SHARON KAY BUNCE

Sharon K. Bunce, 79, a longtime resident of Potlatch, ID, died early Saturday morning, November 15, 2025, at Gritman Medical Center in Moscow, ID.
Sharon was born July 30, 1946 at the family home in Onaway, ID to Jack and Sara Tibbitts. The family moved to Creston, WA in 1948. Sharon lived in Creston until 1960, when the family moved to Coeur d' Alene, ID. She attended Coeur d' Alene High School, where she met her future husband, Richard Bunce. After graduating from high school, Sharon attended Kinman Business University in Spokane, WA. Following her graduation from Kinman, she worked first at Prudential Insurance and then at the Coeur d' Alene Credit Bureau.
She married Richard Bunce on July 22, 1967, in Coeur d' Alene. They were married for nearly 50 years, until Richard's passing in 2016. They welcomed two sons: first Ken in 1968 and then Wayne in 1970. The family made their home in Coeur d' Alene until moving to Potlatch, ID in 1981. While in Coeur d' Alene, her children became the focus of her life, leaving full-time work to be with them. She maintained a spotless house, created great meals, and spent time with her children. She was a Cub Scout leader, and her children have fond memories of the projects she had them create and the places she took them as their "Den Mother".
In Potlatch, Sharon was the bookkeeper and produce manager of Potlatch Empire Foods, a grocery store she owned with her husband Richard. While the long hours of running their own business changed family life in some ways, she was able to continue to do the things that were most important to her. The house remained spotless. Great dinners were prepared almost every night (though oftentimes well after 9pm!). And she was always there for her family when they needed her. Through the store, she was able to meet and work with some of the great people of the Potlatch community. Though she and Richard originally thought they would return to Coeur d' Alene in retirement, they realized Potlatch had become their true and final home. Sharon will be joining her husband Richard, along with her mother and many other family members, in the Potlatch Cemetery.
After selling the store, Sharon went to work in the Accounts Payable Department at the University of Idaho. She worked there for 17 years, retiring in 2010. She had many fond memories of her work and the people she worked with. This was a very happy time in her life, made even more so by her coworkers at the University. She wore her Vandal colors proudly!
In retirement, Sharon focused her energies on attending her grandchildren's events, her many quilting projects, caring for her house and garden, and her true favorite child, her dog Tucker.
Sharon was preceded in death by her husband Richard, her parents Sara Tilson and Jack Tibbitts, her older sisters Donna Rogers and Patricia Rieken, and her older brother Jerry Hengen.

Sharon is survived by her brother Jack Tibbitts of Coeur d' Alene; her sons, Ken (Chris) Bunce and Wayne (Angela) Bunce, both of Clarkston; her five grandchildren (Zachariah, Madeline, Ben, Aaron, and Mia); and her beloved dog, Tucker.
The family suggests memorial gifts be made to the Potlatch Ambulance Fund.
A service will be held in the spring of 2026, with Kramer Funeral Home of Palouse, WA in charge of the arrangements.
Kramer Funeral Home, Palouse, WA is caring for the family. Online condolences may be left at
www.kramercares.com