Frederick "Fred" G. Wyngarden

Frederick “Fred” Wyngarden, age 84, of Marshalltown, passed away on Sunday morning while holding the hand of his bride, Shirley, at the Iowa River Hospice Home in Marshalltown. Cremation rites have taken place with a visitation and celebration of his life to be announced in the near future. Memorials may be made in his memory to the Iowa River Hospice, Friends of the Library, and Immigration Allies of the Marshalltown Unitarian Fellowship. For condolences, please visit www.mitchellfh.com . The Mitchell Family Funeral Home is caring for Fred and his family. Ph. 641-844-1234.           The following life story of Fred was written and submitted by Fred, himself, after diagnosis of terminal illness.Frederick G. Wyngarden was born on February 15, 1935, the son of Frederick and Edna Wyngarden, in Clifton, NJ, where his father was the pastor of the Athenia Reformed Church.           Fred lived there during WWII moving in 1945 to Sterling, Illinois and later to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where his father served as pastor of the Westminster Presbyterian Church. Fred and his family lived in Grand Rapids for 17 years during which time he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Alma College. Upon graduation, he enrolled for Graduate study at Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, NJ, transferring to Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA, where he graduated with a Master of Theology degree in 1960.           Following graduation he served as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Vassar, Michigan, then Associate Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Bay City, Michigan, and then pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Marshall, Michigan. In 1964, he moved to become the Associate Campus Minister for Parsons College in Fairfield, IA. In 1967, after the closing of the college, he moved to Topeka, Kansas as pastor of the Highland Park Presbyterian Church.           In 1968 he left the ministry and went to work as a Field Representative for the Office of Economic Opportunity, in 1972 he transferred for the Office of Personnel Management as a Management Instructor and then 1974 was hired by the Office of Health and Human Services as a Personnel Specialist. He continued his career in Personnel and retired from his Position of Director of Human Relations Region 7 in 1989.           In 1958 he married Carol Blanck in Alma, Michigan. Together they had three children, James, Cheryl and Debbie.           In 1990, he married his wife Shirley who survives him along with his sister Marilyn (Bernath) Sherwood, three children- Cheryl (Michael) Lorenz of Overland Park, KS, Debbie (Steven) Gilbert of Newark, OH, and James (Karen) Wyngarden of Overland Park, KS; step-children Robert (Pam) Gerster of Marshalltown and Bonnie (Jon) Meyer of Vancouver, WA, 13 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.           Fred was active in all the communities in which he lived during his 84 years. Fred lived with his wife Shirley, in Fairway, Kansas for four years. In 1995, they relocated to Montrose, Colorado, living there for nine years. During those nine years he was active in City Government on the City Planning Commission, mentoring youth with the Partners program, President of the Montrose Model Aircraft Assn, singing in the Black Canyon Men’s Chorus, and serviced as President of the Montrose Kiwanis Club and as Lieutenant Governor for District VI of the Kiwanis Rocky Mountain District. In 2005, for reasons of health they moved to Marshalltown, Iowa. In Marshalltown, he continued his involvement in community service. He sang in the Men’s Chorus, flew his model aircraft, and served as a member of the Kiwanis P.M. Club and co-sponsor of the Aktion Club. He served as president of the Committee for the Creative Retirement Program, was president of the Friends of the Library, was founding member of the Unitarian Fellowship of Marshalltown and supported Immigration Allies Program.