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Obituary for Berdean Joyce "Birdie" Dolan
Berdean Joyce “Birdie” Dolan, 73, of West Des Moines, Iowa passed away February 20, 2022, at Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. Visitation will be held from 9:00 to 10:30 A.M. Tuesday, March 1, 2022, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in West Des Moines. A Memorial Mass will follow the visitation at 10:30 A.M. at the church. In Lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to Mercy One Richard Deming Cancer Center and/or Sacred Heart Catholic Church and/or St. Anthony’s Parish in Des Moines. Online condolences may be left at www.johnsonfamilyfuneralhome.com.
Birdie as she was known by her family and friends was born August 1, 1948, to Mervin (Buzz) and Doris (Pringnitz) Groesbeck in Mason City, Iowa. She was raised on the family farm on Klemme, Iowa and graduated from Klemme High School with the class of 1966. Following high school, Birdie went onto Mankato Business College for two years and following moved to Des Moines where she was employed at Northwestern Bell Telephone Company. She was united in marriage to Ronald Dolan on April 18, 1970, in Garner, Iowa and together they became the proud parents of three children, Ron, Renee and Matthew. They had celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary. Following their marriage, Birdie and Ron relocated to Creston, Iowa for 13 years where they owned and operated a Dairy Queen. After the sale of the restaurant, Birdie worked at St. Malachy Schools in food service. In 1991, they made their home in West Des Moines, where Birdie took a position at Sacred Heart School and then continued to Valley West Des Moines High School as an assistant to special needs students. This turned out to be the pride of her career. She also spent countless hours volunteering at the Mercy Cancer Center during her retirement. Birdie was a life-long Iowa State Cyclone fan and St. Louis Cardinals fan, and you could always find her cheering on her favorite Cyclones as a season ticket holder for football and basketball. She also enjoyed playing casino games either at the casino or on her iPad, collecting cardinals, bird watching, blanket making, cross stitching, working with her flowers and spending time with her family and friends.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Mervin and Doris Groesbeck, sister, Linda Groesbeck, In-law’s, Wilbert and Kathleen Dolan, sisters-in-law, Phyllis Young and Mary Kay Mueller and her husband Paul.
Birdie leaves behind to cherish her memory, her beloved husband, Ronald of West Des Moines, Iowa; children, Ron (Karen) Dolan of Des Moines, Iowa, Renee Dolan of East Lansing, Michigan, and Matthew Dolan of West Des Moines, Iowa; grandchildren, Aubreeanna (Kris) Sink, Rylee (Taylor) Dolan, and Noah (Elise) Dolan; 3 great grandchildren; grand-dog, Ginger; siblings, Brad (Linda) Groesbeck and Myrna (Bill) Eisenlauer; brothers-in-law, Steve (Bubba) Dolan, Dan Dolan, and Mike (Jami) Dolan; sister-in-law, Carolyn Dolan and a host of nieces, nephews and friends all of whom will miss her greatly.
