Gertrude VanDerWerf

Gertrude N. (Oegema) VanDerWerf was loving and kind, gracious and gentle. Her interests were many and her skills were great, as she dedicated herself to her family, church and community. She worked and volunteered, tended to the home and ventured into the outdoors. To the delight of her children and grandchildren, she was spirited and funny, caring and attentive. Gertrude was a faith-filled Christian woman and a faithful wife, mother, grandmother and friend.

Gertrude was born at home in Grand Rapids, Michigan on May 12, 1921. At the time, America was recovering from the First World War and straining to rebuild its economy. By the end of the decade, stock markets fell and countries around the world experienced long years of economic instability. Like others of her generation who survived a financial crisis and a second brutal world war, Gertrude was shaped by the values of simplicity and sacrifice. Her parents, Dirk and Nellie (Wit) Oegema had emigrated from the Netherlands and were raising five children—Sarah, Theodore (Ted), Gertrude, Cornelius (Casey), and Emily—during the harsh years of the Depression. Her father supported the family through his work at a bakery. He sold and delivered baked goods around town, initially by horses and buggy and later, by automobile.

The Oegema family lived at 911 Courtney Street and, at the time, the property included a chicken coop and a barn with a cow. They were faithful members of Seventh Reformed Church. Gertrude attended Pine Street Christian School through the third grade, then Widdicomb School, Harrison Park, and finally, Christian High School, class of 1939. Like many children of her generation, Gertrude went to work to help support her family. In the ninth grade, she got her first job peddling newspapers. After high school, she worked for a family as a nanny, when the mother was hospitalized for nine months. Gertrude helped care for the children, cooked and cleaned for $4.00 a week. Later, when she took a job at Keeler Brass Company in the finishing department, she earned $18.00 a month, half of which she gave to her parents. That’s what children did at such times, but it’s also what Gertrude wanted to do out of the generosity of her heart.

Life changed dramatically in the early 1940s. Gertrude had met Leon VanDerWerf at Seventh Reformed Church, where they both attended Christian Endeavor activities. The two fell in love and were planning to marry, when the United States was plunged into war following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. Anticipating that Leon would be called to duty, the couple moved up their wedding date to January 15, 1942. As newlyweds, they set up housekeeping in an apartment on Bridge Street and had just a few months together before Leon received his notice. On the same day that his draft letter arrived, Gertrude learned that she was going to have a baby. Because Leon was leaving for the Army, she went to live with her parents until later, when she joined Leon in Portland, Maine, at a government military base where they lived for 18 months. Their daughter Karol was born in January of 1943, then Robert in May of 1946 and Jeanne in January of 1951.

The young family first lived on Garfield Avenue, then on VandenBerg Place before they settled on the west side, on Widdicomb Avenue, where they lived from 1954 to 2005. In spite of the moves, the family remained members of the west side Seventh Reformed Church. As wife and mother, Gertrude put her stamp on family life. She raised her children in the Christian faith, modeling a life of humble service, Bible reading, hymn singing (hymns were often playing in her head), holiday celebrations, family meals and more. Dinners, especially meat and potatoes on Sunday, were delicious. Coffee time after church every Sunday usually involved muffins that she made. She made candles, did tole painting, hooked rugs, made soap, and painted pictures, in addition to making regular visits to the library. When the kids were young they spent occasional weekends camping in a tent in northern Michigan. In later years, she volunteered as a tour guide for the historic Voigt House in downtown Grand Rapids. All her activities equipped her for spending time with her grandchildren. She was happy to see them mature and was always proud of their successes.

After Leon retired, he and Gertrude bought a park model home in Claremont, Florida where they wintered for 19 years. Widowed in 2003, Gertrude eventually moved to Edison Manor following some health concerns. She knew many of the residents there, because they had been her neighbors growing up, friends and fellow church members. Later, she moved into Edison Assisted Living Center, and finally nursing care at Christian Rest Home, where she had once been a volunteer. Her health diminishing, Gertrude died on a Sunday at 12:45 PM—the day of the week she had always found rest in God and joy among her loved ones. She will be deeply missed by her loving family and many friends.

Gertrude N. (Oegema) VanDerWerf, aged 93, of Grand Rapids, Michigan went to be with her Lord on September 28, 2014 at Christian Rest Home. She was preceded in death by her husband, Leon VanDerWerf. She is survived by her children, Karol (Donald) Christensen, Robert (Linda Barnes) VanDerWerf, Jeanne (Ken) Wise; 6 grandchildren, 15 great grandchildren and 4 great great grandchildren; her sister, Emily Huzingh; many nieces, nephews and friends. Gertrude was a lifelong member of Seventh Reformed Church, 950 Leonard St. NW, where the service to celebrate her life will be held on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 PM. Burial will be in Washington Park Cemetery. Relatives and friends may meet her family at Heritage Life Story Funeral Home – 851 Leonard St. NW on Friday from 6:00 – 8:00 PM, and at the church on Saturday, from 1:00 PM until the service begins at 2:00. Contributions in her memory are requested to Haiti Orphan Project, Hope Medical Project, 135 West Adams St., Kirkwood, MO, 63122. To read more about Gertrude’s life, to sign her guest book and to leave your own memory of her, visit her web page at www.lifestorynet.com