Mary L. Stoakes
Aug. 17, 1933 – June 9, 2020
Seward resident Mary Louise (Bull) Stoakes, 86, formerly of Wayne, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, June 9, 2020, at Kinship Pointe, formerly Brookdale Heartland Park, in Seward.
Mary Louise (Bull) Stoakes, daughter of Charles and Rachel (Preston) Bull, was born Aug. 17, 1933, on a farm near Belden. She attended school in Belden until the family moved northwest of Wayne in 1947. Mary finished her schooling in Wayne.
Mary was united in marriage to Howard Lee Stoakes of Wayne on June 4, 1950, at the First United Methodist Church in Wayne. The couple farmed for 10 years before moving into Wayne. They attended Calvary Bible Evangelical Free Church in Wayne. Mary was a cook for the Wayne School for about 30 years in several positions and was fondly referred to as “the pizza lady” and “the bread lady.” She was the one responsible for stirring up from scratch the bread and pizza dough with pizza being most of the kids’ favorite item on the menu. Mary’s hobbies included camping, gardening, cooking, fishing, sewing, spending time at their cabin by a lake in Minnesota and planning family get-togethers.
Mary was preceded in death by her husband, Howard Stoakes; daughter, Cleo Foster; parents, Charles and Rachel Bull; brothers, Eldon (Jociell) Bull, Henry (Betty) Bull and Waldron “Wally” Bull; and sister, Barbara (Paul) Sievers.
Left to cherish the many memories are her son, Don Stoakes of Lincoln; daughter, Martha (Dave) Hansen of Lincoln; brother-in-law, Clair (Lura) Stoakes of Winside; sister-in-law, Janet Bull of Wayne; grandchildren, Barry (Rachel) Foster of Superior, Hope (Brian) Brumbaugh of Hastings, Aaron (LeeAnn) Hansen of Bennington and Christa (Christopher) Anderson of Yokohama, Japan; great-grandchildren, Zachary Foster, Xander Foster, Mason Brumbaugh, Cameron Brumbaugh, Ike Hansen, Eisley Hansen, Alexa Anderson, Serena Anderson and Kierra Anderson; several nieces, nephews, cousins and a host of friends.
Final resting place for Mary Stoakes will be in Greenwood Cemetery in Wayne. A private family service will be at a later date.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Wayne Senior Center, March of Dimes or to the Mary Stoakes family, c/o Martha Hansen, 2425 Folkways Blvd #337, Lincoln, NE 68521 for future designations. Condolences may be left for the family at www.zabkafuneralhome.com.
