1930 – Mary Ann Vlieger – 2016
Mary was born January 11, 1930 to John and Anna (De Vries) Van Gelder near Ireton, Iowa. Soon after, they moved to the family farm near Orange City, Iowa. She attended country school and Orange City Christian Grade School and graduated from Newkirk High School in 1948, then worked for a time at her uncle’s jewelry store in Orange City. On June 1, 1950, she married Marvin George Vlieger at the First Christian Reformed Church in Orange City, Iowa. She and Marvin lived near Newkirk, Iowa as their family grew to include five children. Mary and Marv moved to a farm near Chandler, Minnesota in 1965. After Marv retired in 1988, they traveled throughout the U.S. and spent several winters in Riviera, Texas. In the fall of 2000, Mary and Marv moved into a home in Chandler, where they resided as long as they were able. In January 2011, they moved to Care Partners Assisted Living in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Mary Ann passed peacefully from sleep into eternal life on Thursday, September 22, 2016 at the age of 86. Mary was a homemaker, gardening and preserving enough vegetables to last the family through the winter, also canning sliced apples and applesauce from their own trees as well as peaches, pears, apricots, and Bing cherries, all while providing three large meals, two ‘lunches’, and a bedtime snack every day. She was also the one who made sure Sunday School and catechism lessons were done and Bible verses were memorized.
Mary is survived by four sons: Steven (Verla), Mitchell, SD, Thomas, Rapid City, SD, Jan (Mary), Windom, MN, and David, Minneapolis, MN, and one daughter Kristin Wilbur, Eau Claire, WI; 14 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren; two brothers: Randall, Orange City, IA and Ken, Ireton, IA; two sisters-in-law: Carol Van Gelder, Orange City, IA, and Margene (Ralph) Reeder, Annapolis, MD; one brother-in-law Frank (Ula) Calsbeek, and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parentsJohn and Anna Van Gelder; her parents-in-law Tom and Jennie Vlieger; four sisters: Jennie (Marion) Schalekamp, Margaret (John) Reinders, Johanna Hofland, and Agnes Van Gelder; and three brothers: George (Frances), Charles William, and Gerrit John; one niece Mary Wissink; sisters-in-law: Bertha Van Gelder, Henrietta Van Gelder, Helen (Martin) Vlaming, and Luella Calsbeek; and brother-in-law, Lester Vlieger.
Funeral services wre held at the Chandler Reformed Church Chandler, MN at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, September 26, 2016 with Rev. Nathan Huisman officiating. The organist was Leona Hoek. The soloist was Ann Brouwer. The pallbearers were her grandchildren. Interment at West Lawn Cemetery Orange City, IA. The Totzke Funeral Home in Slayton assisted the family with arrangements. Send condolences online at www.totzkefuneralhome.com.
