Bernard “Bernie” L. Oberhauser, 94, of La Porte City, was welcomed into Heaven on Thursday, November 12, 2026. He was born November 9, 1932, at home on the family farm in Black Hawk County, son of Aloysious John “A. J.” and Julia Helen (Becker) Oberhauser, where he was the third or fourth of six children. He attended parochial school in Gilbertville as a child, where the nuns encouraged his impeccable penmanship, and then attended La Porte City High School, graduating in 1950.

Following in the footsteps of his father and many Oberhausers before him, he enlisted in the military, serving in the US Army as a radar operator stateside during the Korean Conflict. It was while he was stationed in Pittsburgh that he met the love of his life, Mary Louise Erb.

He married Mary Lou on November 10, 1956, in Pittsburgh, PA at Most Holy Name Church. Bernie brought his young bride back to Iowa, to the family farm near Gilbertville where the newlyweds made their home. He and Mary Lou farmed for many years, spending countless hours tending crops, making hay, feeding chickens and ducks, and milking their dairy cattle.

Bernie enjoyed life on the farm and shared that joy not only with his own kids, but with his nieces and nephews, welcoming their visits and every opportunity to educate the “city kids.” He was known to wake his children at night to witness the miracle of a baby calf being born, or to pause his work in the fields to take them to see kits at a fox den or a hiding fawn. He taught his kids to drive a tractor when they were 5, but mostly they loved riding along while he worked.

Bernie was a religious man, and he and Mary Lou were members of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in La Porte City. At church, Bernie was a member of Men’s Club, an usher, a lector, and sang in the choir.

Bernie was a friendly guy, quick with a smile or a joke to make folks laugh. He and Mary Lou also enjoyed playing cards with their friends and neighbors. Sometimes it was Pinochle, sometimes Pepper, but always fun, and their kids grew up knowing King’s Corners and Crazy Eights from a young age.

People around town remember Bernie’s sweet corn at the LPC Farmers’ Market, where he and Mary Lou had a table for their fresh-from-the garden produce every week. He and Mary Lou also supervised a concession stand at the UNI-Dome for 15 years, making lifelong friends with the college students who worked with them. (Bernie always said the young men and women working with them kept him and Mary Lou young!) He also worked at Sam’s Club for 15 years, retiring in 2010, where rumor has it he made a deal with his manager that he would keep the forklift batteries charged up in exchange for not having to learn to use the computer.

He is survived by his children, Linda (Dennis) Weidemann of La Porte City, Steven Oberhauser of Eagan (MN), and Ted (Robyn) Oberhauser of La Porte City; two grandsons, Illian and Arden Oberhauser; bonus grandchildren, Thavier Eilander and Caelyn “KK” Schaefer of La Porte City; bonus daughter, Delores Arendt of Apache Junction (AZ); as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

Bernie was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Lou, in July 2017; twin sister Betty Johannsen, and sisters Lilian Taylor and Helen Schweer; and brothers Donald Oberhauser and Henry Oberhauser.

Bernie’s Funeral Mass will be 10:30 AM Thursday, November 19, 2026, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in La Porte City. Burial will follow at Westview Cemetery in La Porte, with military rites by the American Legion LPC USS San Diego. Visitation is from 4-6 PM Wednesday, November 18, 2026, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in La Porte.

Bernie and Mary Lou were lifelong supporters of Catholic Charities; memorials can be directed to Catholic Charities, 1229 Mt. Loretta Ave., Dubuque IA 52003.