Ardyce Ann McCaw, 79, of Panama City, FL, and formerly of Dubuque, passed away Wednesday, November 27, 2024, at home.
Visitation will be from 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm on Monday, December 23, at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2155 University Ave., Dubuque, followed by a Funeral Service at 2:00 pm. Rev. Daniel Emmert will officiate. Interment will be in Linwood Cemetery. Arrangements are entrusted to Egelhof, Siegert & Casper Funeral Home and Crematory.
Ardyce was born on December 22, 1944, in Butterfield, MN, the daughter of Waldo and Erma (Ewy) Linscheid. She married Fred H. McCaw on July 24, 1971, in Butterfield, MN. He preceded her in death on August 2, 2006.
Ann valued the power of education, and she became a master teacher. She received her BA in Social Sciences from Fresno Pacific College and teaching certification from Seattle Pacific College. She earned an MA from the University of Iowa in Education - Elementary School Counseling and an MA from Clarke University in Education - Learning Disabilities. Ann received her PHD in Education from Drake University in 1998. After serving as a classroom teacher, she dreamed of helping students with educational challenges. Ann helped to prepare future educators by serving on the faculty of Loras College for 15 years as an associate professor, retiring in 2012. She also served as faculty at University of Dubuque and served as an education consultant for Key Stone Area Education Association specializing in learning disabilities.
Ann was always willing to follow her family on adventures, even when they seemed daunting or frightening, including hiking, backpacking, sailing, and canoeing. She loved international travel. She was able to take students on trips abroad to China and Peru to study educational practices. She also did sabbatical studies in New Zealand and presented research in Namibia. In her retirement she traveled extensively and hiked the Camino de Santiago Trail in France and Spain. Ann had a property on Madeline Island in Lake Superior and loved to relax in the north woods.
Ann loved following and supporting the careers of her three children: Shana, and her husband Brent, as visual artists, Lindsay as a puppeteer and musician, and Evan as an aerospace engineer. She recently moved to Florida to be near her grandsons Owen and Oliver.
Ann will be remembered as a kind and gregarious person, who made people feel welcome and appreciated. She had many good friends in Dubuque, on Madeline Island, and in Florida. Her sweet nature, pleasant demeanor, and words of encouragement were appreciated and will be greatly missed.
Ardyce is survived by three children, Shana McCaw (Brent Budsberg) of Milwaukee, WI, Lindsay McCaw of Detroit, MI, and Evan (Hyo Jung Won) McCaw of Panama City Beach, FL, two grandchildren, Owen and Oliver McCaw of Panama City Beach, FL, two brothers, Lloyd (Jean) Linscheid and Richard (Charlotte) Linscheid, both of Butterfield, MN, brother-in-law Frank (Anne) McCaw of Denver, IA, sister-in-law Sara McCaw of Dubuque, IA, as well as nieces and nephews.
In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents Waldo and Erma Linscheid and her father and mother-in-law, Warren W. and Georgia E (Betty) McCaw.
Memorials can be sent to the Fred H. and Ardyce A. McCaw memorial fund care of Sara McCaw, 2057 Carter Road, Dubuque, IA 52001.
