Margie Freestone

Margie Lou Freestone was a woman who enjoyed her family and was always there for her husband and her five children. While she worked outside the home a few times in her life the majority of the years she was a dedicated wife and stay at home mom. She was never to busy to stop and play games with her children and later her grandchildren to listen if something was troubling one of the kids or make sure that spelling was correct before homework was handed in. Margie was a great cook and everyone enjoyed her favorite dish of butter beans and sausage. Margie also liked to spend her time playing cards, dominoes or board games with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. In her later years Margie took up painting and drawing and produced hundreds of fun, colorful and whimsical works of art.

Margie was the youngest of three children born to Martin and Margaret (Tromp) Knapp. Margie was born in Grand Rapids and moved to Holland when she was five along with her Father and Mother and sister Betty and brother Warren.

Both of Margie's parents worked, her father as a printer, and her mother as an office manager at a nearby business. Margie's father died when she was three and Margaret was left to work and raise three children. No doubt, Margaret served as a great role model as a working mom for her daughter, Margie and her siblings.

As a young girl Margie helped her mother with chores and housework but still found time to enjoy roller skating and taking accordion lessons. At times Margie could be seen carrying her accordion while she skated. Quite the site!

Margie attended Holland Public Schools and that is where she met a young man with a really "nice nose". That young man was Marvin Freestone, her husband of 59 years. Once married Marvin and Margie moved to 18 West 17th Street and started a family. Over an 18 year period they had five children; Scott (1947), Linda (1949), Nola (1953), Ken (1956), and Mike (1965). Marvin's first job as they started a family was at Northernwood Furniture Factory. Margie worked part-time at Van's grocery and later, along with Marvin they worked at the Wooden Shoe Factory. Marve and Margie taught their children strong work-ethics by having them work during Tulip Time at the Wooden Shoe Factory and at a souvenir shop they operated in Downtown Holland. Later some of the children traveled with Marve and Margie to festivals around the country, demonstrating Wooden Shoe carving and decorating. Margie also ran the office when Marve served as the director of the Holland Home Builders Association in the early 70's.

With never a dull moment in their lives, and possessing a penchant for adventure, Margie and her husband bought The Ottawa Beach General Store near Ottawa Beach State Park in 1974. They enjoyed running the seasonal store and catering to the needs of their vacationing customers for 15 years. After selling the stores and enjoying their retirement Marge and Marve traveled the country and even worked at Yellowstone , Grand Canyon national parks, Wall Drug in North Dakota and Adventureland in Iowa . Margie enjoyed meeting new people, experiencing new sites and scouting for new places, plants and animals that would be a part of her next painting.

After a life filled with love, infectious laughter and a smile that just wouldn't stop Margie Lou Freestone died Thursday, Feb. 16, 2006, after a brief illness at Florida Hospital Zephyrhills, Florida . She was a member of the Christ Memorial Church in Holland, Michigan . She was preceded in death by her son Spencer Scott Freestone, in 1968, her Sister, Betty Spencer and her Brother, Warren Knapp. Surviving are husband, Marvin Freestone, her children, Dick and Linda (Freestone) Schaftenaar, Nola Freestone, Ken and Lorma Freestone and Mike and Deanne Freestone, nine grand children; Art and Tonya (Schaftenaar) Tolsma; Manny and Aubrey (Freestone) Garcia; Cody Freestone; Brad, Chase, Kray and Anna Freestone; two great-grand children, Nola and Areal Tolsma; in-laws Nancy (Freestone) and Bill Marshall, Dorothy Knapp; several nieces, nephews, and cousins and many loving and devoted friends.

Services will be 1 pm Monday February 20, 2005 at Christ Memorial Reformed Church, 595 Graafschap Rd. , with the Rev. William Boersma and Rev. Robert Nykamp officiating. Burial will be in Pilgrim Home Cemetery . Visitation will be from 2:00 to 4:00 and 7:00 to 9:00 on Sunday February 19, 2006 at Mulder Chapel, 188 W. 32nd St. Holland, MI .

Memorial contributions in lieu of flowers may be made to Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Lansing in honor and memory of her son Scott Spencer Freestone.

Arrangements are by the Mulder Chapel Dykstra Life Story Funeral Home.