Shirley N. Bunde

Shirley Naomi (Ylvisaker) Bunde, 89, passed away Saturday, October 4, 2025, in Cavalier, ND, at the home of her daughter Cara Olmstead. Memorial service will be held Thursday, October 9, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. at the Trinity Methodist Church, Cavalier, ND. Interment and Celebration of Life will be held in Roseville, Minnesota in the spring.

Creative and curious, Shirley had a relentless passion for composition and color, continually arranging furniture, flowers, tablescapes, and clothing to satisfy her eye. Even the aesthetics of her children’s haircuts were scrutinized. She sewed, knitted, and painted interiors. In her 60s, Shirley took up photography, embarking on nearly 30 years of joyful creating, including a card making enterprise. At age 86, 48 of her photographs were hung on four floors of Applewood Point in Roseville MN where they can still be enjoyed.

Born July 27, 1936, in St Paul, MN to Nils and Ida Ylvisaker, Shirley was the youngest of five, growing up in a lively, music filled home with siblings Mary, Sylvia, Nils (Don) and Betty. Shirley graduated from Moorhead High School in Moorhead, Minnesota in 1954 and earned a degree in Home Economics from the University of Minnesota in 1958. She taught cooking classes and gave gas stove demonstrations on the road for the gas company.

At a church youth group, she met the love of her life, Lawrence “Larry” Bunde Jr. They married in 1959 after which Larry completed studies at Luther Seminary and was ordained a Lutheran minister. The young couple moved to Clam Falls, Wisconsin for his first call, and later returned to Minneapolis where they served 18 years at Bread of Life Lutheran Church for the Deaf, Shirley as church organist.

They raised three children, Cara, Anne, and Nils. Shirley poured her education and energy into home and community life, cultivating life-long friendships. She was practical and fearless with tools, designing the family cabin in the 1970s and once re-shingling the side of the family garage solo while Larry and the children were away.

Shirley is survived by children Cara (Chuck) Olmstead, Anne Ylvisaker (Dan Baldwin), and Nils Bunde (Lindsay Kinkade), grandchildren Luke Olmstead (Kayla), Leah Morrison (Anthony), Maria Ylvisaker, Carey Baldwin, and Darren Scoular-Baldwin (Laura), as well as ten great-grandchildren, sister-in-law Anna Ylvisaker, beloved cousins, nieces and nephews, and many loyal friends.

Quietly generous, Shirley supported individual teachers with donations for classroom supplies, knit hats for homeless men in recovery, and met needs where she saw them. We invite you to remember Shirley with your own acts of quiet generosity. Suggested organizations include Love One Another Now, in Cavalier and Ignatian Spirituality Project in the Twin Cities.

We will remember Shirley with pancakes and lemon pie, with music and conversation, and always with an eye toward beauty.