Vander Maten, Willis John 1930-2023

VANDERMATEN, VERMEER, RAAK

Posted By: Marjorie Brunsting (email)
Date: 10/5/2023 at 14:31:51

Mr. Willis Vander Maten, age 93, of Orange City, formerly of Hospers, passed away on Wednesday, September 27, 2023, at the Sanford USD Medical Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

There will be a memorial service on Saturday, October 7, at 11:00am, at the Newkirk Reformed Church in rural Hospers. The Rev. John Benson will officiate. A meal and time of fellowship with the family will follow the service. Interment will take place at the North Lawn Cemetery in Fort Dodge at a later date. The Oolman Funeral Home in Orange City is in charge of arrangements.

Willis John, the son of Andrew J. and Gertrude (Ver Meer) Vander Maten, was born on June 17, 1930, on a farm southwest of Sheldon. He, along with his five sisters, grew up on farms near the Newkirk corner and attended a nearby country school. Willis graduated from the Newkirk High School before attending Northwestern College for two years. While a student, he enjoyed playing on the schools basketball team and singing in the choir. He enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1950 and served primarily overseas until his honorable discharge in 1954.

On August 26, 1955, he was united in marriage to Arnola H. Raak at the First Reformed Church in Hospers. Together they made their home in Sheldon, where they started their family and Willis operated a delivery truck for Wonder Bread. In 1961, he had the opportunity to take over a larger delivery territory that required the family to move to Fort Dodge. He worked for Wonder Bread for a total of nineteen years until accepting a position with Stark Stormor Sales in Fort Dodge, selling grain bins. He later began working in sales for Wick Buildings and retired as a salesman for Wick Homes. After he and Arnola were both retired, they moved to a home in Grand Island, Florida. Arnola passed away on February 25, 2010, in Travares, Florida, after more than 68 years of marriage. Willis later returned to Northwest Iowa and made his home in Hospers until becoming a resident of the Pioneer Memorial Home in Orange City.

Mr. Vander Maten was currently a member of the Newkirk Reformed Church and had previously been a member of the Trinity United Methodist Church in Fort Dodge and of the First United Methodist Church in Tavares. He had also been a member of numerous civic organizations in Fort Dodge, including the American Legion, the Lions Club, and the Elks Club. He enjoyed singing with the church choirs and with the Civic Glee Club in Fort Dodge as well as participating in local theater productions and with the Comedia Musica Players. In his free time, Willis liked to golf and go camping and he looked forward to going on fishing trips to Canada with his friends and family.

He is survived by his four children, Ruth, and her husband, Mark Babbitt, of Fort Dodge; Rachel, and her husband, Russell Bell, of Renwick; Roger Vander Maten, and his companion, Shannon Peterson, of Fort Dodge; and Ryan Vander Maten, of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; seven grandchildren, Christopher (Miranda) Larson, Wendy (Ryan) Frost, Matthew (Colleen) McCurdy, Kelli McCurdy, Tawnie Bell, Logan (Matt) Ponto, and Luke (Audrey) Vander Maten; fourteen great-grandchildren; three sisters, JoAnn Schouten and Edna Kiel, both of Orange City, and Adeline Dolphin, of Hospers; and a very special friend, Lois Rensink, of Hospers; along with numerous nieces and nephews.

In addition to his parents and wife, he was preceded in death by two sisters and their husbands, Alice and Ray Van Dyke, and Greta and Donald Foreman; four brothers-in-law, Melvin Schouten, Raymond Kiel, David De Boer, and Audley Dolphin; as well as a niece and a nephew.

Memorials will be given to the Vander Maten Family for future designation.

Source: Oolman Funeral Home online obituary.