Dora (Sleichter) Kallaus, 94, of Kalona, passed from this life on Sunday, May 26, 2024, at the Pleasantview Home in Kalona. A funeral service will be held Tuesday, May 28, 2024, at 4:00 PM at Holy Trinity Catholic Church. The family will greet friends from 2 – 4 PM at the church. Following the funeral she will be cremated. Private family burial will be at a later date at the Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery. The Beatty Peterseim Funeral Home is assisting the family. A memorial fund has been established for the Pleasantview Memory Care Unit.
Dora Kallaus was born January 19, 1930, the daughter of Ralph and Erma (Flynn) Sleichter. She grew up in rural Riverside and graduated from Kalona High School in 1948. On September 2, 1950, she was united in marriage to Robert Kallaus. After Bob returned from the service they resided in Minneapolis and from there Redwood Falls, Minnesota.
The couple then returned to Kalona in 1969 and purchased the Kalona News. They retired from the paper in June of 1992 and Bob died in August of that year. She worked as a cook at Mid-Prairie Jr. High for several years. Dora was a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church and volunteered at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Pleasantview Home, where she helped with independent living gatherings. She enjoyed reading, playing games, and spending time with her family. Sunday breakfasts were an important gathering for the family, and you could see up to a dozen cars in the driveway. Dora was an avid Hawkeye fan.
Survivors include four children: Robert (Judy) Kallaus of Dayton, MN, Barb (Don) Peters of Washington, IA, Mary Litwiller (Lonny Oswald) of Kalona, IA, Kate (Tom) Slaubaugh of Kalona, IA; daughter-in-law Vanya Kallaus of Apple Valley, MN; 11 grandchildren, and 16 great-grandchildren.
Preceding Dora in death were her parents, her husband Bob, her son John, son-in-law Jim Litwiller, three sisters: Dorotha Chapek, Norma Fry and Edith Moorhead, and four brothers: Richard, Carroll, Daniel and Vern Sleichter.
