Obituary of Bernadine Moe Wold

Bernadine (“Bernie”) Wold passed away early Tuesday morning, February 18, 2020 at age 88 as a result of heart and respiratory illness. Memorial Services have been postponed, and will be rescheduled at a further date. Memorial donations may be made in her name to the American Heart Association. To share a thought, memory or condolence with her family, please visit www.gayandciha.com Bernie is survived by her sons, Eric Wold of New Auburn, MN, and Marc Wold of Iowa City, her daughter-in-law, Madeline Shea and her grandsons, Michael and Arthur Wold. She was preceded in death by her husband of 43 years, Finn Wold, her parents Lewis and Marguerite Moe and her brother Culver Moe and sister-in-law Norma Moe. She was known as Bernie to her friends. To her family she was Mom and Farmor (Norwegian for Father’s Mother). She was born and raised in Stillwater, OK, where her father, Lewis Moe, was a professor of veterinary sciences. She grew up in the Great Depression, helping her mother raise chickens in their yard and being a great fan of Shirley Temple. She played flute in high school and was interested in science. She stayed in Stillwater to attend college at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State University) were she graduated with a B.S. in Microbiology. In 1951, her first generation Norwegian-American father invited a Norwegian exchange student named Finn Wold home for dinner. Dates followed, and Finn and Bernie were married in 1953. They honeymooned in Norway (traveling each way by ocean liner). There she charmed the extended Wold family and learned to speak Norwegian. After their marriage, Bernie and Finn lived in Berkeley, California, where Finn earned his Ph.D. at U.C. Berkeley and Bernie worked as a researcher at Upjohn Chemical Co. During this time Bernie gave birth to Eric in 1955, and Marc in 1957. Shortly thereafter, in 1957, the Wolds moved to Urbana, IL where Finn joined the faculty of the University of Illinois as an Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Bernie focused on the boys. As 1966 ended and 1967 began, they moved to the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, MN where Finn joined the Department of Biochemistry. Finn loved to travel and had many opportunities to go to scientific meetings and visit other universities. So Bernie (and, often, the whole family) got to see many parts of the US and the world including almost all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, many of the countries in Europe, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and parts of South America. This included frequent trips to visit relatives in Oklahoma including her nieces Leslie, Karen and Lauren and their families, Finn’s sister, Gerd and her family in New York and Finn’s parents and sister, Babben and their extended families in Norway. They traveled to many meetings of the Protein Society (which Finn co-founded), the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and other scientific Societies. They also had extended visits living in London, England in 1960 (where Finn was a Guggenheim Fellow), Taipei, Taiwan in 1971 (visiting professor) and Tromsø, Norway in 1979 (visiting professor). As the daughter and sister of veterinarians, Bernie loved animals. She knew the names of all the dogs in the neighborhood and especially liked miniature schnauzers: owning “Scamp” while living Minnesota and “JP” in Texas. In 1981, Finn and Bernie moved to the University of Texas, in Houston, TX where Finn was an endowed Welch Professor of Biochemistry. They loved going to the Houston Symphony, seeing the Texas wild flowers and birds, and hosting visits of children and grandchildren. Several years after Finn’s death from cancer in 1997, Bernie decided that it was time to be closer to her grandchildren in Iowa City. After a visit to Oaknoll Retirement Community, she was delighted to move there in 2002. Bernie loved living at Oaknoll. She kept busy: participating on resident committees, exercising several times a week in the Toes class, attending many of the evening events, and playing in multiple bridge groups. She loved seeing and chatting with friends in the dining room and in the halls. For several years, she brought her grandson, Arthur, to Oaknoll weekly so he could swim in the pool. She would invite both grandchildren to lunch when pizza was being served and enjoyed taking the whole family to Sunday Brunch where she could introduce her many friends. As her illnesses progressed, she was less active but still enjoyed living independently with the help and care of the Oaknoll nurses and staff. She was a wonderful wife, mother, grandmother, and friend. She will be missed by all who knew her.