Esther De Roon

ROCK VALLEY, IOWA ~ Esther De Roon, 88, of Rock Valley, passed away on Monday, March 10, 2025, at Whispering Heights in Rock Valley.

Funeral Service will be 10:00 a.m. Friday, March 14, 2025, at Calvin Christian Reformed Church in Rock Valley, with Rev. Matthew Haan officiating. Burial will follow at Valley View Cemetery, then a luncheon will be held at First Christian Reformed Church in Rock Valley. Visitation with the family will be from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Porter Funeral Home in Rock Valley. Condolences may be sent to www.porterfuneralhomes.com. The Funeral Service will be livestreamed on the Calvin CRC website at www.calvincrcrv.org.

Esther De Roon was born October 9, 1936, near Rock Valley, Iowa, the daughter of Manus and Etta (Anema) De Jong. She lived on a farm near Rock Valley until she was 9 years old and then moved to a farm near Doon, Iowa. Her favorite subject in school was Spelling because it was easy for her. In her youth, her favorite song was “Jesus Loves Me” and her favorite games were Ring Around The Rosy and Jump Rope. Her family endured hard and cold winters, as Esther helped with gathering cobs for the stove and doing chores in the house.

Esther married Clarence De Roon on August 28, 1956, at Doon. They had met in Rock Valley while going to catechism on Thursday nights. Together they farmed west of Rock Valley where they raised their 5 children. She helped on the farm and canned a lot of food such as meat and vegetables. She also made her own butter. After their children were raised, Esther worked at Hope Haven and River Valley School. She was an active member of the First Chistian Reformed Church where she attended Ruth Circle and memorized many scriptures. She enjoyed baking and preparing food for her family and loved attending her children's and grandchildren’s activities. Esther enjoyed her flowers and gardening, and her plants always seemed happy to thrive under her care. What Esther would most want to be remembered by is that she loved her grandkids and treasured them very much. The two things that influenced the way Esther lived her life were living a good Christian life and having good Christian parents.

Esther is survived by her husband, Clarence; 5 children, Lynette (Dale) Bonnema of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Douglas De Roon of Beresford, South Dakota, Daniel (Arline) De Roon of Harrisburg, South Dakota, David (Pam) De Roon of Rock Valley, and Derrick De Roon of Tampa, Florida; 10 grandchildren; 8 great-grandchildren; siblings, Evelyn Vis, Marilyn Doiron, and Corky (Jan) De Jong; sisters-in-law, Eileen De Jong and Carolyn De Jong; and also numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family.

Esther was preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Fred, Kenneth, Arnold, Manuel, Herman, and Charlie; brother-in-law, Henry Vis; sister-in-law, Jean De Jong; in-laws, Wayne and Jennie Van Wyhe and Rodney Tilstra; niece, Marcia De Jong; and nephews, Michael De Jong, Randy Tilstra, and Terry Tilstra.