, her family had moved to a farm just south of Clear Lake, Wisconsin. She attended school in the Village of Clear Lake from 1st through 12th grades. She graduated Salutatorian of her class at the age of 16. After working at various jobs, including wrapping butter at the local creamery, and sorting peas at the pea vinery, she attended a teacher training course at the New Richmond High School. Even though she had never attended a one room rural school, she taught one year at the Monument School in Kinnickinnic Township, north of River Falls. It was there that she met Hartland Lubich.
On April 12, 1939 she married Hartland William Lubich at St. Bridget Catholic Church in River Falls, and became a farmer’s wife, homemaker, and eventually the mother of 9 children.
Rhoda was active in the Glass Valley Homemakers Club and in 1979 was named the Pierce County Extension Homemaker of the year. She was a member of the Council of Catholic Women at St. Bridget Parish in River Falls. In 1995 she was selected to receive that organization’s annual Bishop’s Pox Christi Award for her many contributions to the organization.
She was the founder and first leader of the Town & Country 4-H club, a position she held many years. Under her direction, she stressed service to family, neighbors, and community, and perhaps her greatest accomplishment was directing the original clean up and restitution of the Glass Valley Cemetery on County Road E. As members of the Town & Country Club, all 9 of her children, several grandchildren, and now some great- grandchildren have helped to care for the old cemetery.
She is survived by 8 of her children & their spouses: Marcella & Jerome Rodewald of River Falls, Ida & Steve Feyereisen of Hudson, Barbara & Buck Nielsen of Baldwin & Apache Junction, AZ, Julia Cernohous of Hudson. Ken & Joanne Lubich of Rhinelander, WI, Dan & Jean Lubich of Marshall, MO , Mark & Sherry Lubich of Bay City, WI, and Jerry & Cinda Lubich of Litchfield IL, and 29 grandchildren, 59 great-grandchildren & 3 great- great-grandchildren. She is further survived by her sisters-in-law, Ursula Lubich & Vicki Schorn.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Hartland and daughter, Patricia Lubich; son-in-law, Virgil Cernohous; granddaughter, Lisa (Lubich) Neuman; infant great- grandsons, Thomas Rodewald & Nicholas Feyereisen; her parents, Charles & Ethel Daniel; brothers, Charles S, Arthur, & infant brother Robert; her sisters, Myrtle Mitchel, Millicent Herring, Louise Kittelson, & Dorothy Vest; and Hartland’s siblings, Marie Schrank, Ethel Kusilek, Ed, Bill, Jim, Roman, & Frank.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be on Monday, November 9, 2015 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Bridget Catholic Church, River Falls, WI. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be at St. Bridget’s on Sunday from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.and for one hour prior to the Mass on Monday.
Cashman-Hill Funeral Home & Cremation Services, River Falls, WI is assisting the family with the arrangements.