Murl Dean Byrd Wunderle

Murl Dean Byrd Wunderle, 84, of Bloomington, Illinois, formerly of Murphysboro and Herrin, Illinois, died at 5:55 pm on Friday, October 1, 2010 at LeRoy Manor Nursing Home in LeRoy, IL. Visitation will be at Crawshaw Funeral Home in Murphysboro, Illinois, on Thursday, October 7, 2010 from 10 to 11am with the service at 11am, Rev. Larry Gilbert of the United Methodist Church in Murphysboro will officiate. Burial will follow at Pleasant Grove Memorial Park near Murphysboro. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society. Murl was born December 19, 1925 in Murphysboro, Illinois, a daughter of Frank and Susie Turner Byrd. She married George E. Wunderle on October 9, 1948, in Murphysboro, Illinois. Murl met George while she was an employee of Doerr's Drug Store in Murphysboro where George was a pharmacist and co-owner of the drug store. They moved to Marysville-Yuba City, California where George was employed as a pharmaceutical salesman for Abbott Laboratories and they lived there ten years. They relocated to Bloomington, Illinois in 1958. Upon George's retirement, they moved to Herrin, Illinois. When George died March 12, 1982, Murl returned to Bloomington, Illinois. She is survived by her daughter, Suzann (Wunderle) Erlenbush; son-in-law, Bill Erlenbush; grandson, Robb Erlenbush, all of Bloomington, Illinois; sister, Faye Cook, Harrisburg, Illinois; sister-in-law, Kathryn Byrd, Murphysboro, Illinois; nieces and nephews, Sherry (Stephen) Butler, Paducah, Kentucky; Frank (Lisa) Byrd, Murphysboro, Illinois; Cashma (Dennis) Garner, Murphysboro, Illinois; and Jane Rathjen, Benton, Illinois. She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband; three brothers, Roy Byrd, R.L. Byrd, and Lloyd Byrd, all of Murphysboro, Illinois; two sisters, Flossie Glasser and Jewell Struck of Murphysboro, Illinois. Mrs. Wunderle worked several years for Roland's Department Store and Jack Lewis Fine Jewelers in Bloomington, Illinois. She was a charter member of the Bloomington Emblem Club #432, a member of Wesley United Methodist Church, Bloomington, Illinois, a past member of the Order of the Eastern Stars in Normal, Illinois, and a past Brownie Troop leader. Murl was a very talented woman who had an eye for fashion and style. She had a strong spirit and will, and accepted her diagnosis with dignity and grace. She was a wonderful mother who dearly loved her daughter, son-in-law and grandson, and they loved her in return. She will be greatly missed by her family. She no longer needs to fear that she will be "the last leaf on the tree."

Murl Dean Byrd Wunderle

December 19, 1925 - October 1, 2010