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BARTLETT, Benjamin, Charles and Bailey Rose -- died 2015

BARTLETT, WHITEHILL

Posted By: K. L. Kittleson
Date: 9/7/2015 at 23:49:38

Benjamin Michael Bartlett 1975-2015
Bailey Rose Bartlett 2005-2015
Charles Benjamin Bartlett 2003-2015

Died: Jun 10, 2015

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Benjamin Michael Bartlett --

Ben Bartlett was born on September 25, 1975 in Manchester, Iowa. He died in a tragic auto accident on June 10, 2015.

Ben grew up in a family with one older brother, Jeremy, one younger brother, Joel, and a sister, Emily. These siblings were all born within a 3 ½ year time span so they literally grew up together playing rag ball, basketball, card games, Monopoly and almost anything competitive or creative. They teased each other and found humor in almost any situation. They were each other’s best friends.

As a freshman student at Wartburg College, Ben met Erin Whitehill, where they played clarinet together in the band. They fell in love during competitive ping pong games and long walks. It took Ben awhile to convince Erin to become his wife at the end of their sophomore year in 1996. They began their marriage as happy, poor and independent college students.

Ben and Erin became parents to three children: Charlie (11), Bailey (9), and Kaia (7). They made family a priority. Ben had the real ability to bring out the best in each of his kids and help them know themselves as unique people created by God. Ben and Erin filled their home with God’s Word even hanging verses of scripture on their walls as reminders of God’s wisdom.

Ben was a quirky mix. He was a man of few words but when he spoke people really listened. When he spoke, either words of deep thoughtfulness and wisdom or words of quirky, crazy humor would be shared. He enjoyed reading Stephen King novels and deep theological books.

Ben loved worship and music. He played piano, guitar and led worship at Orchard Hill Church for many years. (He called himself one of the old guys in the band.) He was passionate about keeping the focus of worship upon a powerful and loving God.

As a teacher, Ben deeply enjoyed sharing his love of music with his students. He brought that same passion to his own children, teaching them to play the piano, and giving them a love of music.

Ben loved having fun. His rally cry was, “Let’s do something!” He participated in crazy games whenever his extended family gathered. Things like tool shed golf, stroller and wheelchair races, ultimate bocce ball, paint ball, card games and the Bartlett Open Golf Tournament (Ben was a great golfer.)

Ben led his family by simply living out God’s call on his life as a husband and a father. He filled his home with God’s Word and encouraged them all to live out their family mission statement:

The Bartlett family exists to:

Love and obey God

Love and serve our neighbors

Love and serve each other

As a child Ben, encountered Jesus and followed Him as a husband, father, teacher, son and worship leader. Ben was a humble, authentic servant of Jesus and is leaving a wonderful legacy for his family, friends, and all who knew him!

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Bailey Rose Bartlett--

Bailey Rose Bartlett was born on June 30, 2005 in Waterloo. She was the second child born to Ben and Erin Bartlett. She was 9 years old and had recently finished the 4th grade at Orchard Hill Elementary. Bailey died in a car accident on June 10, 2015 while on vacation with her family in Florida.

Since she was a baby, Bailey had an infectious laugh and a face that lit up when she was happy. She had beautiful blue eyes that twinkled which earned her the nickname Rosie Twinkle from her grandma.

Bailey was an amazingly sweet and loving girl. She loved cozy clothes, blankets, and cuddles with her parents. Every night before bed Bailey followed a certain routine. First, Bailey and Dad kissed each other on both cheeks followed by Bailey and Mom doing the same thing. Then Mom and Bailey would blow each other a kiss. Usually these were easily caught but sometimes they were intercepted by Dad so new ones would have to be sent. Finally Bailey would say things like “I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad. Best Mommy and Daddy ever.” all the way to her room and her parents had to reciprocate the sentiments until she was out of hearing range. A slightly pared-down version of this routine also occurred every morning before leaving for school.

Bailey loved her family so much. Together they enjoyed family picnics, game nights (each person took turns choosing and Bailey’s favorites were Dogopoly and Settlers of Catan), watching American Ninja Warrior on tv, and pulling up her bottoms as high as they would go and belly dancing with her dad who would be doing it, too. She spent a lot of time playing all sorts of things with Kaia and sometimes they could get Charlie to play, too. They could spend hours together playing with stuffed animals, legos, Littlest Pet Shop, Pokemon and most recently pretending to be students at Harry Potter’s school and creating some very interesting potions. Bailey also liked playing with cousins and her friends at school.

Bailey had a deep passion for animals especially dogs and ocean creatures. From her large collection of stuffed animals and hard figurines to homemade pom pom buddies and pet rocks, she loved them all. She had her own fish tank and loved taking the family dog, Shadow for walks and holding the two guinea pigs. For over two years, she would only read animal books and only if they had no or very little people in them. When she grew up, Bailey wanted to run a doggy daycare and be a dog trainer.

Another growing passion was music. Bailey played piano and viola and was really excited about learning clarinet in the fall which both her parents played. She really enjoyed singing and doing actions to the worship songs in Sunday School. Other interests included crafts, logic problems, beating everyone at foosball, and eating Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Recently Bailey had become obsessed with the Harry Potter books, rereading them nonstop and memorizing large sections of them. On vacation, she especially enjoyed the orcas at SeaWorld and browsing and shopping in Diagon Alley at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter where she bought a stuffed owl and adopted a pygmy puff.

Bailey is greatly missed by her friends, classmates, and teachers, and especially by her family, all of whom are looking forward to a grand reunion someday.

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Charles Benjamin Bartlett--

Charles Benjamin Bartlett was born on August 27, 2003 in Waterloo. He was the firstborn child of Ben and Erin Bartlett. He was 11 years old and had recently finished the 5th grade at Orchard Hill Elementary. Charlie died in a car accident on June 10, 2015 while on vacation with his family in Florida.

Charlie was an easy-going, sensitive boy. He was starting to develop a sense of humor similar to Ben’s and liked to tease the people in his family. He was thoughtful with his money and would save up for many months before making a purchase. Charlie also had a very giving heart and would gladly empty his savings to buy chickens and goats or send money as a birthday gift for our sponsored Food for the Hungry child, Mauricio, in Mozambique whom Charlie wrote letters to and Ben met in 2009(?).

Charlie spent most of his free time reading, learning, and creating. He would read anything he got his hands on but he really liked fantasy and also non-fiction topics like inventions and military technology. He loved math and all of the sciences and many hours were spent building and programming his own Lego Mindstorms creations, playing algebra games, doing science kits, and learning computer programming with the occasional help from his mom. Last fall Charlie’s dream job was to be a white hat hacker but more recently after studying some organic chemistry he thought he would like to become a molecular biologist.

Like his dad and Bailey, Charlie also had a passion for music. He played piano and cello and loved listening to worship songs on his mp3 player. Knowing he would love it, his mom tried to get him to join band a year ago but he thought he was already too busy. Then suddenly this spring after hearing a concert he decided to learn the tuba and was looking forward to his first lesson which was to be right after returning from vacation. Following in his dad’s footsteps, Charlie also liked to write music to express himself. He composed a piano piece that made him think of scenes from The Hobbit which was one of his favorite movies. He also wrote a short song, got Bailey to sing it with him, recorded it and gave it to his mom for the most recent Mother’s Day.

Other interests included flying his drone, beating people in chess, playing foosball, watching WipeOut with his family, learning karate, eating steak and chocolate, and doing video games. He had his own hamster, like the family guinea pigs, and loved hugging and petting the family dog, Shadow. He enjoyed golfing with his dad, all kinds of wrestling and play fighting with his mom and grandpa, and playing with his cousins – especially coming up with crazy ideas in their lab, writing and selling newspapers, and building forts. Charlie had a great imagination and loved to write stories (some of which were pretty gruesome and twisted and always very entertaining). On vacation, he enjoyed many games of pool which usually included Ben making claims of amazing shots he was going to make and then Charlie would collapse in laughter at the actual results.

Even though Charlie was growing up, he still liked to cuddle occasionally and every night before bed Mom or Dad would sing him Holy, Holy, Holy which he loved. Charlie will be greatly missed by his friends, classmates, and teachers, and most of all, by his family, all of whom are looking forward to a grand reunion someday.

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Services:

Funeral Services will be 10:00am Friday, June 19, 2015 at Orchard Hill Church

Visitation:
Visitation will be Thursday, June 18, 2015 from 3:00 to 8:00pm with the family present from 4:00 to 7:00pm at Orchard Hill Church, Cedar Falls

Cemetery:
Memorial Park Cemetery, Waterloo, Iowa

Memorials:
In lieu of flowers: Memorials are directed Orchard Hill Church, Cedar Bend Humane Society or Food for the Hungry "Mozambique Children" in care of Orchard Hill Church.

Source: Locke Funeral Home website
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NOTES:

According to www.people-finders.ws, Ben's name was Benjamin Michael Bartlett, age 39, of Cedar Falls, Iowa.
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NEWS STORY FORM KWWL WEBSITE--

UPDATE: Cedar Falls mom, daughter in Fla. crash out of hospital

Posted: Jun 11, 2015 8:28 AM CST Updated: Jun 15, 2015 9:19 AM CST

Written by Shannon Hayden, Producer

Courtesy: Joe Rondone/Tallahassee Democrat

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA. (KWWL) - A mother and daughter who survived a crash that took the lives of three other members of their family are out of a Florida hospital and on their way home to Cedar Falls.

A new post on Erin Bartlett's Benefit Go Fund Me page shares the condition of Erin and Kaia:

"They're on their way home! Erin & Kaia have been released from the hospital and will be heading back to Iowa soon. Please pray for smooth travels and for God's peace to be with them."

"We are overwhelmed and amazed by your generosity and your prayers. As the family gathers and returns home, we know many of you want to help. Please contact Orchard Hill Church (319-266-9796) if you have a way you'd like to help the family upon return. This will allow the family space to just be together and the church can handle the flow and pace of donations and helps. The family will have needs, and the church will channel those needs accordingly. THANK YOU!! -Becky"

The Go Fund Me account is here: http://www.gofundme.com/wv3buw

KWWL cannot independently verify Go Fund Me accounts; please research the recipients before donating.

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PREVIOUS STORY:

A pick-up lost control on a Florida highway and hit an SUV, killing three people and injuring two others from Cedar Falls. Ben Bartlett, 39, and two of his kids, Charlie, 11, and Bailey, 9, died in the crash.

The Florida Highway Patrol says a pick-up driven by 20-year-old Mickey Milam from Oklahoma was going east on Interstate 10 on Wednesday afternoon when he tried to change lanes.

The truck hydroplaned and then crashed into an SUV driven by Bartlett.

Milam was not seriously hurt.

Erin Bartlett, 39, and 7-year-old Kaia Bartlett were also injured. Authorities say Kaia's injuries are serious.

According to the Tallahassee Democrat, authorities say alcohol was not a factor in the crash.

Bartlett was a music teacher at Cedar Heights Elementary. Charlie and Bailey were both students in the Cedar Falls School District.

School District Statement:

"The news of this tragedy brings significant grief to our schools and the entire Cedar Falls community. We hold the Bartlett and Whitehill families in our thoughts and prayers, now, and in the months to come. Counseling and support is being offered for any Cedar Falls Schools students on Friday, June 12, at the times below, with school counselors and staff present."
++Orchard Hill Elementary, 9-11 a.m.
++Cedar Heights Elementary, 2-4 p.m.

Jerry Gallagher and Amie Steffeneicher contributed to this report.
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ANOTHER NEWS STORY--

Community remembers Ben Bartlett, 2 children who died

Posted: Jun 11, 2015 6:28 PM CST Updated: Jun 11, 2015 7:15 PM CST

Written by Nikki Newbrough

CEDAR FALLS (KWWL) - A community in pain and sorrow Thursday were remembering a well-known church leader and elementary music teacher along with two of his children.

The Cedar Falls family was vacationing in Florida when the three were killed in a crash.

It happened on Interstate 10 Wednesday afternoon when a truck crashed into the Bartletts' SUV.

Ben Bartlett was killed, along with two of his kids -- 11-year-old Charlie and 9-year-old Bailey.

Ben's wife Erin survived with their 7-year-old daughter Kaia, but both were injured.

The news was hitting hard back home with their Orchard Hill Church community, where Ben was a worship leader.

"Nothing showy about him, but just an amazing guy that followed Jesus and led his wife and family and his community to know Jesus in everything that he did," said Tim Walsten, a family friend.

Ben was also a music teacher at Cedar Heights Elementary while his two children were part of the Cedar Falls School District.

The school will be offering counseling for all students affected by this tragedy.

"We're trying to help wrap our arms around them and support them, including the family, including students and staff," said Andy Pattee, Cedar Falls Superintendent. "This is a big loss."

Counseling will be Friday at Orchard Hill Elementary from 9 to 11 a.m., and at Cedar Heights Elementary from 2 to 4 p.m.

There is a benefit account set up for Erin Bartlett at Veridian Credit Union under the Erin Bartlett Benefit Account.


 

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