Bernadine Bower

Funeral Services: Will be held on Wednesday, December 12, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. at the Cumberland Community Center in Cumberland with burial in the Massena Center Cemetery, north of Massena.   

Visitation: Will be held on Tuesday, December 11th from 2 to 8 p.m. at the Steen Funeral Home in Massena with the family greeting friends from 6 to 8 p.m.

Memorials: Memorials may be made to the Bernadine Bower memorial fund to be established by the family.

Bernadine Opal Bower was born August 31, 1926, the daughter of Edward Irving and Fern Opal (Garside) Darrow in Adair County, Iowa. She passed away at her daughter’s home on Wednesday, December 5, 2012, at the age of 86.

Bernadine was raised and grew up near Anita, Iowa. She graduated from Anita High School in 1944. She received her Normal Teacher Training Certificate in high school. Bernadine taught country school for ten years. On August 22, 1948, she was united in marriage to Byron Bower in the North Massena Baptist Church. To this union four children were born: Dwight, Lisa, Lynnette, and Dallas. They lived and farmed in Adair County all of their married life.

Bernadine loved gardening, cooking, genealogy, and telling stories of the past. She was a past member of the North Massena Baptist Church and Bible Baptist Church of Anita. She recently attended the Massena Baptist Church and the First Baptist Church of Cumberland. Bernadine enjoyed playing the piano in church through the years.

She was preceded in death by her parents and brother, Duane Darrow.

She is survived by her husband Byron Bower; children, Dwight Bower and wife Joyce of Massena; Lisa Karas and husband Galen of Fontanelle, Lynnette Hamedi and husband Reza of Auburn, Washington and Dallas Bower and wife Cheri of Sedro-Woolley, Washington; sister, Mavis Klepfer of Council Bluffs, Iowa; two brothers, Daniel Darrow and wife Nancy of Council Bluffs, Iowa and Bill Darrow and wife Nancy of Summerfield, Florida; twelve grandchildren, Christopher and Amber Bower, Courtney and Jana Bower, Charles and Dana Bower, Derek Bower, Andrew and Melissa Karas, Peter and Abby Karas, Monica and Ross King, Ariel Bower, Alexander and Angela Bower, Alleana Bower, Kamron Hamedi and Meetra Hamedi; thirteen great grandchildren; other relatives and friends.