Obituaries : Beatrice Anne Martin

Beatrice Anne Martin, 73, of Waukee, Iowa passed away peacefully at her home Monday, January 24, 2022.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, February 12 at St. Michael Catholic Church, Belle Plaine. Visitation will be 9:00a.m. to 10:30a.m. prior to the Mass, with lunch and fellowship in the church hall immediately following the service. Inurnment will be at Oak Hill Cemetery in Belle Plaine at a later date. The service will be livestreamed through Hrabak-Neuhaus Funeral Service, Facebook page. Memorials may be made to the family. Online condolences can be sent to the family at www.neuhausfuneralservice.com.

A celebration of life will be 1-4 p.m. Sunday, April 10, 2022 at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden.

Bea was born October 22, 1948 to Daniel and Marion (Yavorsky) Martin in Cedar Rapids. She grew up on a dairy farm south of Belle Plaine with her four sisters and two brothers. Bea attended St. John's Catholic School in Victor from kindergarten through 5th grade and attended Belle Plaine schools from sixth grade through graduation in 1966. It was during her school years that Bea developed juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at the age of 14. As this unfortunate diagnosis would not allow her to seek a career in nursing, she attended UNI for a semester after graduation before moving to San Diego CA. Bea had hoped that the milder weather there would give some relief to her pain and would also allow her to develop closer ties with her Yavorsky cousins. She indeed did form a strong and lasting bond with her California cousins during that year, but missing family, friends (and yes, even snow) convinced her to move back to her home state of Iowa. There she took classes at the University of Iowa in Iowa City while also working in the Neurology Dept.; and ultimately transferred to the Rheumatology Department at the University of Iowa Hospitals. It was there that she formed a lifelong friendship with Dr. Nate Josephson, who convinced her to work for him as the Internal Medicine Residency Program Coordinator at Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, a career which lasted almost 40 years from 1976 to 2014. She absolutely loved working with each incoming class of medical residents during this time, seeing their progression through the challenging years of study and practice and also getting to know them and their families on a personal level.

To her own family, Bea became the "cool aunt', one who loved spending time with all of her nieces and nephews, and eventually with their own children as well. She enjoyed many activities in her life such as documenting family and social events with her camera, singing and dancing, cooking, artistic works in all forms, college sports (most avidly the Hawkeyes), nurturing plants, caring for her beloved cats, and especially spending time with family and friends. All of these pursuits helped to distract her from the pain of the numerous surgeries she endured over the years, which eventually limited her physical abilities, but never dimmed her kind heart, her sharp mind, and the eternal spark of life within her.

Bea's final days were spent at her home in the presence of family and friends, the end came peacefully and without pain, thanks to hospice.

She is survived by her sisters, Mary Kintigh of Geneseo, IL; Kathy (Mike) Fredericks of Hartwick, IA, Andrea Matthias of Readlyn, IA; two brothers, John Martin and Bill (Julie) Martin of Belle Plaine; brother-in-law, Steve McDonnell of Colleyville, TX, along with eleven nieces and eight nephews.

Bea was preceded in death by her parents, sister Patty McDonnell, and brothers-in-law Richard Kintigh and Marlan Matthias.