Andrea (Deters) Iwen
Andrea Beryl Deters Iwen was born February 3, 1943, in a snowstorm so severe a county plow had to lead her parents, Harold and Carol (Burton) Deters, to the hospital in Caledonia, MN, where she was delivered. She grew up on the Deters family farm in the rolling hills of northeastern Iowa, along with her younger twin brothers, Michael and David. She loved the land so much that she initially intended to be a farmer but was eventually discouraged from doing so by others who didn’t consider it an appropriate career for a woman.
Andrea attended the University of Wisconsin - Madison, where she met William Edgar Iwen, whom she married in 1965, the same year she graduated with honors, with double majors in Nursing and Psychology. She became a head nurse at St. Catherine’s Medical Center in Kenosha, WI and then moved to Kenosha Memorial Hospital to work in their new experimental psychiatric facility that did not practice electroshock therapy, which was still common at the time. There she became a night shift charge nurse.
When William finished re-training as a dentist, they moved to La Farge, WI, where he practiced public health dentistry and she dedicated herself to raising a growing family. In 1977, they moved to Luxemburg, WI, where William established a private practice and Andrea raised their five children. Andrea also became involved in community music groups. She played flute in the Luxemburg-Casco Community Band for 35 years and sang in the Peninsula Chamber Choir for 15 years.
During her time in Luxemburg, Andrea also used her knowledge of nursing and psychology to help create the Kewaunee County Violence Intervention Project, for people experiencing domestic abuse. She became a group facilitator for men undergoing rehabilitation. Later, after moving to Algoma, WI, Andrea returned to nursing as a hospice nurse covering Door, Kewaunee, Brown, and Manitowoc Counties. She retired in 2005 and devoted as much time as she could to her grandchildren.
In her later years, a childhood bout with polio returned to Andrea as post-polio syndrome, and she developed the same congestive heart failure that had eventually taken her mother. February 8, 2026, Andrea succumbed to her illnesses. She was laid to rest in the land she had so loved as a child. Services were held Friday, February 13 at the Schinderle Funeral Home, Algoma, WI, with Jodi Parins officiating.
Andrea was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, David; her husband, William; and her granddaughters, Jasmine and Kelbryn De Bauche. She is survived by her five children; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Andrea’s family would like to thank Unity Hospice for their diligent care in her final days. Donations in her memory can be made to Violence Intervention Project, Inc.
Express your sympathy, memories and pictures on Andrea’s tribute page at www.SchinderleFuneralHome.com.
