Marie Leuer

Marie Catherine Leuer, age 83, of Sugar Grove, IL, passed away Thursday, August 18, 2016, surrounded by the love and prayers of her family.

She was born October 9, 1932 in Aurora, IL, the daughter of Martin and Elizabeth (Swickert) White.

Marie grew up on Tanner Rd. in North Aurora and attended local schools. Although she attended Elburn High School, she graduated from Mt. Saint Mary High School in St. Charles with the class of 1950.

Marie met the love of her life, Ed Leuer, in the heart of her faith while singing in the choir at St. Gall Catholic Church. What began as friendship bloomed into love and before long they were united in marriage on October 28, 1950.

They began their new life as man and wife on Marie’s family farm on Hughes Road where Ed farmed the land and tended cattle. A year later the family grew by two when twin girls, Yvonne and Yvette, were born. They weren’t finished growing however as Timothy, Mark, Patrick, Daniel, Kathleen, Stephen and Lisa followed to make the family complete. As the family changed, so did their address as they called both Sugar Grove and Elburn home over the years.

Marie was the quintessential farm wife for several years but dusted herself off when she received her Realtor’s License in 1976 and followed up with a Broker’s License in 1978 and opened their own business, Leuer Realty in Elburn. Later, Ed left the world of cattle buying and joined her in the early 1980s. When Ed’s health began to decline, she left the office for the last time to care for the man who still held her heart.

Marie was a member of the Fox Valley and Aurora Board of Realtor’s, which morphed into what is now the Realtor’s Association of Fox Valley. She was a very active and faithful member of St. Gall Catholic Church where she chaired many an event, sang in the choir and played the organ. The Elburn Lion’s Club also counted her as a valued supporter as both she and Ed spent hundreds of hours down at the park.

Marie was a pioneer in the realty profession. In a realm filled with men, Marie stood tall and not only held her own, but blazed a path for other strong women to follow. She was one of the first to embrace technology and even had one of the first computers in the region in the late 1970’s. Marie was well traveled. Whether it was for work or fun, memories were made with every mile. She was the ultimate family manager making sure all nine kids were packed for the annual family vacation to a cabin in Spooner, Wisconsin on Lake Tomahawk and just thinking about the day to day operations of her home could make your head spin. Just dinner alone would make most people run away with fear in their eyes. Marie was a wonder and no one who met her could doubt it after only five minutes. She left her mark on the hearts and lives that she touched and will always be remembered.

She is survived by eight children: Yvonne Keifer, Yvette (Jim) Hogan, Tim Leuer, Mark (Fran) Leuer, Dan (Sherry) Leuer, Kathy (Bob) Herrejon, Steve (Anna) Leuer and Lisa (Rick) Reuter; one daughter-in-law, JoAnn Leuer; 19 grandchildren: Doug (Renee) Keifer and their children, Madison and Brennan; Jeff (Jamie) Keifer and their children, Jillian and Jayden; Marty (Stephanie) Keifer, Stephanie (Andy) Lank and their children, Kinley, Finn and Axel; Patrick (Jennifer) Leuer and their daughter Zoey, Ryan Leuer, Sara (Neil) Jamin and their son Knox, Aaron Leuer and his children Lillian and Emma; Alisha (Steve) Arce (and their daughter on schedule for arrival this Tuesday), Gabriella Herrejon, Alex Herrejon, Ben Herrejon, Adam Leuer, Steven Durso, Caroline Leuer, Matt Leuer, Kyle Leuer, Elisabeth Reuter and Jacob Reuter; many nieces, nephews and a countryside of friends.

She is preceded in death by loving husband Ed; her parents, Martin and Elizabeth White; one son Patrick Leuer; one son-in-law, Bill Keifer and two siblings: Leo White and Genevieve Fedje.

Visitation will be from 12-2:30 p.m. at St. Gall Catholic Church, 120 W. Shannon St., Elburn, with a mass to celebrate her faith at 3 p.m. on Monday, August 22, 2016. Fr. Christopher DiTomo, pastor of the church, will officiate with interment to follow at St. Gall Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial can be sent directly to the Alzheimer’s Association in memory of her husband Ed. Contributions can be sent to Alzheimer’s Association Greater Illinois Chapter, 8430 W. Bryn Mawr, Suite 800 Chicago,IL 60631 Tributes may also be forward to the Conley Funeral Home Facebook Page and you can read her full life story at www.conleycare.com.

Family and Friends are welcome join the family at the Elburn American Legion, 112 N Main St, Elburn. Handicap parking available on Rt. 47 with general parking available in the Gates St. parking lot. To reach general parking, turn west on North St., Turn north on Gates St. and turn directly into the parking lot. Entrance at the east end of the parking lot.

Visitation will be from 12-2:30 p.m. at St. Gall Catholic Church, 120 W. Shannon St., Elburn, with a mass to celebrate her faith at 3 p.m. on Monday, August 22, 2016. Fr. Christopher DiTomo, pastor of the church, will officiate.

Visitation will be from 12-2:30 p.m. at St. Gall Catholic Church, 120 W. Shannon St., Elburn, with a mass to celebrate her faith at 3 p.m. on Monday, August 22, 2016. Fr. Christopher DiTomo, pastor of the church, will officiate.

Interment to follow at St. Gall Cemetery.