Maxine Birkel, 95, of David City, died Monday, July 14, 2025, at St. Joseph's Villa in David City.
Mass of Christian Burial
St. Mary's Catholic Church, David City, Saturday July 26, 2025 10:30 A.M.
Rev. Michael Ventre Celebrant
Parish Rosary Saturday July 26, 2025 10 A.M. at Church
Visitation Friday, July 25, 2025 4 - 6 P.M., Kracl Funeral Chapel, David City
Visitation at Church Saturday 9:30 - 10:30 A.M.
Committal, St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery
Lunch at St. Mary's Gym (North of the Church)
In lieu of flowers, Memorials in care of the family for future designation
Maxine May Birkel, 95, of David City, Nebraska, passed away peacefully on July 14, 2025, at St. Joseph’s Villa. She was born on May 19, 1930, in Shelby, Nebraska, to Hubert and Nettie (Albers) Alt.
Maxine grew up on the family farm near Osceola, Nebraska. Life on the farm shaped much of who she was—hardworking, practical, and always busy. She often shared stories of helping with harvest, milking cows, caring for chickens, and keeping her beloved barn cats well-fed by squirting them with fresh milk.
She attended local grade school and graduated from Osceola High School, where she was voted Homecoming Queen her senior year.
In 1948, Maxine married Richard H. Birkel, following his return from World War II service. They built their life together on a farm outside David City, where they worked side-by-side for more than 30 years and raised their two children, Kathleen and Gene. In 1979, they moved into town.
After raising her family, Maxine worked at the Jack & Jill grocery store in David City, where she enjoyed the chance to get to know people in the community. She retired after several years and enjoyed a slower pace of life, though she rarely sat still.
Maxine and Rich traveled extensively in retirement—visiting family across the country, returning to Australia and New Guinea, and taking yearly fishing trips to South Dakota. For many years, they also had a cabin at the lake, where fishing remained one of her favorite pastimes. It was quite common to see Maxine take off at a dead sprint down to the lake shore if one of her set fishing lines had its bell tinkle!
Maxine also enjoyed spending time gardening, baking, sewing, embroidering, and doing crochet—earning ribbons at the county fair for her needlework. She was known for her homemade cinnamon rolls, kolaches, and countless jars of jelly as well as boxes and boxes of canned tomatoes.
Maxine loved games. She played cards regularly—pitch, pinochle, 31, rummy, chase the ace—and had a reputation for being tough to beat. Bingo was one of her favorite games. She enjoyed playing at the Legion Club weekly as well as every Friday night at the KC Hall. She and Rich were in charge of the local Knights of Columbus bingo for many years.
Maxine had a lifelong fondness for cats—starting with the farm cats of her childhood and continuing with several indoor companions over the years such as Puddy Pie, Fifi, Chi Chi and her last cat, Jackson, who kept her company at her assisted living apartment. If you ever visited Maxine at the Villa, there was no doubt of her love of cats from all of the stuffed cats and kitty pictures all around her room. Several of the wonderful Villa staff even bought her stuffed cats as gifts. She was delighted with each new addition.
Most of all, Maxine was dedicated to her family. She loved them deeply and spent her life devoted to caring for her kids and grandkids. She had many friends but she will be most deeply missed by family.
Maxine is survived by her daughter Kathleen (Gene) Rasschaert; son Gene (Lana) Birkel; grandchildren Michelle (Brent) Myers, Tim (Michaela) McQuillan, and BJ (Sara) Birkel; great-grandchildren Justin (Kelsey) Myers, Joel (Paige) Myers, Jakob (Carlee) Myers, Emma Myers, Dylan Crone, Birdie Kroll and Van Birkel; and great-great-grandsons Charlie Myers and Crew Crone.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 47 years, Rich Birkel; her parents, Hubert and Nettie Alt; and her brother, Dick Alt.
The family would like to thank Dr. Daro for his attentive care (He had become a favorite of Granny’s and it wasn’t just because he liked cats….) as well as the staff at St. Joseph’s Assisted Living and Villa for their kindness and support over the past five years
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