Bernard (Bernie) Wilmes

If you ever had the chance to meet Bernard (Bernie) Wilmes, you’d know how contagious his smile was. He wore many hats and titles throughout his 85 years, but the ones he was most proud of were as a husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and friend.

Bernie was born in Beulah, North Dakota, on May 26, 1939. He was the second of five children. As a young boy, Bernie worked at his father’s gas station. He continued to do various odd jobs until he graduated from high school in 1957. One thing that was never in doubt about Bernie was his hard work ethic, which he carried with him throughout his entire life.

After graduating from high school, Bernie left Beulah and headed to airline school. The airline industry was still in its early stages, but it was clear that it was going to become a major force. Partway through his schooling, Bernie decided to join the Navy. He served from 1962 to 1965 aboard the USS Ajax and USS Guadalupe. After his successful stint in the Navy, he returned to airline school and started his first job with Frontier Airlines. He started in Farmington, NM but eventually Bernie ended up working in Omaha, Nebraska. One evening while working at The North Omaha Airport, a beautiful young woman was singing on stage. Bernie immediately thought, “That’s the girl I’m going to marry.” Luckily, that woman was indeed his future wife, Shirley Murphy.

Bernie and Shirley tied the knot on April 20, 1968, in Omaha, Nebraska. They started a family and welcomed Kent on April 19, 1969, in Omaha. Bernie was working for Frontier Airlines and was transferred to Denver, Colorado, in September 1969. Shirley and Kent followed suit in November. Now living in Colorado, they continued their family. On November 30, 1970, Craig joined the family and they were living in Montbello. They soon moved further East into a new neighborhood named Meadowood in Aurora, where they’d make their family home. On September 13, 1972, Kevin completed their family.

Bernie kept working for Frontier Airlines until early fall 1986 when the company went bankrupt. Shirley went back to the workforce, and Bernie stayed home to raise their three sons. Eventually, he returned to the workforce and worked with United Airlines until his retirement in 1998. After retiring, he couldn’t sit still and started working at Enterprise Car Rentals, where he delivered cars back and forth between locations. His employers always praised him for his reliability.

Bernie moved into Morningstar, a retirement home, in October 2020. He spent his days playing cards with different groups in the building. He was known for helping lead crossword puzzles throughout the day and was considered one of the top crossword players at Morningstar.

Bernie is survived by his son Kent Wilmes and his wife Susi Murphy, son Craig Wilmes and his wife Kristin Wilmes, son Kevin Wilmes, grandchildren Kyle Fritz and her husband Jon Saliman, Hannah Fritz and her husband Nick Dykstra, Jordan Cash and her husband Zac Cash, Maddy Nelson and her husband Keith Nelson, Jake Wilmes, Emily Wilmes, great grandchildren Bethany and Riley Cash and Gabriella and Sophia Nelson, siblings Jerome Wilmes, Deryle Wilmes, and Duane Wilmes. Although Bernie was a friend of many, a very special note of survivorship goes out to Carla Cortis.

Bernie was preceded in his journey to heaven by his parents, Glenn and Margaret Wilmes, his wife Shirley Murphy, his sister Carole Welk, his sister-in-laws Loretta Perchal and Marilyn Schure, his brother-in-law Rick Schure, and his nephew, Cody Kollars.