Leone Vander

Rock Valley, Iowa: Leone Vander Bok, 93, of Rock Valley, Iowa died Saturday, February 15, 2014 at the Dougherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Leone was born April 23, 1920 in Sheldon, Iowa, the daughter of Ralph and Linnie (Stabenow) de Graaf.
A celebration of her life will be 1:30 p.m., Friday, February 21, 2014 at Our Saviors Lutheran Church with Rev. Jim Locke officiating. Burial will follow at the Valley View Cemetery. Visitation with the family will be 6:00-8:00 p.m., Thursday, February 20, 2014 at Porter Funeral Home in Rock Valley. Condolences for the family may be left online at www.porterfuneralhomes.com.
Leone wore many hats throughout her life. She was a loving daughter, her daddy's little angel. She worked in Hollanders dime store as the first candy girl, probably where she developed her notorious love-hate relationship with food. Leone moved to California during WWII where she worked at a defense plant. One of her greatest accomplishments and passions in life was singing, which allowed her the opportunity to attend the Julliard School of Music, however, life and God had other plans in store for her.
After relocating back to Sheldon, Leone became an adoring and loving wife to Adam Vander Bok whom she affectionately called her "ROCK of Gibraltar". They were married on January 16, 1948 and the couple made their home in Rock Valley. Soon after, Leone found herself blessed with the greatest gift she had ever been given, her daughter Linda. Leone and Adam were happily married for 45 years.
Leone enjoyed so many things in life including playing cards with her friends and family, attending Bible Studies, and baking cookies at the senior center. Leone loved spending her winters with Adam in Texas and their summers at the lake house in Iowa. She enjoyed spending time with Linda and her grandchildren, whenever possible. From the age of 5, Leone had a gift for singing and shared this gift with others for many years. She was well known for her radio program "The Sheldon Hour", where she sang requests for devoted listeners. She continued to sing for weddings and funerals as well as many local churches. She also enjoyed her job recording the Rock Valley news on the Sioux Center radio station.
Leone will be remembered for her love of people, her passion for life, and her contagious laughter and sense of humor. She was a woman full of life and if you were to ask her how she was doing she would always smile and respond with "110%! You betcha!"
Leone is survived by her daughter, Linda and her husband Randy Peterson; grandson, Adam and his wife Mary Peterson; granddaughter, Laura Peterson; great-grandson, Douglas Peterson; many nephews and nieces and her second family at Aspen Heights in Hull, Iowa, where Leone lived the last two years.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Adam; one brother Fred Slater and brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Henry (Emma) Vander Bok, Wilbur (Coba) Vander Bok, Robert (Kay) Vander Bok and Tom (Edith) Vanden Bosch.