Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
REISS, Sarah J.
REISS, Sarah J. (Dubuque, IA, Apr. 14, 1988--Sept. 29, 2010). Organization co-founder. Reiss graduated from DUBUQUE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL in 2006 and Hawkeye Community College in 2008 with a degree in architectural construction technology.
She began working at SPAHN AND ROSE LUMBER COMPANY in Waverly before being diagnosed in 2008 with medulloblastoma--a cancerous brain tumor. This led to numerous treatments and surgeries in the Pediatric Cancer Unit at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital.
Because of the outstanding care and compassion that she received, Sarah and her parents along with Brian and Amanda (McClain) Wessels and their son Matthew, who was born with a heart condition, organized the DUBUQUE RIDE FOR THE KIDS to raise funds for the Brain Tumor and Heart Research programs at the Children’s Hospitals. In 2009 the organization they founded raised over $30,000. In 2010 the event raised $59,300.
