PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Sylvia Mae Blessing, 69, of Perryville, died Sunday, May 28, 2006, at Branson, Mo.

She was born Nov. 3, 1936, in Perry County, Mo., daughter of William R. and Georgia Mattingly. She and Joseph H. Blessing were married Sept. 1, 1956.

Blessing owned and operated a catering service. She was a member of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, the Daughters of Isabella and Missouri Right to Life.

Survivors include her husband; three sons, the Rev. Gerald Blessing of Wildwood, Mo., and Duane Blessing and Keith Blessing, both of Perryville, Mo.; five daughters, Gale Merz of St. Louis, Denise Hanquist and Janice Lundy, both of Perryville, Mo., Michelle Bradshaw of Cape Girardeau, and Lisa Hughes of Arnold, Mo.; a brother, Delano Mattingly of St. Mary, Mo.; three sisters, Mary Ann Winterberg of Percy, Ill., Eleanor Mecker of Perryville, Mo., and Glenda Eng of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; 16 grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.

She was preceded in death by two sons and a sister.

Friends may call at Young and Sons Funeral Chapel in Perryville from 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and from 6:30 to 11 a.m. Thursday. There will be a Catholic wake at 7 p.m. Wednesday and a rosary at 10 a.m. Thursday.

Funeral mass will be at 11:30 a.m. Thursday at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church. The Rev. Kevin Fausz and the Rev. Gerald Blessing will celebrate the mass, with burial in Mount Hope Cemetery.