Vriezelaar, James A. 1916-2004

VRIEZELAAR, HERWEHE, CLEVENGER, TOOL, BRANNON

Posted By: Barbara Hug
Date: 3/17/2005 at 11:08:48

Newton Daily News, Friday, October 15, 2004

MESA, Ariz. -- James A. Vriezelaar, 88, of Mesa, Ariz., formerly of Monroe, died Oct. 12, 2004, of complications from emphysema in Mesa, Ariz.

Funeral services will be held Monday at 11 a.m. at First Baptist Church in Monroe. The body will be cremated. Burial will be at Silent City Cemetery in Monroe. Walters-Coburn Funeral Home in Monroe is handling arrangements.

A fellowship luncheon will be held for friends and family at the First Baptist Church after the graveside ceremony. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations in his name be made to the Monroe Library Building Fund, c/o Kay Vriezelaar, 2581 Republic Avenue West, Monroe 50170.

The son of Gradus and Nettie (Herwehe) Vriezelaar, he was born April 7, 1916, in Monroe. James graduated from Monroe High School in 1933 and became a skilled auto mechanic in the years following. He was a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, serving from January 1942 to May 1945 in the South Pacific theater with the 394th Bomb squadron, Fifth Bomb Group. At war's end he returned to a job as auto shop foreman and later as an auto salesman in Monroe. He married Carol Clevenger on July 4, 1946. In 1958, they bought an auto dealership in Waverly, which they operated until their retirement in 1981. He and his wife made annual visits to Arizona, settling in Queen Valley in 1984 to enjoy golf, warm winters and the scenic desert. He later moved to Mesa, Ariz., to be near his wife's Alzheimer's assisted-living residence. He suffered from emphysema, so his son Clint moved from New York to live with him in 1999.

He is survived by sons, Clint of Mesa, Ariz., and Kent and Collene of Sioux City; two grandsons; five great-grandchildren; sisters, Kathryn Vriezelaar and Jean Tool, both of Newton; and a brother and sister-in-law, Blaine and Kay of Monroe.

He was preceded in death by his wife; parents; and his sister and son-in-law, Korinne Brannon.