Helen Vander Ploeg

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who honors the Lord should be praised. Give her credit for all she does. She deserves the respect of everyone (Proverbs 31:30-31). In her lifetime, Helen Vander Ploeg was a dedicated and loving wife, a caring mother and grandmother, and a faithful servant of God. With kindness and grace, she served her family, her community, and her congregation, filling all of her days with what brought her the most joy. But as blessed as her life was on this earth, she always knew that her true reward would come in death when she would go on to spend eternity with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The year was 1916 and already the city of Chicago, Illinois was a bustling metropolis. The streets were thriving with merchants and vendors, the magnificent skyline was bursting with skyscraper after skyscraper, and good fortune was truly alive and well for the citizens of Chicago. But no one knew that more than Peter Groenewold and his wife Agnes (De Groot) who lived on a farm outside of the city of Chicago. Already blessed with four children, as Christmas approached that year they were expecting their fifth to arrive any day. At last, on December 7th the couple proudly welcomed a baby daughter they named Helen.

It wasn't long before young Helen found herself sandwiched right between four older siblings and four younger siblings. And even though she wasn't the oldest child, she definitely had her share of responsibilities at home. During the depression Helen's family moved from the farm to the city so that her father could drive a garbage truck to pay the bills. On Sunday's the whole family would take a break to go to church at First Christian Reformed Church of Chicago. Helen also attended Ebenezer Christian School through the eighth grade, before leaving to take care of her brothers and sisters full time when their mother became ill. While much of Helen's free time was spent tending to her siblings and home, she also had a gift for music and learned to play both the piano and harmonica by ear.

As her siblings got older and required less of her time, Helen took a job at Sears in downtown Chicago. For many years she worked at the department store, bringing every bit of her paycheck home to help support her family. In the early 1950's, she met and married a man by the name of John S. Vander Ploeg. At that time she left the Windy City for Holland, Michigan. At 51 years old, John was 16 years her senior. They met through mutual friends and started dating. There was certainly no denying the love they felt for one another.

The couple's first and only home they ever shared was at 340 Columbia Ave., on the corner of 14th St., not far from downtown Holland. John worked at the Home Furnace Company of Holland, while Helen made some extra money cleaning houses in the area. In 1953 they welcomed their first child, Mary Ann, followed just two years later by a second daughter, Alice Joanne. As a young family they took many trips to Chicago to visit Helen's relatives still living there. John had a heart condition, which prevented him from driving, so Helen was always behind the wheel whenever the family traveled. She enjoyed the trips though and never minded doing all of the driving.

If you knew Helen, then you probably also knew that she had two loves in her life, God and family, and she wholeheartedly committed herself to both. She was a faithful member at 9th Street Christian Reformed Church, later known as Pillar Christian Reformed Church, and attended services there each week with her family. After Church, she would make a big Sunday Dinner, complete with the best green beans, potatoes and pot roast you had ever tasted. Her Lemon Pie was John's absolute favorite treat, so every Saturday she would always make one to have for dessert on Sunday. After dinner each person got one piece, which left one remaining piece for everyone to have on Monday.

Apart from attending services, Helen was also a member of several volunteer groups and ladies' organizations at Pillar Christian Reformed Church. She had a strong desire to serve her congregation, her community, and most of all, God, in any and every way she could. Missions were very important to Helen. She faithfully attended Missionary Union Meetings, gave generously and wrote regularly to the missionaries her church supported. At home, Helen always preferred reading or writing over watching television. In fact, she didn't even own a television until 1973. Instead, she read the newspaper everyday and never skipped a single word in the church's magazine, "The Banner." She also enjoyed writing to her sister Betty, her friends and any sick members of her church.

In 1990, Helen's beloved husband John went into a nursing home and passed away nine months later. That same year, Helen sold the couple's home on Columbia Ave. where they had lived for so many years and moved into a Condo with her daughter Alice, who was still living at home. Just days before Thanksgiving in 2006, Helen was told she had a brain tumor. She remained in her home with Alice until she entered Hospice of Holland, where after twenty-four hours, she passed away. Although her family and friends will miss her dearly, they can find joy in their memories, comfort in their faith, and peace knowing that she has gone to dwell in the house of the Lord for all eternity.

Helen Vander Ploeg, age 90, of Holland, MI. died Friday February 2, 2007 at Hospice House of Holland. She was preceded in death by her Husband John S. Vander Ploeg in 1990. Her family includes: daughters Mary Ann and Steven Nienhuis of Zeeland, and Alice Vander Ploeg of Holland, 5 grandchildren; Jonathan, Jennifer, Andy (Michele), Jim, Bob all Nienhuis; sister Jennie and Peter Post of Alsip Ill; Brother Frank and Bernice Groenewold Crete ILL, in-laws Genevieve and Clair De Mull of Holland, Dr. Jerry Bulthuis of Holland, several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Services will be held at 11 am on Tuesday at Pillar Christian Reformed Church of Holland, MI. with Rev. Chris De Vos and Rev. Dick Stravers officiating. Burial will be in Pilgrim Home Cemetery. Visiting will be from 2-4 and 7-9 pm on Monday at the Mulder Chapel, Dykstra Life Story Funeral Home, 188 West 32nd Street. Memorials may be made to Hospice of Holland. Please visit Helen's personal memory page at www.lifestorynet.com for further information and an online registry.