Marielle C. Bondurant

Marielle passed away quietly on October 27th, 2024 in the care of Central Wyoming Hospice following a Covid infection following surgery for a second broken hip. 

Marielle was born on May Day in 1921, in Versailles, France, to Charles and Mignon Goulon. She was the second child in the family, following her brother, Edouard. Their mother was an American from New York. 

Unfortunately, their father died when Marielle was an infant. Her mother passed away when Marielle was about seven years old. Edouard and Marielle were adopted by their godparents, Dr. and Mrs. Sigwalt. Not long after her mother's death, the Sigwalts sent her brother to boarding schools or to live with other families, so she was denied the comfort of his company other than time spent with Edouard during the summers when they would be reunited in a small town in the south of France, staying often with a Protestant minister and his family. 

Marielle lived through the German occupation of France during World War II. She would tell stories about that time in history and the hardships that the people had to endure until the wonderful arrival of the American Soldiers at the American Liberation. A few years following the end of the war, Marielle left France to come to the United States to live with her American family that she had never known until her American Uncle Gene and his son, Gene, Jr., found her living in Paris after the Liberation. She spent time with her Aunt Marie in New York and with her Uncle Gustave's family in Washington, D.C.

She found work as an au pere for a family in Denver and also taught French in a girls' school there. On a boat trip back to France for her first nephew's christening as his godmother, she met a family from Casper, Wyoming. Their daughter invited her to come and visit them. In 1949, she arrived in Casper then found a job in a department store. Befriended by a co-worker, Babe, she was introduced to Babe's brother, Bob Bondurant, whom she married after a short courtship. 

Marielle and Bob were married for 31 years. She was welcomed into Bob's family and loved her new mother-in-law as a mother figure. Marielle and Bob had three children, Bonnie (Roberta), Bob (Robert) and Rebecca (Becky). Becky passed away at about 11 years of age. 

Marielle was a stay-at-home Mom, taking care of her children and the house until the kids were grown up. She worked for a short time as a part time employee for a neighborhood accountant. After the divorce, she did babysitting in her home for several years. 

Marielle joined the First Presbyterian Church and was a member there for many years. She had a great love for God and Jesus and always lived her life as a good Christian. Her strong faith in God was her foothold that when she died, she would be reunited with her mother. 

Everyone who met Marielle loved her. She had such a beautiful soul and a kind nature. Even though her life was full of hardships, her positive nature always shined through. She loved to sing and she had a beautiful voice. She loved to sing songs in French and could remember all the words to all the verses of a song. Her memory was amazing. She could remember the smallest details from her childhood and beyond. 

Marielle started knitting bedroom slippers to donate to a women's charity while a member of her church. Over the years, she knitted hundreds of slippers. She finally had to quit when the nerve in her finger became too painful to knit. 

Marielle loved cats and had several since the 1980's. She loved to read books and often read novels with cats in the stories. She watched a lot of television while she knitted, her favorite shows being "The Price is Right", "Jeopardy", and every Saturday night she watched old reruns of "The Lawrence Welk Show". 

She always kept her house clean and tidy. Into her late 90's, she would get down on her hands and knees and clean and dust the floor and furniture. She was fortunate that she had good health most of her life. 

Marielle was preceded in death by her parents, daughter Becky, brother Edouard and his wife Odette. She was one of six cousins of her generation, she being the last living cousin. Marielle was preceded in death by her uncles and aunts on her mother's side, plus her ex- husband, Bob, who died 10 months ago in December of 2023 at the age of 102 years. 

Marielle is survived by her daughter, Bonnie; her son, Bob; her four nephews and their families in France; many nieces and nephews and their families in the Bondurant family, and many, many friends. 

Marielle was a very special lady and will be dearly missed by everyone. She was the best mother any child could ever want. She had a good sense of humor and would say, "On my gravestone, put 'She meant well!" 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to your favorite charities, hers being the Casper Humane Society and Central Wyoming Hospice.

A memorial service will be held at 3:00pm, Saturday, November 2, 2024 at Newcomer Casper Chapel. To view the services of Marielle, please visit https://view.oneroomstreaming.com/index.php?data=MTczMDQxNDg2NTMzNDk5MyZvbmVyb29tLWFkbWluJmNvcHlfbGluaw==