Obituary for Ric Bowman | December 1, 2024

It is with love and deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Ric Garde Bowman, 70, of Idaho Falls. He departed this world on the evening of December 1, 2024, surrounded by his wife, five children, son-in-law and three of his eldest grandchildren at Intermountain Health LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. After a long and courageous battle, cancer finally won. He gave it his all and fought so hard. He wanted a miracle. In the end, the miracle came in the form of freedom from the pain and suffering of this life.

Ric was the oldest of five loving siblings, born May 25, 1954 to Garde and Beverly Bowman in Idaho Falls, Idaho. He attended Bonneville High School and served a mission to Tulsa, Oklahoma, for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

He was an Idaho boy, he loved growing up and raising his family in Idaho Falls where he camped, shot guns, picked blueberries and rode dirt bikes on mountain trails with his sons. He loved to maintain and beautify his yard and garden and would spend all day in the garden saying, “I make an effort,” a true labor of love that he created and left for us. One of his favorite pastimes was preparing Dutch oven dinners in a fire pit in the woods behind his property, his little slice of heaven. Ric could fix, build and do anything, he built his home where he lived for the last 26 years with his attention to detail and perfectionism.

During his mission, he met his future lover: Robyn Zimmerman, the daughter of parents who regularly provided food for the missionaries. They later reunited when Robyn attended Ricks College and were married on June 10, 1977 at the Idaho Falls Temple. Together they welcomed five children into the world: Rachel Bowman (Las Vegas), Requel (Eric), Lewis (St. George) and Josh (Lindsay) Bowman (North Carolina), Jarom (Erica) Bowman (Tennessee) and Jordan (Megan ) Bowman (Idaho Falls).

In his quiet way, he loved his family deeply and found comfort in providing, protecting, and preparing them. He was a man of few words, the strong and steadfast type. He was a devoted member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and we will remember his example of faith and service.

He has worked at INL for the last 30+ years. He loved his eternal companion and was most concerned about her when he left. We’ll take good care of her while he’s gone.

He was so proud of all of his children and was often heard bragging about their successes and what they did next. He was a grandpa to 15 grandchildren (Aaliyah, Bella, Lyla, Beau, Lucy, Olive, Penelope, Harrison, Ava, Beatrix, Fae, Silas, Charley, Taggart and Quinn). They called him “Papa” and will forever remember the brief, formative time they spent with him. His legacy lives on with each of them. His yellow lab, Ali, will miss sitting next to him on the couch, watching reruns of “Little House on the Prairie,” playing ball, and spending time with him in the yard.

On the other side, he was greeted by his parents, Garde and Beverly Bowman; in law: Francis (Bud) Zimmerman and Loretta Zimmerman; grandparents; his black Labrador, Porkchop; and probably many others.

Dad, we love you. Saying goodbye was the hardest thing we’ve ever had to do. Take care and stay close to us, but have fun on your next adventure! Don’t prepare too much and enjoy the rest of your brave work. We will think of you every day until we meet again.

A special thank you to everyone who helped, supported and loved us during this difficult time. We will offer an intimate family service at a later date.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Ric Garde Bowman, please visit our flower shop.