Vayle Hathaway Bunker

Vayle H. Bunker, age 92 of Cambridge, died at the Cambridge Memorial Hospital on Wednesday, June 11, 2014. He was born in Dover, MN to Wilbert E. and Catherine M. (Busswick) Bunker on November 19, 1921. Vayle, while in high school in MN drove the bus to get kids to school.

Vayle joined the US Army Air Corp in 1942 and was trained as an airplane and engine mechanic. He served in the American theatre. He was stationed around the United States and finally stationed at the McCook Airbase. It was there he met a young girl from Arapahoe by the name of Juanita Melton. The couple married on January 19, 1946 in Ft Worth, Texas. Vayle and Juanita moved to Madison, WI, where he used his GI Bill to attend a body and fender repair school.

He had many jobs from selling Mason shoes door to door, worked for Hormels Car Dealer. Vayle and Juanita moved to Culbertson where he and Dick Propp opened the Culbertson Auto body Repair Shop and ran it for over 30 years. Vayle retired in 1994. He and his wife enjoyed Flea Marketing for over 20 years. He was always going into Thrift stores and garage sales to find many treasures. Even on recent trips with family and friends he still stopped to look. Vayle was a member of the Good Sam Club, traveling and camping all over the US. He enjoyed travelling, taking his daughter on trips to Alaska, Amish Tours that he planned and last month enjoyed a trip to the Panama Canal.

Vayle was a member of the American Legion of Culbertson, participating in many of the organizations function, especially the Honor Guard.

Vayle was preceded in death by his parents; wife Juanita on November 3, 2011; 2 brothers: Alro and Gilbert; son-in-law Robert Sandman; sister-in-laws Lillian Melton Carolyn Melton. He is survived by his daughter: Linda Sandman; 1 granddaughter B.J. and husband Greg Puttergill of Tryon, NE; 2 great grandchildren: Duell and Tayler Puttergill both of Tryon; 2 brother-in-laws: Roy and James Melton; and a special friends: the family of Patricia Sayer and Richard Sensil of Culbertson.

Memorial services are scheduled for Tuesday, June 17, 2014 at 2:00 PM at the Lockenour-Jones Mortuary in Cambridge with Rev. Jeff Donelan officiating. Inurnment will be in the Fairview Cemetery of Cambridge. Friends may leave on-line condolences at lockenour.com. Memorials may be left in Vayles name to the Wounded Warrior Project.