Obituary Record

Mandy Jo Rounds
Died on 2/16/2019

None

#1-Published in the Pilot-Tribune February 19, 2019

Mandy Jo Rounds, age 40 of Omaha, passed away Feb. 16, 2019, in Omaha. Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019, at First Lutheran Church in Blair. A luncheon will follow at the Blair American Legion. Visitation will be held Wednesday with family receiving friends from 5 to 8 p.m. at Campbell Aman Funeral Home in Blair.

Mandy was born on March 20, 1978, in Blair. She was raised in Blair and graduated from Blair High School in 1996. After high school she attended college at Pikes Peak Community College. Mandy always had a deep love of animals and after her college education she worked at the zoo in Colorado Springs and then began a career working for PETCO. For the last couple of years, Mandy owned and operated her own pet care and training business in Omaha, MJ’s Dog Training and Pet Care.

Mandy is survived by her parents, Steve and Kristi Rounds of Blair; grandmother, Sharlene Kuhr of Blair; aunt and uncle, Phil and Shelly Mruz of Omaha; aunt, Mary Christiansen of Omaha; her cousins, Bryan, Jon, Ashley (Brandon) and Nick (Whitney); along with many extended family members and close friends, including Tory Loudner and her very special dog, Nuggie.

She was preceded in death by her grandfather, Don Kuhr.

Memorials may be directed to the family for later designation to animal charities.

#2-Published in the Omaha World Herald February 19, 2019

Rounds, Mandy Jo March 20, 1978 - February 16, 2019 Survived by her parents, Steve and Kristi Rounds of Blair; grandmother, Sharlene Kuhr of Blair; aunt and uncle, Phil and Shelly Mruz of Omaha; aunt, Mary Christiansen of Omaha; her cousins, Bryan, Jon, Ashley (Brandon) and Nick (Whitney); along with many extended family members and close friends, including Tory Loudner; and her very special dog, Nuggie. She was preceded in death by her grandfather, Don Kuhr. MEMORIAL SERVICE: 11am Thursday at First Lutheran Church in Blair. A luncheon will follow at the Blair American Legion. VISITATION: Wednesday with family receiving friends from 5-8pm, at Campbell Aman Funeral Home in Blair. Campbell Aman Funeral Home 444 South 17th Street, Blair, NE (402) 426-2191 www.campbellaman.com

#3 Funeral Leaflet

(photos)

"Most of all, smile! I'm at a good place"

In Loving Memory of Mandy Jo Rounds

Born March 20, 1978 Blair, Nebraska; Entered Into Rest February 16,2019 Omaha, Nebraska

Memorial Service 11:00 AM Thursday, February 21, 2019 First Lutheran Church, Blair, Nebraska. Officiating: Pastor Scott Grimshaw; Musical Selections: “If I’d Only Known”, “Heaven Was Needing A Hero”, “Amazing Grace”

Honorary Pallbearers: Bryan Theilen, John Theilen, Ashley Nore, Nick Chapman, Tory Loudner

#4-Printed in the Enterprise Friday, March 18, 2022

By Cheyenne Alexis - features@enterprisepub.com

Mandy Rounds was known for her love of animals.

"She would bring stray animals home all the time," said Kristi Rounds, Mandy's mother.

Mandy continued her passion for animals by attending college in Colorado to become a zookeeper; working at Petco for 15 years, eventually becoming a dog trainer; working at the Henry Doorly Zoo; and starting her business, MJ's Pet Services Inc., in 2017.

Following Mandy's death in 2019, Kristi and her husband, Steve, honored their daughter by starting the Mandy Jo Rounds Memorial Foundation in order to raise funds for a dog park in Blair.

The first fundraiser will take place Sunday, which is also Mandy's 44th birthday, at the American Legion in Blair from noon to 4 p.m.

The fundraiser will have a silent auction with donated items, raffles, lunch and a split-the-pot.

Kristi said she and her husband "knew right away" that they wanted to honor Mandy's name after she passed away.

"But the grief took a toll on me the first year — I couldn't even look at photos of her without breaking down," she said. "The loss of a child no matter what age is something no mother should have to go through. "The last part of year two of her being gone, I was talking to a friend of hers and after that conversation about different memorial ideas is when I decided what it was we needed to do."

The idea of a dog park came to Kristi and Steve's mind, since Blair does not have a public space for dogs to run freely.

"The park would be a great place that dogs can exercise and socialize in a safe environment," Kristi said. "There will be dog control laws that the public will need to follow, of course."

Along with raising funds for the dog park, Kristi said the foundation will also start a scholarship in Mandy's name, which will go to a Blair High School student attending school in the animal field.

Kristi said there will also be a golf tournament at River Wilds Golf Club on July 17 and a trivia night later in 2022.

"We want to continue to raise money," she said, adding that a website for the foundation is also in the works.

Besides raising money in her daughter's name, Kristi said she's looking forward to honoring her daughter's life.

"Starting this has helped me get through the grief of losing her," she said. "Steve and I have both lived in Blair our whole lives, and giving back to the community has always been in our blood.

"I am just so excited to get this moving forward and continue this for many years to come. When Steve and I aren't here anymore, I have an awesome board that will continue to raise money for the foundation."

Campbell-Aman Funeral Home

~~~ Obituaries and funeral leaflet courtesy of the Nebraska Washington County Genealogical Society. News clippings and leaflets on file in the Blair, Nebraska Public Library~~~

Printed in the Washington County Pilot-Tribune on 2/19/2019


[BACK]