Garnet Nekvinda

Garnet M. Nekvinda, 95, died Friday, July 16, 2021 at Friendship Haven in Fort Dodge, Iowa. A private family service will be 10:30 AM Tuesday, July 20, 2021 at Laufersweiler Funeral Home. Burial will follow in Elkhorn Township Cemetery. Those left behind to cherish her memory are her son Mike Nekvinda (Hope Hughett) and daughter Kathy Tinker of Fort Dodge; Three granddaughters Jennifer (Mike) Moore, Blacklick, Ohio; Michelle (Geoff) Miller, Fort Dodge, Iowa; Abby Tinker (Sean Garner), North Liberty, Iowa, two great-grandsons Michael Miller and Matthew Miller; and many nieces, nephews and extended family near Emily, Minnesota. Garnet was preceded in death by her parents James F. and Eunice Russell; sisters Eunice Carr, Ruth Carlton, Letty Prigge and infant sister Maude Russell; brothers Paul Russell and John Russell. Garnet M. Russell was born September 12, 1925 in Perry, Iowa. The family moved to several different towns in Iowa before finally settling in Fort Dodge, where she attended Fort Dodge schools and graduated in 1944. She married Frank (Nick) Nekvinda August 4, 1945 and they made their home in Fort Dodge for many years. During this time Garnet enjoyed being a homemaker and mother to Mike and Kathy. Nick's jobs eventually took them to DeKalb, Illinois and Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. They later divorced, and Garnet went to live in Emily, Minnesota, where many of her relatives had settled. She worked at the local Christian school as a teacher's aide and enjoyed the friendships of the students. In 2009, Garnet moved back to Fort Dodge to be near her family and created new friendships where she lived at the Northridge Apartments. Garnet loved to bake, and everyone enjoyed her baking. Many of the odds and ends projects done around her home in Emily were paid for with bags of cookies or loaves of her homemade bread. She was a skilled knitter and taught many family members to knit over the years. She made beautiful sweaters and vests for family, and was especially proud of the 90+ knitted teddy bears with outfits that she made and gave away. Garnet loved playing card games, and looked forward to playing cards with the ladies in her building at Northridge. Another favorite pastime was working large piece jigsaw puzzles; she felt especially proud when she was able to fit a few pieces in the regular size jigsaw puzzle in the common room downstairs. During her short stay at Friendship Haven, Garnet developed rapport with the nurses and staff who helped her each day, which included but was not limited to figuring out what she could eat from the day's menu. She was starting to enjoy participating in the scheduled activities with other residents, and was playing Bingo with them two days before her passing. Our family wishes to express their gratitude to the nurses and staff at Friendship Haven for their loving care and compassion, and to the Hospice nurses and staff who came to see her there, who were so kind to keep us informed after every time they saw her. Memorials may be left to the discretion of the family.