Mark W. Baumgartel

Funeral services for Mark W. Baumgartel, age 85, of Battle Creek, Nebraska, will be 10:30 a.m. Monday, December 2, 2024, at St. John Lutheran Church in Battle Creek, with a lunch reception to follow at noon in the Parish Hall. The Reverend Dr. Brian Saunders will preach and The Reverend Joseph Leech will officiate the ceremony. 

Visitation will be from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Sunday, December 1, 2024, at the church. 

All are welcome to attend and celebrate Mr. B’s life. 

The funeral service will be livestreamed on the funeral home website. 

Steffen Mortuary in Battle Creek is in charge of arrangements.

Mark William Baumgartel, fondly known by many as “Mr. B or “Senior B.” has died, following a brief illness, at St. Joseph’s Rehabilitation and Care Center in Norfolk, Nebraska on November 26, 2024, at the age of 85, with family at his side.

Mark was born on December 28, 1938, in Le Mars, Iowa to William and Ada Baumgartel. He graduated from Paullina High School in 1957. He then attended Concordia Teachers College in Seward, Nebraska, from which he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Education in 1961, returning to complete his Master’s degree in 1971 with an emphasis in Physical Education. Halfway through his bachelor’s program, he married the love and partner of his life, Helen Yvonne Proehl, on December 27, 1959, at Christ’s Lutheran Church in Columbus, Nebraska—in a snowstorm—and they remained together until his death almost 65 years later.

Mr. B. took his first full-time teaching position in Rising City, Nebraska, followed by roles as teacher and principal in Crown, Minnesota; Redding, California; Battle Creek, Nebraska; and Waltz, Michigan. He stepped down from an administrative role in 1993 to focus on full-time teaching. He served for two years in Northville, Michigan, followed by a year in Sandy, Utah while Helen remained in her nursing position in Michigan, and then returned to complete his final full-time teaching position in Dearborn, Michigan for the 1996-97 school year. He loved his work in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, whether teaching, coaching, leading, or supporting worship.

A life-long learner and teacher, in retirement Mr. B. held positions at car dealerships and a grocery store, and in his final years focused his energy to support the physical and mental health of others. He cherished the opportunity to be a trusted mentor to his youngest son, Jonathan “Mr. B.” Baumgartel, who followed in his footsteps as a Lutheran teacher.

All who met him were struck by his energy. When Mr. B. talked to you, he leaned in, made direct eye contact, and listened. He loved to talk, and his wife Helen has said that he loved the spotlight, while she preferred to be quiet and watch from the wings. Mark had a “need for speed,” whether driving a peppy car—such as his infamous 1965 Chevelle—or strapping on his bright-colored running shoes and running. And let us be clear: he did not jog. He sprinted! His running career was derailed as a child because of a heart murmur he developed from a serious bout of scarlet fever, but he still found every chance he could to let those legs go as fast as they could. While at 85 he was no longer able to take off in a full sprint at the drop of a hat, he was still popping off his morning pushups until the day he became ill.

As a child, his mother had concluded that he could not learn to be a musician because he couldn’t read music. While in college, however, it was discovered that he had an amazing ear for music and learned to play organ brilliantly by listening, playing, correcting, then playing again until he knew it from the inside out. Watching and listening to him play the organ, with his whole body and mind in attention to the music, was an amazing gift. In his later years, when he could no longer hear as well, he had to hang up his organ shoes, but he loved listening to music to the end.

Mark, with Helen, had an active presence at St. John’s Lutheran Church and School in Battle Creek and in the surrounding community. They loved to go and visit at the Battle Creek Community Pride Center, bringing news and energy to those who could not get out and about as much.

Mark’s family gathered to be with him during his illness and hospice. He was able to express his faith and hope that while sometimes people forget that God is always present, he was not afraid of what comes next, and most importantly he was able to hear and speak back words of love and assurance. Saying goodbye was hard and holy work, and it was a gift to be present, observe, and witness his final days as he turned from this world towards the next.

Mark is survived by his wife of nearly 65 years, Helen (Proehl) Baumgartel; his sons, Jeffrey (wife Linda) and Jonathan (wife Jill); his daughter, Ann Fleming; his eight grandchildren: Max, Samuel, Kaleb, Micah, Faith, and Ava Baumgartel and Connor and Peyton Fleming; his brother, Marvin Baumgartel (wife Shirley); sister, Sylvia Liedke (husband Larry).

He was preceded in death by his parents, Willam (1949, Le Mars, IA) and Ada (Schultz) Baumgartel (1994, Ridgecrest, CA).

Please send donations to the St. John Lutheran School P.E. Fund (102 W. Martin Street, Battle Creek, NE 68715).

Condolences may be expressed to the family online at www.homeforfuneralsinc.com.

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