Mary Louise Floski

MT. MORRIS - Mary Louise Floski, 94, long-time Ogle County educator and volunteer, died Wed. June 29 2022 surrounded by three generations of those she loved; she passed as she lived – feisty, funny and with a passion for her family.

Mary Lou was born Dec. 3, 1927 to Fern and Loyal Porter Casteel in Marshall, Illinois. A daughter of the Great Depression, she could make somethin’ out of nothin’ and a meal out of anything. She saved, gardened, canned, baked, mended and refurbished - and taught others to do so. Some of her fondest memories were of harvesting wild asparagus in the ditches around Marshall, and weeding the garden under the hot summer sun with her dad.

Mary Lou excelled in high school and worked her way through Eastern Illinois University where she met Frank, and found her calling. She and Frank married Aug. 20, 1950 and made their way to Ogle County where they raised three children and worked as educators and busy community volunteers, and became devoted members of Disciples United Methodist Church. Even into her 90s, Mary Lou fondly remembered by name her Leaf River middle school students.

The jobs of raising her children and teaching the classics to a generation of students complete, Mary Lou enjoyed with Frank trips to the Pacific Northwest, where their youngest son raised his family with a passion for the great outdoors that the grandchildren shared with Grandma and Poppa. A highlight of their retirement was a trip to the Holy Land. At home in Illinois, they babysat, transported and cheered on four grandsons, and Mary Lou patiently conducted countless homework sessions. For many years, Mary Lou lobbied state lawmakers for teacher pension guarantees, sold pork chops at Autumn on Parade and mentored struggling students; she was the person to call if you were short a homemade pie or two for a fundraiser.

Mary Lou’s memory will live on in her husband, Frank, of Mt. Morris; her children, Maralee Kaufman of Lena; Douglas (Betsy) Floski of Byron; Curtis (Marci) Floski of Redmond, Ore; grandchildren, Matthew Kaufman; Jacob (fiancé Maggie Laysek), Christian, and Patrick (Tess) Floski; and Abi (Levi Roberts), Ben and Jack Floski; and great-grandchildren, Izabella, twins Samantha, and Meghan Kaufman; Jaydyn Manning, and Olivia Porter Floski.

Memorial services will be held Tues. July 5 at 3 p.m. at Disciples United Methodist Church in Mt. Morris with the Rev. Rodney Caldwell, pastor of the Mt. Morris Church of the Brethren, and Mary Lou’s son, Pastor Curt Floski, co-officiating; visitation will be held at the church from 2 p.m. until the time of the service; a luncheon will follow. Private family interment will be held at Silver Creek Cemetery.

Memorials may be entrusted to the Floski Family Foundation, C/O Stillman Bank for an education scholarship in Mary Lou’s name, or to any organization that benefits the people of Ogle County. Condolences may be shared with the family at www.finchfuneral.com.

We are so grateful for all you taught us, Mary Lou; you will be deeply missed.

“In His arms He’ll take and shield you; you will find a solace there.”