Lois M. Pals

Lois Marie Hoskinson, daughter of Leland Stanford and Ila Lucille (Putnam) Hoskinson was born September 5, 1929 in Creston, Iowa.  She died on September 25, 2023.

Most of her growing up years were spent on the family farm in Adams County, Iowa.  Her first 8 years of schooling were spent at the one room school, Carl #8 (the same school that her grandfather Walter Putnam also attended).  She graduated from Prescott High School in 1947.  She attended Northwestern Missouri State College (now University) and obtained a two year Teaching Degree in Primary Education.  She obtained a teaching position as a kindergarten teacher in Essex, Iowa, a Swedish community in Southwestern Iowa. 

After several years of teaching, she decided to finish her degree.  At the same time, her brother, Earl and their cousin, Millard had returned home from military duty.  All three entered Iowa State University at the same semester with the boys in Electrical Engineering and Lois to finish her degree.  Along with her studies, she worked part time in the Memorial Union.  There she met Calvan Pals, a Junior in Veterinary Medicine.  She graduated in 1957 and took some graduate courses in Microbiology and continued working part time in the lab and the Union.  They were married August 2,1958 in the 1^st Baptist Church in Creston. IA.

Calvan enlisted in the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps before his graduation in 1959 and was inducted into the Army in August.  After Basic Training and a course in Food Hygiene in Chicago, he was sent to Kansas City, Missouri to become a Food Inspector at plants providing food for the Army.  He covered the states of Missouri and Kansas.  Their first son, Charles Harlan was born in Kansas City.

The family moved to Omaha, Nebraska following Calvan's military duty in September 1961 where their second son, Jon Lee was born.  The family soon made another move when Calvan was transferred to the Beltsville Agriculture Research Station.  They found a home in Bowie, MD where they lived for 63 years before moving to Collington Senior Residence.

In Bowie, the family joined the nearby Christian Community Presbyterian Church (CCPC) and became quite active.  Lois and Calvan joined the choir where they sang for many years and participated in many activities.  Lois felt honored to be chosen as “Woman of the Year” in 2008.

She loved growing plants in her vegetable and flower gardens.  She had many hobbies and enjoyed reading, especially history and historical fiction.  She liked sewing, crafts and making clothes for her niece's Barbie dolls.  Family history research was so fascinating to her and she was able to trace many of her and Calvan’s ancestors to the early years in the U.S.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Calvan H. Pals on March 18, 2019; her parents, Leland and Ila Hoskinson; daughter-in-law, Joy Celeste (Anderson) Pals; brothers and sisters-in-laws, Earl (Lorraine) and Vernon Lee Hoskinson and (Frances Ann).

Burial will be in Longmont Memorial Gardens, Davidsonville, MD.

Memorials may be given to CCPC.