Bonneetah E. Coulter passed away at her home near Texline, Texas on Tuesday, March 4, 2014 at the age of 101.
Funeral services will be held at 1:00 PM MDT on Friday, March 14, 2014 at the Clayton Seventh-day Adventist Church, 401 Harding Street with her son-in-law; Elder Edward Motschiedler officiating. Burial will follow in the Texline Cemetery by Hass Funeral Directors of Clayton, New Mexico.
Bonneetah Elizabeth Coulter was born on October 4, 1912 in Lodi, California to Henry Weishaar and Columbia (McFarland) Weishaar Larsen. She married Chalres Valmore “Bill” Coulter on December 31, 1936 at Abbott, NM. At the age of ten, she moved from California to the Hooker, OK area to live with her father and an uncle and aunt. In her early teens she was in charge of feeding the large wheat harvest crews. The family moved to the Farley, NM area during the late 20’s. After graduating from Wheatland High School, it was her great desire to become a teacher. She was able to attend Southwestern Junior College, Keene, TX for one year, but because of the Great Depression of the early 30’s was forced to give up her dream.
After her marriage in 1936, she and her husband farmed and ranched west of Farley, NM. She told many stories of the Dust Bowl days: of using a scoop shovel to remove the dirt out of the house after the dust storms, of the green patches of thistles that sprouted in the flanks of the starving cattle. Stacks had been made of the thistles to provide something for the cattle to eat. As the cattle ate at the stacks, thistle seeds had lodged in the dirt in their flanks and sprouted after a light rain. In 1952 she and Bill moved to an irrigated farm east of Texline, TX. After her husband’s death in 1998, Bonneetah maintained the farming and ranch operation with the assistance of her son Ron.
A lifelong Seventh-day Adventist, she and her husband were instrumental in establishing the Clayton Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1949. She served the church in many capacities; teaching adult and children’s classes, pianist for services, & membership clerk. She was church treasurer for many years until her 100th birthday. For ten years she was a member of the Texico Conference Executive Committee which provides oversight and direction for Seventh-day Adventist churches in New Mexico and West Texas. A self-taught pianist, she gave piano lessons to many students in the Texline area.
Leadership in the community included six years as secretary and twenty years as president of the Texline VFW Auxiliary. She was also president of the Texline PTA for two terms. She loved to read and filled her home with books. Every year she read the Bible through and committed to memory the entire books of Romans and Matthew, along with several shorter books and many single chapters and verses. She also memorized paragraphs from favorite books on the life of Christ.
In her younger years she had a garden and preserved large quantities of fruits and vegetables. Trees and flowers that she planted beautified her yard. Her interests included taking painting lessons in both oil and pastels. Many people recall her beautiful handwriting which she maintained until after her 100th birthday. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband in 1998, one son; Charles in 1964 and two brothers; Alvin Weishaar and Alan Larsen.
SURVIVORS:
2 DAUGHTERS: Valeetah Motschiedler and her husband Edward of Riverside, California and Janeece Jung and her husband Robert of Redlands, California.
2 SONS: Ron W. Coulter and his wife Pamela and Lloyd V. Coulter and his wife Neta all of Texline, Texas.
10 GRANDCHILDREN: Rhonda Sukumaran and her husband Raj of Whitby, Ontario, Canada, Kevin Motschiedler and his wife Susan of Salt Lake City, Utah, Krista Brand and her husband Jeffrey of Riverside, California, Joellen Coulter of Denver, Colorado, Tasha Schellenberg and her husband Henry of Geary, Oklahoma, Clint Coulter and his wife Tasha and Jeffrey Coulter and his wife Jennifer all of Texline, Texas, Travis Coulter and his wife Liz of Spokane, Washington, Bryan Jung and his wife Beatrice of Chico, California and Natalie Jung of Redlands, California.
11 GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN: Coulter and Maya Sukumaran of Whitby, Ontario, Canada, LaraLiz and Trent Schellenberg of Geary, Oklahoma, Karenna and Nadia Brand of Riverside, California, Conrad and Sylvie Coulter of Spokane, Washington, Finnegan Motschiedler of Salt Lake City, Utah and Caleb and Ethan Coulter of Texline, Texas.
And several nieces and nephews
MEMORIALS: The family suggests that memorials be made to the Clayton Seventh-day Adventist Church or to the Texline Cemetery Association.
