Martha (Dorenkamp) WATERMILLER HEYKANTS

HEYKANTS, WATERMILLER, DORENKAMP, PALS, SUNTKEN, LIEBERKNECHT, SUNTKEN, SCHOTT, BOELMAN

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 5/19/2007 at 21:50:44

BELMOND — Martha (Dorenkamp) Heykants, 89, of Belmond, died Monday (Dec. 14, 1998) at Belmond Community Hospital. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Immanuel Reformed Church, Belmond, with the Rev. Robert Ford officiating. Interment will be in Immanuel Reformed Church Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. today at the Tenold Funeral Home, Belmond, and will continue one hour prior to services at the church.

Martha (Dorenkamp) Heykants, the daughter of Jacob and Rosa (Pals) Dorenkamp, was born on Aug. 14, 1909, in Wright County, Iowa. She obtained her education in the Alexander and Meservey schools and graduated from Meservey School in 1926 at the age of 16. Martha also joined the Meservey Reformed Church by confession of faith the same year. She went on to attend State Teachers College in Cedar Falls and taught in rural schools in Cerro Gordo County. On Feb. 5, 1932, Martha was united in marriage to Raymond Watermiller, and in less than one year, she became a widow. She resumed her teaching career. On Feb. 26, 1938, she was united in marriage to Bert Heykants at the Immanuel Church parsonage, rural Belmond. To this union, one son, Ronald, was born. The family lived on a farm north of Alexander for 11 years and they became members of the First Reformed Church in Alexander. In 1949, Bert and Martha bought their farm near Belmond, where they lived and retired. They also became members of Immanuel Reformed Church when they moved to Belmond. Martha was a member of Mission Guild. She taught Sunday school for 31 years and taught catechism and vacation Bible school for a number of years. She enjoyed reading, crocheting and playing cards; and Martha and Bert were able to do much traveling after retirement.

Survivors include her grandchildren, Kristi Heykants of St. Paul, Minn., and Blaine Heykants of Iowa City; five sisters, Nettie Watermiller of Belmond, Ruth Suntken of Meservey, Leona Lieberknecht of Belmond, Marie Schott of Jacksonville, Fla., and Bonnie Boelman of Meservey; one brother, Robert Dorenkamp of Bellflower, Calif.; and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Bert, in 1997; son, Ronald, in 1992; two sisters, Ethel and Luella; and two brothers, Lewis and Lester.