Sbiral, Robert F. 1942 - 2018
SBIRAL, BARLOON, BINA, GARDNER, KREMER, BOHR, BUSTA, WENTHOLD, SCHWADE, KARNIK
Posted By: Joy Moore (email)
Date: 2/24/2018 at 15:17:10
Robert F. “Bob” Sbiral age 75, lifelong Winneshiek County, Iowa resident, passed away February 5, 2018, with his loving son Keith Sbiral, daughter-in-law Amy Gardner, and friend Beatrice Sbiral by his side at Gundersen Hospital in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, February 9, 2018, at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Spillville, Iowa, with Rev. Robert Gross presiding. Burial will be in St. Wenceslaus Catholic Cemetery in Spillville.
Visitation will be from 4:00-7:00 p.m., on Thursday, February 8, 2018 at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Spillville. There will be a rosary at 4:30 p.m. and a scripture service at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday at the church.
Bob was born the first child of Louis Sbiral and Helen Barloon Sbiral on April 18, 1942. He attended school in Protivin and Spillville, Iowa, before obligations at his family’s farm in Sumner Township required him to end his schooling. He farmed for many years, and married the former Beatrice E. Bina of Spillville, Iowa in 1973. They were joined by their only child, Keith Robert Sbiral, in 1975. After they left their farm in the 1980s, Bob continued to work in agriculture and other jobs around the Spillville area before eventually working for the St. Wenceslaus School in Spillville for more than 30 years until his retirement in 2013.
Bob liked to start every day with his morning routine, beginning with a coffee and donut at the Mini Mart in Spillville or the Farr Side in Spillville, where his playing of the Czech card game dudae often resulted in his leaving with a few more (or less) quarters (and a bit more gossip) than when he arrived. In addition to his morning routine and time spent with old friends, he enjoyed watching The Big Bang Theory, where the antics of Sheldon, Penny, and the rest always made him laugh; attending community and church festivals; listening to music at the Inwood Ballroom; and traveling. He loved going to the Farm Progress Show, even long after he stopped farming. His first airplane flight was in 1996, when he visited Keith and Amy in Washington, D.C. Though he protested he was “too old to travel,” he continued to make up for lost time by traveling with Keith, Amy, and Betty all over the world, including to London, England (where Amy tricked him into riding the London Eye, over many protests); the Czech Republic (where a highlight was meeting Anton Dvorak’s grandson); Ireland (where he was convinced the sheep Keith chased for the perfect photo would turn and attack); Italy (where he discovered a love for pizza not from Happy Joe’s, Mabe’s, or Pizza Ranch); Kenya and the Equator (where he loved seeing all the animals on a safari); and numerous trips to Hawaii, including Christmas 2016 on Kauai. He also made a special birthday trip to Las Vegas with Keith and Amy in 2014, when he visited the Hoover Dam and loved watching the water show at the Bellagio. Dialysis made travel more difficult recently, so in March of 2017 and for Christmas 2017, Bob went with Keith, Betty, Amy, and her dad Donald Gardner of Ames to Arizona, where he experienced Cubs spring training and the Grand Canyon in March and a relatively warm Christmas.
He was a devoted son and regular fixture at the Ossian Senior Hospice when his mom was a resident. Bob was also a devoted father, the kind who would go to the Walmart snack bar in Decorah every Sunday, just in case Keith decided to leave his dorm at Luther College to make a Walmart run. Bob did all manner of projects with Keith, often involving fireworks, risk of bodily harm, impromptu road trips to procure supplies, or all of the above. They also enjoyed fishing and puttering together. He never missed a concert or major event of Keith’s, and often visited Chicago, Iowa City, or Madison just to have lunch with Keith or attend an event where Keith or Amy had a role, even if the event required a dreaded suit and tie. Of his vast collection of baseball caps, his favorites were ones that touted places he’d been or schools Keith or Amy had graduated from. Bob’s laugh was so contagious, even during his health and other struggles, that Amy regularly called him during her commute or long runs to insist through huffing and puffing, “I’m bored. Make me laugh.” He was also a co-conspirator in Amy’s efforts to collect gossip that Betty’s mom, Cornelia Bina, hadn’t yet heard, tolerating weekly calls demanding “dirt.” He loved cheering on the kids at St. Wenceslaus as well, often regaling Keith and Amy with stories about the kids and their successes. He was always proud when kids would come up to him when he was out and about and introduced him to their parents. He loved animals, and kept track of the exploits of the neighborhood dogs and enjoyed spending time with Keith and Amy’s pets. He also enjoyed cars. A trip to the Chicago Auto Show with Keith two years ago was a favorite excursion, but he was also happy just driving through the car lots in Madison with Keith to see what was new on their way to Culver’s to investigate the flavor of the day.
Two of Bob’s favorite stories were about the time a family out doing good deeds saw him eating at the Train Station in Calmar and covered his check, and the time a woman doing good deeds paid for his purchases at Wal-Mart. (Though he jokingly remarked that maybe he should’ve been buying a television.) He appreciated those kindnesses, and enjoyed doing good deeds for others as well. He was especially grateful for the care and concern showed him by his doctors and nurses, particularly Dr. Ignatius Greene (now retired), who joined forces with Keith and Amy’s incessant nagging to get Bob to end decades of smoking in 2003; Dr. Leah Metz and all of the other care professionals with Gundersen Health Care and Winneshiek Memorial Hospital; and the dialysis nurses at Davita of West Union.
He will be deeply missed by Keith; Amy; Betty; his sister Norma Kremer of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; step-siblings Shirley (LeRoy) Bohr, Ossian, IA; Mary Lou (Jim) Busta, Spring Grove, MN; Larry (Sandra) Wenthold, Atkinson, IL; and Terry (Mary Ann) Wenthold, Fort Atkinson, IA; as well as his aunts Dolores Schwade, Cresco, IA; Alice Barloon, Little Turkey, IA; and Bernice Karnik, Little Turkey, IA.
He was preceded in death by his father Louis Sbiral, mother Helen Wenthold, step-father Herb Wenthold, and grandparents Frank and Anna Barloon and Stephan and Stella Sbiral.
Source: Schluter - Balik Funeral Home database
St. Wenceslaus Cemetery
Winneshiek Obituaries maintained by Bruce Kuennen.
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