Mary Suzanne Dunea

Mary Suzanne Dunea ne Mills passed away in Osage Iowa on May 28, 2023. Funeral services will be held 10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 3, 2023, at First United Methodist Church in Osage with Martha Chancellor officiating. Burial will be at Osage Cemetery. Mary Dunea believed in the importance of involvement in the political system, served as a Special Assistant to a governor of Illinois, owned an independent bookstore in Chicago, and was a philanthropic donor to multiple causes including the relocation of the Cedar Valley Seminary, the International Rescue Committee, and the International Crane Foundation. Her curiosity led her to travel extensively. She loved her family’s Canadian origins and her part-time home in St. Peters, Prince Edward Island. Her journeys took her from Bhutan, where she funded the building of a road in the mountains, to Yemen and the country of Georgia where she served as an Election Observer. She was born on July 7, 1935, in Des Moines, Iowa, the first child of George and Mary Sweney Mills, and earned a B.A. from Grinnell College. She lived most of her adult life in Chicago, Illinois. In 2009, her respect for history and her Sweney-family roots led her to move to her mother’s hometown, Osage, Iowa. She is survived by three children, Mary Louise Barr, Frankfort, KY, John Barr, Richmond, VA, Melanie Dunea, New York, NY, two brothers, a sister, two grandchildren, three great grandchildren and many cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends. Please consider making a donation to the First United Methodist Church in Osage in memory of Mary Dunea. https://osageumc.org/ P.O. Box 63, Osage, Iowa 50461 Champion Funeral Home 641-732-3706