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1955 - 2012

BORN

1955

DIED

2012

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Illinois State University Iowa State University

Richard Auwerda Obituary

Richard G. Auwerda

Kelley

Richard G. Auwerda, 56, died Tuesday, January 17, 2012, at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames following a prolonged illness. Services will be held at 11am Saturday, January 21, Grace E-Free Church in Huxley.

Richard was born May 30, 1955, in Geneva, IL to John and Marion Auwerda. He was an animal disease supervisor at the NADC in Ames, served in the Navy, a graduate of ISU, a member of the Governor's Homeless Task Force, and had a passion for horses and politics.

He is survived by his wife, Peggy Auwerda of Kelley; his daughters, Shantel (Dan) Lauer of Wheaton, IL and B.J. Auwerda of Des Moines; his step-son, Jacob Graber; and granddaughter, Raven.

There will be a time of visitation 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, January 20, at the church. Memorials may be given to the family.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by the Des Moines Register from Jan. 19 to Jan. 20, 2012.

Memories and Condolences
for Richard Auwerda

15 Entries

Samantha Z

January 24, 2012

Peggy, very sorry to hear about Richard's passing. I never met him but he sure sounds like a cool guy. I hope your sorrow is brief and you are left with only the best memories.

Martha Bellini

January 21, 2012

RIP- you will be missed ! OUR Loss Heavens gain.

Don Batt

January 21, 2012

I never met Richard. I had a conversation with him online recently regarding submitting planks for the Republican Caucus. I could tell he was highly educated in the political process. He was an ABATE of Iowa, District 25 member of which I am Coordinator. I wish we had met long ago. His views were straight forward. He sounds like he was dedicated in what ever he was doing. Our prayers are with the family.

Mark Hurley

January 20, 2012

I was fortunate to have worked with Rich between 1992 and 2000. He was a manager of three of the aquatic facilities in Des Moines in the summers -- Birdland, Nahas, and Ashworth. He was a joy to work with and I enjoyed his stories. I had only seen Rich rarely after he left the pools but on the few occassions that I did see him, we had a great time remembering his time at the pools.
I have to share one great story. Rich was manager at Birdland Pool which is across from North High School in the summer of 1993. Well, we had a minor problem in 1993 as the DM river which is right next to Birdland Pool did not want to stay inside the banks.
I was involved with constant communication with Rich concerning the river in relationship to the pool. The day before the levee broke, I was talking to Rich and he was there every moment to make sure that the pool was going to be ok. The best I could tell him was to get everything as high as possible and to not stay too long.
The day the levy broke, Rich was still there. The roads were closed and I could not get to the pool so I was on the phone with him as much as possible. One of his comments was that the ground was puddling and that he thought he should leave. The next thing I learned was that the levy had broken and Rich jumped over the counter and jumped on his bike and sped out of there. I just can't forget his attitude about the whole thing and that the area was puddling. Of course, a few moments later, the levy broke and water rushed into the pool. The pool drowned that day but Rich was alright and left a precious memory of that moment.
I pray that the Good Lord will keep him in the palm of His hand. Thanks for the memories, Rich.

Monte Goodyk

January 20, 2012

Richard was a great man and patriot. I will miss our conversations on Facebook!

Mark Hurley

January 20, 2012

I was blessed to have worked with Rich at the swimming pools in Des Moines. I was fortunate enough to have been his supervisor. He worked at three of the pools during the summers from 1992 to 2000.
I could give a dozen great memories of Rich but I have to share one. 1993 was Rich's second summer as manager of Birdland Pool. Now Birdland is located across from North High School and 1993 had an event occur that will be forever in our memories. That was the year of the flood and Birdland was in the middle of it.
I had been on the phone with Rich several times the day before the levee broke as well as the morning that the levee broke.
Rich chose to stay at the pool to make sure everything was secure. We had no idea how deep the water was going to get or how quickly it would happen. Rich stuck around the pool long after he should have left. I just could not get him to leave and the streets were closing making it difficult for me to get to him.
I simply remember him telling me that he stayed at the pool until the levee broke. He then junmped the counter at the "basket room" and ran to jump on his bike and leave the pool area as the water rushed in from a broken levee.
I have rarely seen Rich in the last 12 years but the memory of him and the sharing of his experiences is something I will always cherish. I am honored to have know him and proud to have been his boss. He was a great example of someone that had overcome adversity and achieved success.
May the Good Lord hold him in the palm of his hands.
Bless you, Rich

Kim Houlding

January 20, 2012

I met Richard when I went to Peggy's house to see a horse. She wasn't there. Richard told me about their marriage plans with excitement in his eyes. It was clear he loved her very much!

Wesley Enos

January 20, 2012

Richard was a great person and a true patriot. I, and his many friends will miss him greatly.

Kim and Dave Porter

January 19, 2012

Rich, you blessed our lives with your thought provoking personality, great stories and warm humor. Best of all, you made my cousin smile in the way only a woman truly in love, smiles. God bless and keep you, it was a pleasure to have met you and called you family (and friend).

January 19, 2012

Richard was married to my wifes neice, Peggy. I always considered Him to be a rare breed, mainly because if I could pick my relatives like you pick friends I would have picked Richard.
He was a genuine good human being with a zeal for life and an honest intrest in His fellow man and I admired Him for that. God couldn't have sent us a better family member.
Larry Coltrin

Robin/Terry Whetstone

January 19, 2012

Rich was a personal friend, co-worker, and at times horse mentor to us. He will truly be missed. May God look over his family and keep them Blessed and Safe.

Brian Donegan

January 19, 2012

As a kid I remember making wish lists for Birthdays and Christmas. There was always something I really wanted and I was really happy and excited when I got it. As the years have progressed, I have stopped making lists because I have realized that the best gifts actually have no price tag whatsoever.

I met Richard Auwerda on Facebook through our political activism and we actually met face to face for the first time at a Fundraising event for candidates who were running for State Legislature in Iowa in May of 2010. However it wasn't until after Iowa's primary that I really got to know Richard.

Richard was a big supporter for Brenna Findley who was running for Attorney General of Iowa. He called me a few days after our disappointment over our primary defeats and we mutually gave ourselves a pep talk. We mutually agreed to do whatever we could for the Conservative cause in Iowa in that upcoming election.

Over that summer we continued to talk over the phone and our friendship grew. I was really excited because my Birthday was upcoming and as I had done the previous year I was going to spend the occasion in Iowa while stumping and volunteering for Conservative candidates for statewide office and the legislature.

For those that don't know my story, I was born legally blind, with a bilateral cleft lip and palate, and several birth defects that I call "Blessings." My doctors and nurses gave me a prognosis of six weeks. I have no lived almost 29 and a half years and have defied that prognosis big time. Therefore my Birthday every year is a big deal to me and something I want to celebrate. Richard and a bunch of my other friends agreed. A few days after my 28th Birthday a surprise party was held in my honor at Wallby's in Ames (organized by my friend Janelle with help from others). It was a small gathering with very few material gifts but it was a great time with good friends and that was what really mattered.

Near the end of the party Richard left the room and came back with a shoebox. It was really heavy! Inside the box was a brick with a note taped to it. along with an envelope I read the piece of paper and it said "This is so nobody can ever accuse you of being one brick short of a full load!" The note also asked me open up an attached envelope.

I am a big fan of 1950's Rock N' Roll and I had always wanted to visit the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake. Inside the envelope was a note that told me that we were going to go up to the Surf Ballroom in the next few days and purchase a commemorative brick to be placed in my honor in front of the Surf Ballroom. When we did (with our mutual friend Caree Severson) we actually got to go backstage and on stage to take pictures on musical hallowed ground. That was only one precious moment of time the three of us spent together.

The day before on a sunny afternoon Richard and Caree came over to Chad Steenhoek's farm (I was staying with his family for the week). They brought with them a .22 and a 410 shotgun. A wooden board was set up against a bale of hay and a chair was set up several feet away. Rich taught me how to load, aim, and fire both guns and Caree took photos and shot video of a legally blind man shooting a gun for the first time! Remarkably I did very well and I one of my shots came within six inches of hitting the center of the makeshift board. For my efforts the next morning (before headed to Clear Lake) he presented me with his Navy Shooting medal - which was a huge honor.

Richard and I didn't get to spend a lot of time with each other but every moment was of the highest quality. Little did we know that when he dropped me off at the Kansas City Airport in October of 2010 was the last time we would see each other in the flesh through our tear filled eyes (cause neither of us wanted to part ways...perhaps our collective subconscious knew this might be it).

The greatest gifts we can receive have no monetary value whatsoever. My friendship with Richard is just one of those examples. I consider it a true honor and a blessing to have known him and to still call him FRIEND. I know that Richard has blessed many more people along the way and I think our lives are much better because Richard was in it. He had one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know. I don't remember hearing Richard say "No" to anyone. Whatever Richard set his mind to he did and did it with every inch of effort he could put into it - whether it was helping people or working hard to get people elected for the sake of our Nation.

Even though our Patriot brother and friend has left us in the flesh, he is now home with the LORD enjoying the most precious gift ever given to mankind - Eternal life as a whole person without any pain or suffering. When my name is called one of these days I look forward to seeing him again, riding horses (and motorcycles) and shooting in an endless pasture.

Well done good and faithful servant. Farewell Rich. You were one in a million. Even though we miss you here on Earth I don't think we could ask for a better person to watch over us from Heaven.

January 19, 2012

Our loss, is Heavens Gain. We lost a "Good and Faithful servant" on earth, but at the doors of heaven, Richard was greeted by our Lord, who said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Master." Glen Massie (Des Moines,IA)

Paul Tynan

January 19, 2012

Thank you for your many brave years of service.... Prayers sent, to his family and friends.

Woodrow Spaur

January 19, 2012

It was a great pleasure to have met and talked with Richard on several occasions i'm glad to known him for a brief time i did. He will be truely missed.

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