Bonde, L. Merlyn (1919-2017)
BONDE, MIKKELSEN, CHRISTENSEN, TATMAN, RASMUSSEN, LAWRENCE, MILLER, WILLOUGHBY, JOHNSON, FARRELL, HARTSHORN
Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 6/7/2017 at 15:05:23
L. Merlyn Bonde
September 18, 1919 - April 24, 2017Merlyn Bonde, age 97, of Waukee, Iowa, formerly of Newell, Iowa, died on Monday, April 24, 2017, in West Des Moines, Iowa.
Lewis Merlyn Bonde, a son of Peter and Christine (Mikkelsen) Bonde, was born on September 18, 1919, near Newell, Iowa. Baptized and confirmed at Nain Lutheran Church in Newell, he attended school in Newell for eleven years. While in high school, he met his first wife, Lorene Marie Lawrence, whom he married on August 2, 1937. After trucking for a few years, he began farming with Lorene and raising their two children, Charlotte and Richard. Merlyn and Lorene celebrated more than forty years of married life before she passed on April 14, 1978.
Four years later on June 12, 1982, Merlyn married his second wife, June Bell Christensen Tatman. He continued to farm until 1987 at which time he and June built a home in Newell and moved to town. After retiring, Merlyn and June traveled to visit family. June passed away on October 9, 1999.
Merlyn enjoyed woodworking including carving small items. He did beautiful work. In recent years, he moved to Waukee, Iowa, to be closer to family. There, he enjoyed visits with family and friends. An avid card player over the years, he had played both cribbage and pinochle, but in Waukee he learned to play bridge, a new card game for him. Moreover, Merlyn believed in exercising and did so faithfully throughout his life. He, also, enjoyed watching Western movies, Iowa Hawkeye games, and other college sporting events including softball. To keep up with current events, he read local and hometown newspapers. Merlyn lived in Waukee until his passing.
Those left to cherish his memory include his daughter, Charlotte (Donald) Rasmussen; his son, Richard (Susan) Bonde; his brother-in-law, Earl Lawrence; his stepdaughters, Sharon (Kurt) Miller and Shelly (Rick) Willoughby; and several grandchildren; great grandchildren; and great, great grandchildren; as well as many nieces and nephews; extended family members; and friends. Merlyn was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters, Mildred Johnson and Bernice Farrell; his half-brother, Kenneth Bonde; his two wives; and his step daughter, Toni Hartshorn.
Funeral services will be held Friday, April 28, 2017, at 11:00 a.m. at the Nain Lutheran Church in Newell. Burial will follow in the Newell Cemetery. Visitation will take place Thursday, April 27, 2017, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Newell. The Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Newell is overseeing the arrangements.
Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Homes, 2017
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