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Services
Friends may visit with the family from 4-8 PM on Monday, March 21, 2016 at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at the Preakness Valley United Reformed Church, 480 Valley Road, Wayne.
Interment will be in Fair Lawn Cemetery, Fair Lawn.
Shirley Ann Buwalda, age 72, of Wayne, passed Thursday, March 17, 2016.
She was born in Paterson and raised in Hawthorne and Wyckoff having graduated from Eastern Christian High School with the Class of 1961.
As a young girl just out of high school Shirley found work as a secretary at the First National Bank in Paterson. She would take the bus each day from Wyckoff to Paterson. She met a handsome and tall young man named Donald Buwalda while hanging out with a group of kids from various churches after evening worship services. The group would go sleigh riding, bowling, and often played board games together. Initially Don and Shirley were friends and eventually fell in love. They married on October 15, 1966 at the Bethel Christian Reformed Church and had a reception with about 250 people at the American Legion Hall on High Mountain Road in North Haledon. They honeymooned at the Birchwood Resort in East Stroudsburg, PA. Shirley borrowed her brother-in-law's movie camera and while filming a canoe trip on the lake they flipped their canoe and the camera went to the bottom of the lake. They eventually recovered it but it never worked again. While at the Birchwood they met three other couples who had just been married. They would become life-long friends and for many years the four couples would get together for dinner, family vacations, and to celebrate their common anniversary. It’s also interesting to note that Shirley’s husband Don was the only police officer at the time of their honeymoon but the husbands of the other three couples would all secure careers in law enforcement. Shirley and Don were blessed with four children and have enjoyed a loving, devoted, and faith filled marriage of forty-nine years.
Shirley dedicated herself to being a stay at home mom during her children’s youth and once they matured she returned to work as a secretary for a local law firm, dentist, and finally for Vanguard Plastic in Paterson.
She was devoted to her Christian faith and for many years was active with the Prospect Park Christian Reformed Church where she sang in the choir. In recent years she belonged to the Preakness Valley United Reformed Church in Wayne where she previously sang in the choir, was active with the fellowship committee and the coffee break ministry, and attended many bible study classes.
Shirley will be remembered as a reserved, patient person who was very supportive of the crazy hours of her husband’s job and rotating shifts. She was compassionate, loved to play the piano, enjoyed ceramics, belonged to the Wayne PAL Ladies Auxiliary for many years, and was a member of the Wayne Rec Volleyball League. She was a great cook and baker who had a sit down family dinner ready every night. Her banana bread, mashed potatoes, almond paste butter letter, pot roast, chocolate cake with homemade whipped cream icing, vegetable soup with meatballs, and sun tea are just a few of her specialties that will never be the same without her special ingredient of love.
Shirley was the loving wife of Donald Buwalda; devoted mother of Donald Kenneth Buwalda, Jr. and his wife Nadine of Wayne, Donna Lynne Cook and her husband Ray of Ringwood, Dawn Lynne Janecek and her husband Rob of West Milford, and Debra Lynne Garay and her husband Pedro of Bloomingdale; cherished grandmother of Dianne and her husband Michael, Donald, Dana, Steven, Sean, Andrea, Amanda, Julie, Raymond, Daniella, and Leonardo; dear sister of Peter Orbeck, Jr. and his wife Martha of Jennison, MI, and the late Wilma Bouman and the late Angie Van Dongen.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations to the Eastern Christian Children’s Retreat, 700 Mountain Ave., Wyckoff, NJ 07481 would be appreciated.
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Friends may visit with the family from 4-8 PM on Monday, March 21, 2016 at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at the Preakness Valley United Reformed Church, 480 Valley Road, Wayne.
Interment will be in Fair Lawn Cemetery, Fair Lawn.
Services
Friends may visit with the family from 4-8 PM on Monday, March 21, 2016 at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at the Preakness Valley United Reformed Church, 480 Valley Road, Wayne.
Interment will be in Fair Lawn Cemetery, Fair Lawn.
Shirley Ann Buwalda, age 72, of Wayne, passed Thursday, March 17, 2016.
She was born in Paterson and raised in Hawthorne and Wyckoff having graduated from Eastern Christian High School with the Class of 1961.
As a young girl just out of high school Shirley found work as a secretary at the First National Bank in Paterson. She would take the bus each day from Wyckoff to Paterson. She met a handsome and tall young man named Donald Buwalda while hanging out with a group of kids from various churches after evening worship services. The group would go sleigh riding, bowling, and often played board games together. Initially Don and Shirley were friends and eventually fell in love. They married on October 15, 1966 at the Bethel Christian Reformed Church and had a reception with about 250 people at the American Legion Hall on High Mountain Road in North Haledon. They honeymooned at the Birchwood Resort in East Stroudsburg, PA. Shirley borrowed her brother-in-law's movie camera and while filming a canoe trip on the lake they flipped their canoe and the camera went to the bottom of the lake. They eventually recovered it but it never worked again. While at the Birchwood they met three other couples who had just been married. They would become life-long friends and for many years the four couples would get together for dinner, family vacations, and to celebrate their common anniversary. It’s also interesting to note that Shirley’s husband Don was the only police officer at the time of their honeymoon but the husbands of the other three couples would all secure careers in law enforcement. Shirley and Don were blessed with four children and have enjoyed a loving, devoted, and faith filled marriage of forty-nine years.
Shirley dedicated herself to being a stay at home mom during her children’s youth and once they matured she returned to work as a secretary for a local law firm, dentist, and finally for Vanguard Plastic in Paterson.
She was devoted to her Christian faith and for many years was active with the Prospect Park Christian Reformed Church where she sang in the choir. In recent years she belonged to the Preakness Valley United Reformed Church in Wayne where she previously sang in the choir, was active with the fellowship committee and the coffee break ministry, and attended many bible study classes.
Shirley will be remembered as a reserved, patient person who was very supportive of the crazy hours of her husband’s job and rotating shifts. She was compassionate, loved to play the piano, enjoyed ceramics, belonged to the Wayne PAL Ladies Auxiliary for many years, and was a member of the Wayne Rec Volleyball League. She was a great cook and baker who had a sit down family dinner ready every night. Her banana bread, mashed potatoes, almond paste butter letter, pot roast, chocolate cake with homemade whipped cream icing, vegetable soup with meatballs, and sun tea are just a few of her specialties that will never be the same without her special ingredient of love.
Shirley was the loving wife of Donald Buwalda; devoted mother of Donald Kenneth Buwalda, Jr. and his wife Nadine of Wayne, Donna Lynne Cook and her husband Ray of Ringwood, Dawn Lynne Janecek and her husband Rob of West Milford, and Debra Lynne Garay and her husband Pedro of Bloomingdale; cherished grandmother of Dianne and her husband Michael, Donald, Dana, Steven, Sean, Andrea, Amanda, Julie, Raymond, Daniella, and Leonardo; dear sister of Peter Orbeck, Jr. and his wife Martha of Jennison, MI, and the late Wilma Bouman and the late Angie Van Dongen.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations to the Eastern Christian Children’s Retreat, 700 Mountain Ave., Wyckoff, NJ 07481 would be appreciated.
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