Bonnie Lorraine Buchwald

Bonnie Buchwald, 94, of Marshalltown, Iowa passed away peacefully on February 17, 2018, while under the care of Iowa River Hospice and the loving staff at Grandview Heights.  Funeral services for Bonnie will be officiated by Pastor Mike Maddick on Wednesday, February 21, at 10:00 a.m. at Mitchell Family Funeral Home in Marshalltown.  Visitation will be prior to the service from 9:00 until 10:00 a.m.  She will be laid to rest at Rose Hill Memorial Gardens in Marshalltown, Iowa.  Memorial contributions may be directed in Bonnie’s name to her family.  For further information or to send a condolence please visit www.mitchellfh.com or call (641) 844-1234. Bonnie Lorraine Green was born to Myron and Edna (Olds) Green in their family home in Gilman, Iowa, on October 18, 1923.  She was welcomed into the family by older sisters, Dorothy and Donileen, and brothers, Earl and Howard.  She lived in Gilman, surrounded by grandparents, aunts and uncles and a bevy of fun cousins.  Life was good and the family might have lived there happily ever after, but the Great Depression settled in and her family had to seek better economic opportunities in Marshalltown. After graduating from MHS in 1941, Bonnie traveled a bit, and upon returning home started working at Western Grocery Mills.  Somewhere between the coffee and jello packaging lines she met the love of her life, Ralph Buchwald.  They were married on September 5, 1944, in Leesville, Louisiana.  They returned to Marshalltown and lived at 409 Bromley Street where she called home for the next fifty three years. Bonnie loved all animals, great and small.  Her home was not complete without a dog.  She treasured family times; celebrating birthdays and holidays, playing cards and board games with her grandchildren, or just simply visiting and reminiscing. It should be noted that Bonnie was a masterful repurposer.  She never saw a piece of cardboard, plastic packaging, or contact paper that she couldn’t envision a future use for.  Bonnie rejoins her parents, Myron and Edna, her aunt,Alice Wolcott; her husband, Ralph, her four siblings and their spouses, Dorothy and Eddie Cadwallader, Earl and Clarice Green, Howard and Gladys Green, and Donileen and Jesse Strike; sisters in law, Mabel Berg and Marquerite Matson; her nephew, Wayne Parmenter; her niece, Liz Smuck; and great niece, Barb Zager. Among those left to mourn her death yet celebrate her life are her two daughters, Claudia (Shorty) Riese, of Colo, and Penney (Bill) Carroll of Raleigh, NC; her grandchildren, Jacquelyn (Ed) Vaske and Jaime (Ryan) Gjerde, all of Ankeny, Michael (Shana) Carroll, Keller, TX, and Sean (Sarah) Carroll, New Bern, NC; her great grandchildren, Emily, Adam, and Nick Vaske, Connor, Riese and Cale Gjerde, Moxley, Maeryn, and Poppy Carroll; her many cherished nieces and nephews; a multitude of special friends and her “like a daughter”, Judy Teig.   Bonnie would be pleased to be remembered as a nice lady but we will remember her as a strong woman who faced adversity with calm resolve and optimism, who proudly honored her heritage, who devoted her life to family and friends, and oh yeah, was a very nice lady.  We are grateful for her 94 year legacy of love and laughter.