Mr. Leo Stattelman

Leo William Stattelman, 79, of 4 S. 18th St., Clear Lake, died Wednesday morning, Aug. 13, 2003 at the Muse Norris Hospice Inpatient Unit, Mason City, Iowa. The funeral liturgy was held Saturday, Aug. 16, at St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Clear Lake.  Internment was in the Clear Lake Cemetery. Military Honors were by the Clear Lake V.F.W. Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, Clear Lake, was in charge of arrangements. Leo was born June 21, 1924 in West Bend, Iowa to Edward Stattelman and Christina (Bollweg) Stattelman. He attended grade school at St. Peter and Paul in West Bend, receiving the sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist, Penance and Confirmation there. He graduated from West Bend High School with the class of 1942. He attended Iowa State University and Trinity College in Sioux City, Iowa before graduating with a degree in English from Loras College in 1951. During his naval military career in the V-5 program and navigation school, Leo attended the University of Iowa and Cornell University. He was honorably discharged in 1946. After returning to Loras College, he earned an MS degree in Latin in 1968. Teaching has been Leo's love and profession, first in a Catholic Mission School near Montgomery, Ala., working with Father Michael Caswell. He then taught English and Latin at Clear Lake High School for 28 years. Following that, he taught Latin and Classical Literature at Newman High School for 14 years, resigning in January of 2003. Students were special people to Leo, and he was nominated for and received the Golden Apple Award for teaching. Besides classroom teaching, he spent many hours teaching adult beekeeping classes. Keeping bees resulted in a love of nature, as well as in the production of honey, mead making, and candle making. He was especially proud of the large beeswax Easter candles designed for churches in the area. Leo developed woodworking skills with his family in West Bend and used his abilities to design and build furnishings and projects for his home, family, and others. While living in West Bend, he helped develop an ice skating program there; in Clear Lake he helped organize, supervise, and maintain an outdoor skating rink for over 25 years. Leo studied to become a Deacon in the Archdiocese of Dubuque and was ordained to the Diaconate in March of 1982. His ministry included teaching and serving in various capacities at St. Patrick's Parish in Clear Lake, at Newman High School, and in the Diaconal Community. Through his life, Leo has always enjoyed meeting people, especially through the 70,000 miles of hitchhiking during his college and Navy days, and more recently, from Newman High School. On his way back from Newman, drivers were given a small jar of honey as a "thank you." Leo was a charter member of the Mens' Garden Club; he belonged to the Iowa Honey Producers and was a member of several professional-teaching groups. Leo married Mary K. Staudt in November, 1959, at Visitation Church in Stacyville. Their children and spouses include: Anne (Mark Mascarenas) in Pueblo, Colo., Michael (Jennifer) in Duluth, Minn., John (Ann Shirley), Duluth, Minn., David (Elizabeth Heilman) in East Lansing, Mich., and Elizabeth (Daniel Stattelman-Scanlan) Madison, Wis. Their grandchildren are Katie, Marty, and Nick Mascarenas, Emma Stattelman, Alex Wang, Mary Rose, Annaliese and Kathleen Stattelman, and Brigit, Annabel and Leo Edward Stattelman-Scanlan. At the last family reunion in Clear Lake in July, Leo baptized his new grandson, Leo, who was born on Grandpa Leo's 79th birthday. As a Deacon, Leo was able to baptize all his grandchildren. Leo is survived by his wife, Mary; his children and grandchildren; two brothers, Art and Edwin Stattelman of West Bend; and a sister, Isabel Olsen of Wheaton, Ill. He was preceded in death by a brother, Edward; a grandson, Peter Joseph, and his parents. Memorials may be given to a newly developed Leo W. Stattelman Scholarship Fund for the Clear Lake and Newman Schools, to the Mercy Oncology Unit, the Hospice Organization, St. Patrick's Parish, Clear Lake, or a charity of choice. Leo's wit and sense of humor, his many interests and talents will be missed. The epitaph he chose comes from the Book of Psalms: Quid retribuam Domino pro omnibus quae retribuit mihi! (What shall I give back to the Lord for all the good he has done for me!)