Rev. Donald Oscar MUELLER

MUELLER, KRUEGER, LESHER, JOHNSON, SWOPE, RAY, FELLOWS, SMITH, WILHELM, RANNE

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 4/10/2013 at 13:40:44

March 23, 1936 --- March 31, 2013

Donald Oscar Mueller went home to be with his Lord on Easter Sunday March 31, 2013. He was born March 23, 1936, the youngest of five children, at the family farmhouse near Madison, South Dakota, during a blizzard. He was the son of Oscar Charles Mueller and Ella Bertha (Krueger) Mueller. The family moved to the Black Hills area of South Dakota when he was 9 years old. He accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior at the age of 12. He graduated from Provo High School in 1954. He graduated from Omaha Baptist Bible College in 1958 in Omaha, NE. While in college he met the love of his life, Bernadine Lesher. They were married on June 23, 1957 in Pontiac, IL. Two daughters were born to them. On May 26, 1961 he was ordained to the ministry by Temple Baptist Church of Omaha. While in Omaha, Donald worked as a carpenter and had previously worked for the Black Hills Forest Service. He pastored five Baptist churches in the Midwest region: Dunlap, IA, Smith Center KS, Alta Gardens, IL, and Belmond, IA. In 1976 he came to Bancroft, IA where he preached the gospel, and served his church and community faithfully for 30 years. He retired from the ministry and First Baptist Church, but not from his faith, on September 3, 2006. He entered Heritage Nursing Home in Bancroft on April 1, 2010, where many angels tended to him with loving care.

Donald's hobby was doing wood working, and he lovingly crafted beautiful pieces for family and friends to enjoy. He also loved music, especially the old gospel hymns, and loved to sing. While in college he sang in men's quartets, also singing in quartets in his churches throughout the years. His favorite Bible verses were Proverbs 3:5-6, which tell us "to trust in the Lord with all our hearts, not to lean upon our own understanding, to acknowledge Him in all our ways, and then God will direct our paths". Donald cherished these verses, and lived his life by them.

Donald is survived by his loving and faithful wife of 55 years, Bernadine, of Bancroft; his two loving daughters, Pamela (Stephen) Johnson of Columbia City, IN and Marcia (Douglas) Swope of Port Orchard, WA; five grandchildren, Sarah (Max) Ray of Circleville, OH, Avery Johnson of Columbia City, Dustin (Jessica) Swope of Warner Robins, GA, Rachel Swope of Waterloo, IA, and Holly Swope of Port Orchard, WA; and two great grandchildren, Annison and Ashton Swope. He is also survived by two sisters, Elberta Fellows of Salt Lake City, UT, and Loretta (Vernon) Smith, of Greenville, SC; and a brother-in-law Ronald Wilhelm of Colorado Springs, CO; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and two sisters, Darlene Ranne, and Estella Wilhelm.

Memorials may be directed to Reverend Donald O. Mueller Memorial Fund in which his family will donate to various causes.

Oakcrest Funeral Services
http://www.oakcrestfuneralservices.com/obituary/114737/Donald-Mueller/

[former pastor in Belmond, Iowa]