DeMeulenaere, Margaret

Margaret DeMeulenaere, 98, of Victor, died Sept. 1, 2012, at Kennybrook Village in Grimes, with her family by her side. A funeral mass will be held 10 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 5, at St. Bridget Catholic Church in Victor. Interment will be at Calvary Cemetery in Victor. Visitation will be from 2 until 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the church, where there will be a rosary at 3 p.m. and Scripture service at 7:30 p.m.

Margaret was born May 10, 1914, in rural Hartwick, to Alphonse and Helen LaKose Thys. She attended country school and graduated from St. John's in Victor with the class of 1932. She received her teaching certificate from the State College of Iowa in Cedar Falls.

On Aug. 28, 1935, she married Charles DeMeulenaere at St. Bridget Catholic Church. The couple lived north of Victor until their retirement when they moved into town.

She will be remembered as a woman who welcomed everyone. She loved her family, and her greatest joy was seeing her grandchildren further their education and succeed in life. One of her favorite pastimes was embroidering blankets for her grandchildren. She was known for her wonderful gift of writing to many people with words of encouragement. She was a member of the Marian Study Club, Altar and Rosary, and American Legion Auxiliary.

Margaret is survived by her children, Donna (Bill) Frese of Cedar Rapids, Wayne (Charlene) DeMeulenaere of Hartwick, Roger (Kathy) DeMeulenaere of Victor and Linda (Larry) Fuller of Johnston; 25 grandchildren; 70 great-grandchildren; sisters-in - law, Esther Thys of Belle Plaine and Lorraine DeMeulenaere of Elk Grove Village, Ill.; and many other family members and friends.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles in 1974; her son, Don in 2010; her parents; her brothers, Richard and Leonard Thys; and grandchildren, Peter DeMeulenaere and Lorie Chekal.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Margaret DeMeulenaere Memorial Fund and sent in care of Smith Funeral Home, 808 Fourth St., Victor, IA 52347. The memorials will be donated to organizations of the family's wishes.

Published Sept. 4, 2012 in The Gazette