12/22/2025
Mass of Christian Burial for Celine Ann (Truebenbach) Bartel, age 83, of Muenster was held at 10:30 AM on Monday, December 22, 2025 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Burial followed at Sacred Heart Cemetery. Rosary and Vigil was held at 4:00 PM on Sunday, December 21, 2025 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church.
On February 11, 1942, Andrew (Andy) and Margaret (Stoffels) Truebenbach welcomed a beautiful baby girl with dark curls into the world. Within days, she was lovingly presented to the Lord in Baptism by her father and grandparents, Wenzel and Theresia Truebenbach, and given the name Celine Ann Truebenbach. It was a name that fittingly means “heavenly,” a meaning she would live out through her life and fully reclaim at its end.
Celine was the second of seven children, joining her brother Giles and later welcoming siblings Jane, Clifford, Laurie, Andy (“Andy Boy”), and Allen. As the oldest sister, she earned the affectionate name “Sis,” a title she carried proudly and lovingly for the rest of her life. From a young age, Sis helped care for her siblings alongside her mother, a role she embraced with devotion, generosity, and quiet strength—a devotion that continued until each sibling passed to eternal life.
The Truebenbach family first lived in Myra before moving west of Muenster to family land when Celine was about four years old. That land would remain close to her heart throughout her life.
Celine attended Sacred Heart High School, graduating in 1960. She deeply appreciated her Catholic education, a value she later passed on to her children. Through hard work and sacrifice, she and Walter sent all eight of their children through Sacred Heart School. From 1967 until her youngest child graduated in 2007, there was always a Bartel child attending Sacred Heart. Celine, herself, was a lifelong learner, curious and eager to absorb anything of educational value—back in the day, encyclopedia salesmen always knew to stop at the house on the hill.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, VFW dances brought Pilot Point boys to Muenster. At one of those dances, Celine met a Bartel boy. Though that first date never happened, his younger brother soon stepped in, and a love story began. Celine often spoke of Walter’s caring gestures when she would find wildflowers stuffed in the family mailbox, she knew he had passed through the area on his trucking route. On June 14, 1961, Walter Bartel asked Celine to marry him. On January 6, 1962, surrounded by the Christmas beauty of the new Sacred Heart Church, Celine became Mrs. Walter Bartel, beginning a marriage that would span decades of love, faith, and shared sacrifice. That same church would later host the weddings of all eight of their children.
After their marriage, Walter and Celine lived briefly in Muenster before moving to the Bartel homestead in Pilot Point following the sudden passing of Walter’s father, Frank. There, they helped his mother, Annie, manage the cotton farm. Life on the farm was demanding, and the home lacked modern conveniences, but Celine met the challenge with grit and grace, forming deep bonds with her new family. She stayed connected to her own family through handwritten letters, a testament to her devotion to those she loved.
In October 1962, Celine received the name she cherished most—Mommy—with the birth of their first child, Marceline. As the years passed, her family grew, adding Lorene (1966), Timothy (1967), Terry (1969), Juline (1970), Bernice (1973), Adrienne (1982), and, to her joyful surprise at age 47, Jessica (1989). Her life was filled with babies, laughter, and love across three decades.
In 1971, Walter and Celine purchased a portion of the Truebenbach family land west of Muenster, land that had been in the family for over a century. Together they built a barn first, then a home, moving to their hilltop homestead in 1978. There, Celine poured herself into raising her children—sewing clothes, preparing home-cooked meals, keeping a busy household running smoothly, and making every dollar count. She faithfully drove her children to and from school, practices, and work, all while creating a home filled with warmth and stability.
Celine’s faith was the foundation of her life. She attended Mass faithfully, prayed daily, and taught her children the faith by example—through perseverance, humility, and trust in God. Celine loved the simple joys of life: 1960s country music playing on KGAF, talk radio, Friday nights watching 20/20, summer evenings watching fireflies, and quiet visits with Nanny and PoPo. Celine kept a large garden, where she lovingly grew a variety of vegetables that she canned to nourish her growing family. Her table was always open—anyone who happened to show up on the hill during mealtime was welcome to stay and eat. For decades, Celine lovingly prepared meals each Wednesday and Sunday afternoon, welcoming family, extended family, and friends. Every dish reflected her care, generosity, and the joy she found in bringing people together. Through the years she hosted countless parties and celebrations working to assure all knew they were welcomed in her home. Any holiday, birthday, or celebration was as worthy of one of Mom’s delicious chocolate cakes and a beautifully decorated home—a reflection of the love she poured into everything she did.
Celine was also an amazing baker. After school, the kids were often treated to a snack of fresh-baked bread, a tradition she later shared with her grandchildren as she patiently taught them how to prepare and bake it themselves. A skilled seamstress, Celine created holiday clothes, beautiful baptismal garments and First Communion gowns, each sewn with care and love. As the mother of six daughters in a small town, Celine naturally became an amateur genealogist. Faster than you could say a potential date’s name, Mom would scale the family tree, identify the exact relation, and present airtight documentation explaining why the date was absolutely not going to happen.
She delighted in simple joys—riding the backroads with one of her children, spending time with her bestie, Aunt Pat Truebenbach, and enjoying a strawberry shake. If invited to travel or go anywhere, Mom rarely declined; she was always ready for the next adventure.
As her children grew older, Celine began working and volunteering outside the home. She worked at the Jerrell Petite sewing factory alongside her Aunt Marie and volunteered her time at Sacred Heart in several capacities, including as a cafeteria worker and helping clean the school and rectory.
She embraced a new role as mother-in-law eight times between 1986 and 2014, loving each new addition as her own. Celine’s heart expanded even more when she became Grandma Sissy, a role that brought her immense joy. She welcomed many grandchildren and later great-grandchildren into her life, filling her home with babies, laughter, and unconditional love. Though she endured the heartbreak of losing grandchildren, she carried both joy and sorrow with deep faith and grace.
Celine was a sharp wit, often attributing our family’s sense of humor to the Stoffels side of the family. She loved a good time—especially when it involved everyone. One unforgettable Christmas, she made leopard-print pajamas for the entire family, including all the children and grandchildren. The sons-in-law were particularly surprised to receive their own “special” pajamas.
She delighted in laughter, and if Terry was nearby, he was usually poking, hugging, or teasing her in his lovable way—always to elicit her famous line, “You fool!” delivered with a huge smile on her face. Another of her well-known quips was, “Do you see it hanging off of me?” usually aimed at one of the many children asking for something she simply didn’t have at the moment.
Beautiful inside and out, Celine once mentioned that she liked the color purple. From that moment on, all eight children made sure she received gifts in every shade of purple imaginable—and she graciously accepted every one of them.
In 2021, Celine was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which she faced with strength, determination, and dignity. Again in August of 2025 she was dealt a heavy blow when she received the devastating diagnosis of kidney cancer. Celine met this challenge relying on her faith and her unyielding trust in the Lord. Throughout her illness, she was lovingly cared for by her family and supported by the Muenster community. She received compassionate care from Home Hospice of Grayson, Cooke, and Fannin Counties, for which the family is deeply grateful—especially to Rebecca, Pam, Kelly, and Paul. Her final days were filled with love, prayer, and peace.
On December 18, 2025, Celine was called home to her Heavenly Father, reclaiming her baptismal name—Celine, “heavenly.”
Celine was a devoted wife, a selfless mother, a loving grandmother and great-grandmother, and a woman of deep faith. She had a servant’s heart, quiet strength, and an unwavering commitment to her vocation. She was resourceful, generous, and strong, meeting life’s challenges without complaint. She is deeply loved, profoundly missed, and her legacy lives on in the generations she nurtured, taught, and loved so well.
Celine leaves behind a beautiful legacy of love and family. She is survived by her devoted husband, Walter Bartel, with whom she shared a lifetime of love and faith. She was a proud and loving mother to her children: Marceline and her husband Floyd Felderhoff of Midland; Lorene and her husband Jeff Dudley of Pottsboro; Tim and his wife Staci Bartel; Terry and his fiancée Kelli Ford; Juline and her husband Jason Brogdon, all of Muenster; Bernice and her husband George Spaeth of Gainesville; Adrienne and her husband Matt Bauer of Wichita, Kansas; and Jessica and her husband Bo Crabtree of Henrietta.
Celine’s greatest joy was her family, especially her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who were the light of her life. She is lovingly remembered by her grandchildren and their spouses: Justin and Alison Felderhoff; Chelsea and Drew Gardner; Malyn, Blair, and Tate Dudley; ShyAnn and Chance Rigsby; Dalton and Skyler Bartel; Emily and Brian Fief; Eve Brogdon; Geordan and Matthew Spaeth; Maggie and Seth Bauer; and Kalon Crabtree. Her love continues through her great-grandchildren, Brooks and Lily Gardner; Piper and Harper Rigsby; and Heartly and Lainey Bartel.
Also cherishing her memory are her sister-in-law and best friend, Pat Truebenbach; brother and sister-in-laws Henry and Cecilia Bartel; Lillie Tischler; Dorothy Bartel; Roger Fleitman, George Gould, and Carla Zwinggi along with many dearly loved nieces and nephews.
Celine was joyfully reunited in Heaven with those who went before her, including her parents, Andrew and Margaret Truebenbach; her siblings Giles Truebenbach, Clifford Truebenbach, Jane Fleitman, Laura Gould, Andrew J. Truebenbach, and Allen Truebenbach; her precious triplet grandchildren, Faith Ann, Erin Grace, and Andrew Donald Dudley; and her beloved nephew, Christopher Truebenbach.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made in Celine’s honor to Sacred Heart School or Hospice of Grayson, Cooke, and Fannin Counties P.O. Box 936,Gainesville, TX 76241.
