Yolanda Serae (Crawley) Price

Yolanda Serae (Crawley) Price

Yolanda Serae, the first child of Eleanor and Louis Crawley, was born on April 27, 1957, at the Guthrie County Hospital in Guthrie Center, Iowa. She lived with her parents in Wichita, Iowa until they moved to Omaha, NE, when she was three. Her father called her “Lonnie” from the day she was born.

Lonnie attended Omaha Public Schools until May of 1971 when she moved to Bayard, Iowa, to live with her grandparents, Loyd and Edith Crawley. She graduated from Bayard High School in 1975 and was a member of the Bayard Rainbow Assembly.

She married Ronald Lauridsen in 1975 and they made their home in Audubon, Iowa, as well as operated Ron’s Auto Body until their divorce in 1990. Ron and Lonnie had two daughters: Laura Lee and Angela Kaye. She was named outstanding Jaycee Ette Rookie President in class AA in June 1979 and served as District Director. Lonnie was installed as Worthy Matron of the Audubon Chapter Order of the Eastern Star on January 2, 1983.

On June 29, 1991, Lonnie married Benjamin Franklin Price Jr. in the historic Methodist Church in Bellevue, NE. On the day they met, Ben told his best friend, “I met the woman I am going to marry.” Lonnie and Ben made their home in Bellevue.  Lonnie worked as a settlement clerk for AGP Grain Cooperative from 1991-1994 and then began a career as an Import Buyer for Marianna Industries in 1995.  She enjoyed her career immensely and traveled extensively overseas to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and China. Lonnie was able to meet some wonderful people and saw fantastic sights in her travels.

Lonnie was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in January of 2002 and stopped working in October of 2003. Since her “early retirement” (as she called it) Lonnie found a wealth of creativity in herself and enjoyed making quilts, handbags and clothing, jewelry with her daughter Laura Lee, as well as spending time working on her family history and cookbook.

Lonnie and Ben purchased Ben’s parents home in Bellevue and they enjoyed time spent together remodeling and landscaping. Ben and Lonnie enjoy their family pets: Dauber, Rosie, Ozzie, Dusty and Max and they are all in heaven with her now.  Elli and Sandy are still here, taking care of Ben. Lonnie’s family is and will always be her strength and her “best work.” She vowed to keep her family close and impart on them to always put the love of family first.

She was a woman of unwavering faith in God and courage in life. She was a woman of dignity and integrity with her eyes fixed on living a “with God kind of life.” She fiercely loved, comforted, guided and shielded her children and others in her circle of influence. She leveraged every stitch of her pain, past trials and brokenness to walk forward in wholeness.

Lonnie died peacefully, surrounded by family, and in the loving arms of her daughters and husband on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022.

She is preceded in death by her loving parents, Louis Crawley and Eleanor Hansen.

She is survived by her husband of 31 years, Ben: daughters Laura Lee Lauridsen (Billy Moore) and Angela Kaye Lauridsen; grandson Morgan Loyd Hines and brother, Louis Dale Crawley. She is also survived by her uncle, Larry (Joyce) Crawley and aunt, Luann (Jack) Waldo; other relatives and many friends.

The family would like to express their sincere appreciation for the wealth of friends and family who have shown their sympathy and encouragement through this difficult time. All your thoughts, prayers and acts of kindness mean so much to us.

Visitation:  Sunday, November 6, 5:00-7:00 p.m., Bellevue Memorial Chapel

Funeral Service:  Monday, November 7, 10:30 a.m., Bellevue Memorial Chapel

To view video of the service, click the link below:

https://boxcast.tv/view/yolanda-s-price-rmrn0oycozj35afzyqwt

Interment:  Monday, November 7, 2:00 p.m., Omaha National Cemetery

Memorials suggested to the Grief Support Network /  www.griefsupportnet.org