Herbert Brunkhorst

Our dad, Herb Brunkhorst, passed away on July 21, 2017. He was born in Sharon Springs, Kansas on August 17, 1923. His parents were Lona and August Brunkhorst and he was the oldest of three boys. When dad was about 10, the family moved to Palisade, Nebraska and he lived there until he went into the navy. He was a farm boy and loved being in the outdoors. In school he played on the football team (6 man) and also did track. Dad was a very fast runner, and in his junior year he qualified for state. The townspeople bought him a bus ticket and the librarian found him a place to stay while he was there. He was a little intimidated at the big town of Lincoln, but couldn’t let his hometown down. He placed 1st in the 100 and 2nd in the 200. Dad also met our mother while in high school. They were quite a couple. People called them Dot and Dash (Mom’s name was Dorothy and Dad was a fast runner). Upon graduation, Dad enlisted in the navy. Our little town mother went to the big city of New York and married dad when he was on leave. She then followed him to San Diego, California where she lived while Dad did his duty in the navy. Dad had great stories to tell about his time in the service, and we loved hearing them. Mom and Dad eventually settled in Grandview, WA where they would live for the next 50 years. They had three children, Sheryl, Peggy and Fred. Dad worked for Snyders driving a bread truck, then for Smith Oil Co. delivering oil. He went to work for the City of Grandview driving a garbage truck. Dad had many friends on his routes and little kids loved waving to him from their windows. Dad and Mom flew to Arizona to pick up a brand new garbage truck and drove it home. They made a few stops on the way, including the Grand Canyon and other sightseeing places. They must have been quite a sight driving up in the garbage truck and getting out to take pictures. Dad and Mom were active in their church for many years. After a weekend retreat, they gave their lives to the Lord. They were so excited to have a personal relationship with Him. All of us kids made life-changing decisions because of what they shared with us. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6 Dad has lived on the Living Care campus for about 9 years. He made many friends and enjoyed all of the activities they had to offer. He especially like to play “bean bag baseball” each Saturday morning and when the weather was good he enjoyed playing golf on Fridays. There weren’t many times that he missed going on the bus to breakfast or to lunch with the group. He loved the music they had in the auditorium, going to plays, or just on a sightseeing outing. He always was hoping that the trips would end up making an ice cream run, his favorite food of all time. His wife of 63 years Dorothy, his brother Lyle, his parents and twin great granddaughters Zoe and Grace predeceased Dad. He is survived by his three children, Sheryl and Gary Beeman, Peggy and Pat Hawkins, Fred and Beckie Brunkhorst. His grandchildren: Shawn and Michelle Beeman, Angela Roberts, Amy and Russ Roberts, Mindy and Jeff Clark, Michael and Rachel Hawkins, Joshua and Rachel Brunkhorst and Charlie and Sara Brunkhorst. He also has 21 great grandchildren. His brother, Melvin Brunkhorst of Grand Island, NE also survives him. Services will be August 17, 2017 (his birthday). There will be a Graveside Service at 10:00 a.m. at Lower Valley Memorial Gardens in Sunnyside. A Memorial Service will be at 2:00 p.m. at Living Care, Meyer Auditorium in Yakima. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Herbert Brunkhorst, please visit our flower store.