Obituary of Gertrude Shimmin

Gertrude Alice Reeve Shimmin, age 91, formerly of Hopkinton, Iowa, died Thursday, March 30, 2006, in Peoria, AZ. Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, April 9, 2006, at the Hopkinton Cemetery in Hopkinton, Iowa. Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service of Iowa City is caring for Gertrude's family and her services. Online condolences may be sent for her family through our website @www.gayandciha.com. Gertrude Shimmin was born May 24, 1914, in Anamosa, Iowa, the daughter of Harry and Pearl (Miller) Reeve. She graduated from Hopkinton High School, Lenox Junior College formerly in Hopkinton, and Monmouth College, Monmouth, IL; she received a Master's degree from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. She taught school in Elkader, Iowa, and then music at schools in Detroit, Michigan; after her marriage, she continued instructing piano students privately for many years. She was married to George Allen Shimmin on June 24, 1941, at the Presbyterian Church in Hopkinton. The couple lived in Royal Oak, Michigan, from 1948 to 1998. George died in 1998 and Gertrude moved to Arizona to be closer to family. Gertrude had many life-long interests. She was a voracious reader, an avid gardener, and a talented musician, performing as a soloist, a two-piano partner, and an accompanist. She served as deaconess at the First Presbyterian Church in Royal Oak, and was an officer as well as member of many civic and social clubs, such as Sigma Alpha Iota, the Royal Oak Musicale, and the Daughters of the American Revolution. Recently, Gertrude reminisced about her early years in Hopkinton and the importance of the family relationships forged there, especially with her grandparents, Charles and Emma (Root) Reeve, who lived next door during her childhood. Many of her interests were the result of watching her grandmother garden, cook, bake, and sew for the family. The values her grandmother taught became germaine to her character which was one of genuine sweetness and interest in others. Gertrude was a sports enthusiast, learned from her father, Harry Reeve, who coached both basketball and baseball locally. She was very competitive and often recalled long afternoons playing tennis on the Lenox campus until dusk. Her mother, Pearl Reeve, taught music at Lenox College and instilled a love of it in her daughters. Gertrude studied and performed for people all her life, including a brief recital of Gershwin at the piano in her home for her daughters just weeks ago. She is survived by daughters Jane Triplett of Peoria, AZ, and Susan Shimmin of Evanston, IL; son John Shimmin (Jane) of Castle Rock, CO; grandchildren Christopher Press; Elliot, Anderson and Elizabeth Shimmin; sister Hila Elizabeth Cox and her husband John of Iowa City; nephew Jeffrey Cox, and nieces Caren Cox, Jean Wilburn, and Ann Thompson