Sonya Dickens

Sonya Maria Dickens (83) passed away of congestive heart failure surrounded by her loving family at her home in D’Iberville, Mississippi on December 9, 2020.
She is preceded in death by her mother Kreszenz Palmsteiner, and sister Rosina Palmsteiner Weiss.
She is survived by her husband of 54 years, Gene R Dickens; her seven children, Heinz (Debby) Dickens, Burk (Colleen) Dickens, Elisabeth (Mike) Yates, David Dickens, Thomas (Kelly) Dickens, Nikki Dickens, Kirsten Dickens Gonzales; her 20 grand children and 18 great-grandchildren.
Sonya was born May 16, 1937 in Bregenz, Austria. Through the war years of WWII, she relied on her love of family to weather the difficult and dangerous circumstances prevalent in that time.
She joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in 1960 in Austria and was a stalwart member all her life. Her faith and conviction were a shining example to all who met her. Her love for family was unconditional and always evident in her personal interactions with all of us.
Sonya and her three children (Heinz, Burk, Elisabeth) immigrated to America the Spring of 1966 and first settled in Provo, Utah. She married Gene while in Provo and started their 54 years of adventure together. In time, Gene and Sonya had four children together, David, Thomas, Nikki and Kirsten.
Her outgoing personality and Austrian accent were something to be cherished and enjoyed. She made friends everywhere she went. She had an adventurous and mischievous sense of humor and was known to pull a prank or two. She learned English relatively quickly but would sometimes mix up colloquial sayings; when you messed up, she might “have a chicken to pluck with you”.
Her nurturing personality was evidenced by three decades of babysitting and caring for small children in her home. She took care of them and taught them as she would her own children. She had that magical touch that fostered mutual respect and love that endured well past their childhood as they grew into adults and became parents themselves.
Sonya had a compassionate heart and her willingness to succor the weak and serve where needed were apparent in the way she cared for the elderly and for the countless services she provided to missionaries and other members of her congregation throughout her life.
She loved all types of music and instilled that same love in her children from an early age. She taught them Austrian folksongs and sought out opportunities to keep connected to her Austrian heritage. She had a strong Alto voice and participated in church choir.
She was an avid reader and loved learning new things. Later in life, when her vision started to fail, her husband would read to her each day.
She had many talents. She was a skilled crafter and undoubtedly many of her creations are in countless homes the world over. Her crocheted Christmas ornaments, baby blankets, and baby dresses were much sought after and cherished. Her gifts and letters to her family were always embellished with handmade decorations, heart-felt notes and small personal touches to let us know how much she loved us. As we celebrate this Christmas Season our hearts are filled with gratitude for the life she lived, for her sacrifices, her hard work and her determination to fiercely love us all.

• A virtual memorial service will be held for Sonya on Tuesday, Dec 15, at 6:30pm. This virtual event will be hosted by Sonya’s church congregation in Biloxi, Ms. If you would like to join, please click the following link:
bit.ly/sonyadickens

An additional service for Sonya will be held in Bountiful, Utah on Dec 21, at 6:30pm.
For those that want to join virtually, please click this link:
http://bit.ly/sonyadickens

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