MUSCATINE, Iowa – Natalie Marie McCleary, 13, of Muscatine, passed away on Wednesday, December 7, 2022, at the University of Iowa Hospital.

A funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, December 16, 2022, at the Ralph J. Wittich-Riley-Freers Funeral Home. Reverend Al Halpain will officiate. Burial will be in the Island Cemetery. Pallbearers will be CJ Ryan, Mikel McCleary, Jason Smith, Jeff Riggan, and Noah McCleary. Following the burial there will be a time for food and fellowship at the Fruitland Community Center.

Visitation will be held from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 15, 2022, at the funeral home. Online condolences may be made at www.wittichfuneralhome.com.

Natalie was born on March 15, 2009, in Muscatine, the daughter of Mathew and Amanda McCleary.

Natalie attended Louisa Muscatine and participated in volleyball, band, choir, drama, and the mock trial team. She was part of the Pearl City Players and also played the piano. Her favorite holidays were the Fourth of July and Christmas.

Natalie enjoyed drawing, art, swimming, and riding the golf cart with her brother, Noah. She always lit up the room when she walked in by giving immediate hugs. Natalie was a people person and liked to make them happy. She loved reading and trips to Barnes and Noble, cats, spending time with her friends, her late-night talks with her brother, and playing with her dog, Daisy. She loved spending the night at her grandparents. Natalie liked to exchange jokes with her dad and make fun of his hairline. She also enjoyed going shopping and getting her hair and nails done with her mom.

Those left to honor her memory include her parents, Matt and Amanda; one brother, Noah McCleary; her grandparents, Debbie and Doug Wagg and Allen and Alberta McCleary; great grandparents, Bud and Margaret Donnahoo, and Allen and Peg Nordquist; aunts and uncles, Mikel McCleary and his wife, Allie, and Stacey Wagg and her significant other, Matt Mulholland; and her cousins, Liam Mulholland, Irish, Cole, and Livvie McCleary.

Natalie was preceded in death by her great grandparents, Effie McCleary, Albert and Maxine Schweitzer, Rosemary and Howard Wagg, and Leroy Harris.