Norma L (Bashor) Bunzel
Marriages
Thomas Barr
Harlow W Hurley - 1948
Fred P Bunzel - November 1, 1980
Burial Details
Obituaries
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 6A Obituary - November 15, 2017
Norma L. Bunzel July 14, 1930 - November 11, 2017
Norma L. Bunzel passed with peace and dignity, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s, on November 11, 2017, at Horizons Care Center, Eckert, Colorado. She was born the daughter of George H. Noble and Dora Lee (Rathjen) Bashor on July 14, 1930, in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Sister Mary joined her in 1933. They spent their earliest years in and around Pagosa Springs where they learned to fish, ski, tied shingles to their feet to “ice skate” on the pond, and rode a mule to school in a one-room schoolhouse. In about 1939 the family joined the exodus westward and settled in Boron, California, in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Their father and uncle drilled for borax core samples, where the Jigs 29 Mule Team Borax Plant now stands. While there, they chased the dog through the cactus and sage brush, ever mindful of rattlesnakes and they waved at troop trains filled with soldiers packed in like sardines, heading for the west coast. Their parents’ marriage failed and mom and the girls went to Reno, Nevada. World War II started while they were there. After that they continued westward to Covina, California. Her mother got a job scrubbing floors, and eventually becoming head cook at the Masonic Home for Children. The girls lived in the dormitory and were afforded the privileges and responsibilities given to all the children living at the home. It was a great character-building time for them. When Norma was a junior in high school, she was a song leader at Covina Union High School. She was well known as the one with the pretty long, blonde hair. In 1948 she and Harlow W. Hurley married. From this union two daughters were born, Claudia (John) Dougherty and Sheryl (Nicholas) Serve. They lived in Covina, California. Their marriage fell apart and not long afterward, Norma married Thomas Barr. In about 1960 the family moved to Denver, Colorado. Norma was a stay-at-home mom and she decided to try her hand at gardening. The story goes that the neighbors would pull their drapes and lock their doors when they saw Norma coming with a wheelbarrow full of zucchini squash. It was during that time that Norma traded in her blonde hair for red hair and she kept it that way. She swore she would never go gray, but she did (it being medically necessary) and she looked just darling. Even she liked it. Thomas and Norma parted way, and the years between 1970 and 1980 were a decade of transition and mobility for her. She finally wound up in Phoenix, Arizona where she met and married Fred P. Bunzel on November 1, 1980. They pursued their careers, Fred in title insurance and Norma in mortgage brokerage. In the mid-80s they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in California to be near daughter, Claudia. Norma became an astute business woman and became quite expert in ARMS (adjustable rate mortgages) and for a time had her own business. They retired to a mountain home in Magalia in Northern California. They purchased a motor home and took one long, extensive trip around the country. Afterward they took numerous shorter trips in the Western States. On several occasions, sister Mary joined them. They fished for salmon on the Klamath River, deep-sea fished in the Pacific, gathered moonstones on the coast and inspected Indian petro glyphs on steep canyon walls in the Utah red rock country. Fred passed away in 2005 and it wasn’t long after that that grandsons, Christopher and Nathan Serve came from Delta, Colorado and took Norma, her motor home, her car and her dog to Delta, to be cared for by daughter Sheri and her family. Norma always loved pretty things and Claudia sent her cute clothes and blinged-out shoes. She was probably one of the best dressed residents at Crossroads Assisted Living and Horizons Care Center. She is preceded in death by her parents and husband Fred Bunzel. She is survived by her sister, Mary Burnett of Sanger, California; daughters, Claudia Dougherty of Vallejo, California; Sheryl (Sheri) Serve of Delta, Colorado; three grandchildren; six great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson. A memorial service will be held Saturday, November 18, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. at Taylor Funeral Service Chapel in Delta, Colorado, officiated by Pastor James Gall. Her ashes will be interred in the Aztec Cemetery, Aztec New Mexico at a later date. Arrangements are under the care and direction of Taylor Funeral Service and Crematory. View the internet obituary and sign the online guest registry at www.taylorfuneralservice.com.
