Margaret de Haas

Wichita, KS: Margaret de Haas, age 98, formerly of Rock Valley, IA died Sunday, Oct. 6, 2013 at the Family Health and Rehabilitation in Wichita, KS. A funeral service will be 10:30 a.m., Friday, October 11, 2013 at the Pioneer United Methodist Church with Rev. Todd Schlitter officiating. Burial will follow at the Valley View Cemetery. Visitation with the family will be 6:00-7:00 p.m. Thursday, October 10, 2013 at Porter Funeral Home in Rock Valley. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.porterfuneralhomes.com. A memorial is established with Pioneer United Methodist Church.

Margaret was born February 26, 1915 in Rock Valley, IA, the daughter of Greta Van Der Poel and Orin Hilton and the step-daughter of John Van Der Poel. She married Edward de Haas on Sept. 5, 1942. They made their home in Rock Valley where Ed was a carpenter. She was a life-long member (she joined at age 11) of the Pioneer United Methodist Church in Rock Valley. Margaret had a great love of music and singing. She sang her first solo in church at the age of 9. Margaret was a member of the church choir and directed the youth choirs for many years and sang for many weddings and funerals. Margaret was very active in her church including organizing the Meals on Wheels for the church for many years.

Margaret also loved to do handicrafts such as cross-stitch, crochet, knitting, and quilting. When she hosted the women's circle meetings, the highlight was getting a little handmade present. Many Christmas trees are filled with her handmade ornaments. Margaret was very generous with both her time and talents. Nothing pleased her more than giving handmade presents to make people happy. She also showed great concern for the less fortunate. She could never walk by a Salvation Army Kettle without putting something in and she spent many hours knitting mittens that she ended up giving to the needy with one year giving over 100 pairs of mittens. In 2009, she moved to Wichita, KS to be near her daughter.

She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Nora and Vernon Strasser, and several half-brothers and sisters. She was preceded in death by her husband, Edward, in 2004.