Mary E. Wienandt, 68 of Rainier, WA, died August 5, 2016 at Easthaven Villa in Yelm, WA. She had been hospitalized from July 5-August 4, 2016 at Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, WA. She had been battling colo-rectal cancer since August 2012.
She was born on January 12, 1948 in Saginaw, MI, the youngest of seven children of Walter F. and Ruth D. Eggert. She graduated from high school in Fremont, NE in 1966. She attended Concordia College, St. Paul, MN for two years and graduated from Concordia College, River Forest, IL in 1970.
She married Arthur J. Wienandt on August 2, 1970 in Monroeville, IN. The couple had met at Concordia College, St. Paul, MN. They moved to the St. Louis, MO area where she taught in a Lutheran parochial school for two years. Her husband was attending Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO.
After her husband graduated from Seminary, the couple moved to Mississippi where she taught in several local public school systems. While in MS, she earned a Masters Degree in Music Education from the University of Mississippi. The couple’s two sons were born in Mississippi; Nathan was born in 1978 and Michael was born in 1980.
In November 1987, her husband entered Active Duty as an Army Chaplain at Ft. Stewart, GA. She taught in the Hinesville, GA public school system for several years. Subsequently, the couple was stationed in Italy; Ft. Riley, KS; Schofield Barracks, HI; Ft. Polk, LA; and finally Ft. Lewis, WA. At these various Army posts, she often served as a church organist/musician and/or a choir director. Her husband retired from Active Duty on July 31, 2007.
She lived with her husband in Rainier, WA from July 2005 until her death. She is survived by her immediate family: her husband Art of Rainier, WA; her older son MAJ Nathan A. Wienandt of Silver Spring, MD; and her younger son Michael J Wienandt of Oxford, MS. She is also survived by her six older siblings: Carol Kearns of Alexandria, VA; Anita Werling of Macomb, IL; Joanne Swenson of Mishawaka, IN; Dr. David Eggert of Jackson, MI; James Eggert of St. Joseph, MI; and John Eggert of St. Paul, MN.
Memorials can be sent to the Fisher House at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Fisher Houses at military installations offer free lodging to family members who are visiting their military member who is receiving medical care at the installation. The address is:
JBLM Fisher House
9999 Wilson Ave
Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA 98433
Burial will be in the Sunrise Cemetery in Manhattan, KS.
