Mona (Howat) Buchholz, age 97.
Mona was born to Worden and Lois (Conger) Howat of WaKeeney, KS, on Sep. 30, 1925. She died on Dec. 28, 2022, in Monmouth, IL.
After graduation, Mona married her schoolmate, Bob Buchholz. Their early married life included Bob’s stints in the U.S. Army, with his deployments in Europe near the end of WWII. After the war, they took up residence in Hays, KS, and Manhattan, KS, before eventually settling in Monmouth, IL, where Bob took a teaching position in Biology at Monmouth College. They raised three boys there, and Monmouth was their home for the rest of their days.
Mona and Bob could frequently be seen riding their tandem bike around town. She also loved walking, baking, knitting, reading and crosswords. She was a formidable card player, playing Bridge with multiple groups in Monmouth, and teaching all of her kids to play the family game, Pitch, (Kansas rules, of course!)
She and Bob were members of Faith United Presbyterian Church in Monmouth, where they volunteered and had many church friends through the years.
Mona was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her middle son, Dan Buchholz, and granddaughter Kim Clark. She is survived by sons Mark Buchholz of Monmouth, IL, and Rick Buchholz (Les Bendtsen) of St Paul, MN; daughter-in-law Linda Buchholz of Phoenix, AZ; granddaughter Jessica Poile (Jason) of Denver, CO; and great-granddaughter Tatum Clark of Phoenix, AZ.
A farm girl at heart, Mona loved animals. The family requests that memorials be made to Western Illinois Animal Rescue, 300 W Harlem Ave, Monmouth, IL, 61462, or the animal welfare or wildlife organization of your choice.
A memorial service will be planned, and details announced at a later date by Turnbull Funeral Homes.