Mary Ellyn (Bahndorf) Nurre, 18 Feb 1936 - 03 Mar 2023

NURRE, BAHNDORF, BLECHSCHMIDT, PETERS

Posted By: Sarah Witte (email)
Date: 3/7/2023 at 15:45:31

Mary Ellyn Nurre, 87, of the Meth-Wick Community passed away peacefully at home on Friday, March 3, 2023. A rosary will begin at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 7, followed by visitation from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at Stewart Baxter Funeral & Memorial Services, 1844 First Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids. Funeral Mass: 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, March 8, at St. Patrick Catholic Church, 510 First Ave. NW, Cedar Rapids, followed by burial at Mount Calvary Cemetery, Cedar Rapids, with a luncheon following at St. Patrick Parish Center.

Survivors include her daughter, Mary (Carl) Peters of Fulton, Md.; a son, Mark Nurre of Marion, Iowa; and two grandchildren, Alyssa Peters of Laurel, Md., and Alexandra Peters of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Mary Ellyn was born on Feb. 18, 1936, in East Amana, Iowa, the daughter of Henry and Emma (Blechschmidt) Bahndorf. She graduated from Amana High School in 1953, and attended Iowa State Teachers College. After graduation, Mary Ellyn taught at Cleveland Elementary in Cedar Rapids.

On July 4, 1959, she was united in marriage to Thomas Nurre of Cedar Rapids who was in the U.S. Air Force. They spent the next few years in Lincoln, Neb., Bermuda, and Omaha, Neb. Following Tom's honorable discharge they moved to Cedar Falls, Iowa, where Tom attended the University of Northern Iowa and Mary Ellyn continued her education earning a master's degree. She then taught in Cedar Falls, the Home Start Program and Waterloo, Iowa. After Tom retired from John Deere and Mary Ellyn from teaching in 1994, they moved to Amana, Iowa, and in 2017 they moved to the Meth-Wick Community in Cedar Rapids.

Mary Ellyn enjoyed spending time with her family and friends. She was a member of St. Patrick Catholic Church and was a fan of the Chicago Cubs, Iowa Hawkeyes and motorsports. She loved singing in the choir, reading and doing crossword puzzles in the morning paper.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Thomas.

Flowers are suggested for services or donations to the Greater Iowa Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, 317 Seventh Ave. SE, Suite 402, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401. The family extends a special thank-you to her many friends at Meth-Wick.

Published in The Gazette on March 6, 2023.