Madonna Swehla

Madonna Katherine (Goodrich) Swehla, age 85, of Waterloo, IA was called home on Tuesday July 2nd, 2024, at Cedar Valley Hospice Home surrounded by her family. Madonna was born on August 9th, 1938, in Independence, IA, the daughter of Wayne and Helena (Nagel) Goodrich. She married Wilson Edward Swehla on August 31st, 1957, at Immanuel United Presbyterian Church. From this union, they had four children, Mark Edward, Michael Wayne, Scott Charles, and Cynthia Sue. She went on to marry Robert Keith Orton on May 12th, 2005. 

 Madonna graduated from Waterloo West High School in 1956 and maintained friendships with many of her classmates. She worked at Covenant Medical Center for 27 years as an admissions/billing clerk. She spent her retirement years taking care of her grandchildren, participating in many bowling leagues, nurturing her many flower gardens, and was an avid quilter creating beautiful quilts enjoyed by her family. She was always up for a road trip visiting her sons in their various locations throughout her life. She also always enjoyed a competitive game of UNO. Many would describe her as loving, spunky and increasingly comical, especially in her later years. If you saw Madonna, she was most likely wearing purple as it was her favorite color.

 Those left to cherish her memory include her children: Mark Swehla, of Des Moines, Iowa, Michael (Cynthia) Swehla, of Leavenworth, Kansas, Scott (Alice) Swehla of Claremont, California, and Cynthia (Roger) Ciesielski; her special step-daughter: Debbi Teel; her 15 grandchildren: Shannon (Brian) Brown, Chelsea (Ian) Swehla, Kendra (David) Frazier, Sadie (Kellen) Otte, Luke (Rebecca) Swehla, Tessa (Stewart) Swehla, Grace (Michael) Reed, Jacob (Brianna) Swehla, Caleb (Natalie) Swehla, Oliver Swehla, Rose Swehla, Elijah Swehla, Hannah (Justin) Ciesielski, Esther (Matthew) Swehla, and Hailee Ciesielski; her 16 great grandchildren: Ashlyn, Myla, Noah, Gemma, Dominic, Melodi, Lucy, Evelyn, Maisey, Max, Jack, Ash, Ivy, Mera, Benjamin, and Milo ;her sisters: Jacklyn Delagardelle and Waunita (Ronny) Brunscheon; her brother-in-law: Robert Lott and numerous nieces and nephews. 

 She was preceded in death by her first husband, Wilson Swehla (2004); second husband, Robert Orton (2017); parents, Wayne (2003) and Helena (2010) Goodrich; sister, Janice Lott (2018), brother-in-law, Larry Delagardelle (2013), and daughter-in-law, Amber (Susan) Swehla (2017). 

 Visitation for Madonna will be held on Friday, July 5th from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Heartland Vineyard Church, 3211 Titan Trail Drive, Waterloo, Iowa. The funeral service will be held on Saturday, July 6th at 10:00 AM at the church. Cremation will follow the funeral service and a private family inurnment will take place at the Elmwood Cemetery in Waterloo, at a later date. Memorials may be directed to the family. For memories of Madonna and messages of condolence, please visit www.parrottandwoodsfh.com.