Mercedes Anne Tonies, nee Mudd, loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, Godmother, daughter, sister and aunt, age 94, was welcomed into eternal life on Monday, December 25, 2023 at her home in Poynette, Wisconsin. With joy, we remember that Christmas Day was the birthday of her father, James Victor Mudd.  Mercedes was born on October 30, 1929, in East Saint Louis, Illinois, to James Victor and Mary Edna (Donohoo) Mudd. She was very proud to have graduated from St. Teresa Academy in East Saint Louis, where she acquired her remarkable skills as a secretary.  Mercedes was united in holy matrimony on December 29, 1956, to Paul Edward Tonies who was welcomed into eternal rest on September 27, 2008.

Mercedes is survived by her daughter Rose Marie (Javier) Fernandez and their children Roberto (Rebecca), Dominic, Maria, Isabel and Elena; her daughter Julie (Wil) Kalinowski and their children Katharine, Samuel (Lynsey) and Genevieve; her daughter Nancy (Paul) Heidel and family; her son Paul; her son Peter (Mary) and their children Jacqueline and Nicholas; her son Patrick; her daughter Evelyn (Peter) Buss and their children John, Ethan, Gemma and Sadie; her son Andrew (Rhiannon) Tonies and their children Marcella, Benjamin, Julia, Clara and newborn Francesca; her sister Kathleen Coder; her sister-in-law Mary Anne (the late Joe) Burroughs; her nieces and nephews; and many other relatives and friends. We celebrate the birth of Francesca Mary, her youngest granddaughter, who was born on the morning of Christmas Day, the same day that Mercedes joined her husband, Paul, in Heaven.  Paul and Mercedes are reunited in Heaven and will continue to live in the hearts of their loved ones here on Earth.  Mercedes joins her parents, her brothers and sisters and many friends and other family members in Heaven. She was also preceded in death by her mother-in-law, Evelyn Jeanette (Vermeersch) and her father-in-law, Gerard Bernard; her brothers James, Hugh, George, Bert and Richard, and her sisters Mary, Alice, Rose, and Edna. Her favorite activities revolved around her husband, children and grandchildren, with whom she shared many happy memories over the years.

Services:   Mercedes' family will meet with relatives and friends from 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 4, 2024 at Wolfersberger Funeral Home in O'Fallon, Illinois. Her funeral Mass and burial will be at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ruma, Illinois, on Friday, January 5, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. Monsignor John Myler will celebrate the funeral Mass, with Monsignor Dennis Schaefer concelebrating. Burial among many of her Mudd ancestors in the parish cemetery will follow the Mass. Family and friends are invited to a luncheon in Mercedes' honor which will be held at 3:00 p.m. in the parish hall at St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Church, 1411 Cross Street, O'Fallon, Illinois.

In lieu of flowers, we would appreciate memorials to the Colleen Nesbit Foundation honoring Mercedes' grandniece (https://www.facebook.com/groups/331230164328093/ or https://sites.google.com/view/colleennesbitfoundation). Sign the guestbook at www.wfh-ofallon.com.

'I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith.'