Edna Marie (Ree) Wood, may her memory be a blessing, was born November 18, 1920 in Sturgis, SD to Harry and Edna Grams. She grew up in Sturgis, SD, graduating high school there in 1939. In 1942, she earned her R.N. diploma from Lincoln General Hospital School of Nursing in Lincoln, NE.

During World War II, Ree proudly served in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps aboard the U.S.A.H.S. Shamrock in the Mediterranean and in North
Africa, receiving the American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, European, African and Middle Eastern Campaign medals. After the war, Ree returned to Sturgis and married Robert (Bob) M. Wood, a childhood friend. She worked as an R.N. at Ft. Meade before moving to
Chicago.

While Bob was studying in Chicago, Ree looked after their two oldest children and helped sick neighbors in the Cabrini housing projects, where
they lived. Bob's career took Ree and the family back to Sturgis and later to Roanoke, VA and Lincoln, NE. In 1987, they returned to the Black
Hills and settled in Spearfish. She cherished her neighbors and the children on Cardinal Court.

With her kind heart for animals, Ree taught her children reverence for life. Through her example, she instilled in them the importance of national service, all four of her children going on to serve in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Peace Corps. A pioneering woman, she inspired her children to explore the world and take on new challenges.

Ree, 91, Spearfish, SD, died peacefully at the Fort Meade V.A. Medical Center hospice on June 27, 2012 following a brief illness.

Grateful for having shared her life are daughter Claire of Seward, NE, son Robert of Spearfish, twin daughters Nancy and Anne, grandchildren
Hans and Elsa of Stavanger, Norway, special niece and nephews Barbara of Gillette, WY, John (wife Pat) of Spearfish, and Jim of Gardiner, MT,
brother Neil of Santa Maria, CA, numerous nieces and nephews, and cherished cats Cletus, Floyd, and Emmy. She was preceded in death by her husband Bob, sister Barbara, brothers Lane, Clair, William, and Harry, and by her parents.

Ree's family is profoundly grateful to the staff of the Hospice of the Northern Hills and the Ft. Meade V.A. Medical Center hospice for their kind, loving care.

Donations in her honor may be given to Western Hills Humane Society, 324 Industrial Drive, Spearfish, SD 57783.

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