Hilda A. Sickels

Hilda Audeh Sickels, age 77, died in her sleep December 7, 2015, at her home in Des Moines, Iowa.

Hilda was born on January 3rd, 1938, in Jaffa, Palestine. She was the daughter of Dr. Amin Audeh, MD, and Olga (Kanazeh) Audeh. Hilda graduated from the American School for Girls in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1958, and immigrated to the United States of America on June 10th, 1960.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Nebraska-Omaha in 1962, then followed with a Master of Arts degree in Social Work from the University of Iowa in 1964. Hilda proudly became a United States citizen in June of 1965. Hilda was a child welfare case officer in the late 1960s, then served for over 30 years as a social worker at the Central Iowa Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Des Moines.

She married Joe S. Sickels on December 28th, 1966, at St. Ambrose Cathedral in Des Moines. Hilda and Joe had two children: John Amin Sickels (1968) and Lisa Olga Sickels (1973).

Hilda was a member of the Des Moines Women’s Club, the Beta Sigma Phi Society, the Audobon Society, and St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church.

Hilda was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Aida, her husband Joe, and other family members. She is survived by brothers William Audeh of Cedar Rapids, IA, and Costi Audeh of Phoenix, AZ,, sister Alice Azzam of Leesburg, FL;, son John (Jeri) of Lawrence, KS; daughter Lisa Patterson (James Hall) of Des Moines, and three grandsons: Nicholas Aaron Sickels of Lawrence, KS; Joshua Patrick Patterson of Denver, IA; and Jackson Alexander Sickels of Lawrence, KS.

Memorial services will be held at the Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines on Saturday, December 19th. The reception will begin at 10 AM and the memorial service at 11 AM.

Hilda was a kind and gentle person of generous spirit, a loving mother and devoted grandmother. She was a lover of birds and all animals, including a pet deer in childhood, a Chihuahua named Pixie, many other dogs and numerous cats including Samantha and Shampsy. In lieu of flowers, honorary donations should be made to Animal Lifeline or your local animal shelter.

Condolences may be expressed at:
www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com

Print