Phyllis Folkertsma

Phyllis Folkertsma was a woman who threw her whole heart into everything she did, and everything she loved. She was passionate about traditions, in keeping old ones and in forming new ones, always with her beloved family by her side. She was a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother, and a friend to so many. Most of all, Phyllis was a woman who enjoyed her life, and enjoyed sharing it with others even more.

Phyllis' story began on a cold winter day in 1923, in the bustling city of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Those were such exciting times in this country, as the Roaring 20s really began to roar, playing to the vibrant sounds of jazz and Big Band music, and Prohibition was the law of the land. The economy was strong, and the airplane and the automobile were becoming a part of daily life, too. There was much to celebrate in 1923, especially for the young couple of Ivan and Margaret (Dost) DeBoer, who welcomed their first daughter on January 28, 1923, a baby girl they named Phyllis Jean.

Phyllis was later joined by her younger sister June in the family's Grand Rapids home. Phyllis attended Grand Rapids Public Schools, first at Stocking Elementary School, before she graduated from Union High School in 1940.

After she graduated from high school, Phyllis found a job working at Michigan Bell Telephone. It wasn't long before she found someone special in her life. One evening Phyllis was set up on a blind date with a wonderful young man named Herman Folkertsma. They began dating and fell in love, though the dark clouds of World War II thundered on the horizon, and it was clear the couple would soon be separated.

So on Christmas Day in 1941, just two weeks after Pearl Harbor was attacked, Phyllis and Herman were married at the parsonage of the West Leonard Christian Reformed Church. Herm left almost immediately to serve in the Navy, and the young bride moved in with her mother.

During his service, Herm was injured after a boiler explosion on his ship in 1944, while the ship was drydocked. Phyllis went to Washington to be with her husband, who was in a coma for six weeks after the accident. He eventually recovered, and was given a medical discharge from the Navy.

The reunited couple then began their married life in earnest, back home in Grand Rapids, where they lived in a few different apartments starting out. It wasn't long before the wife and husband became mother and father, as well, and they celebrated the birth of their first child, son Phil.

Herm's mother moved to Racine, Wisconsin, and invited her son and daughter-in-law and grandson to live in her old home. They happily accepted, and lived downstairs, while Herm's brother Bill and his wife Betty lived upstairs.

That was a good home to the family, and Phyllis and Herm celebrated the birth of two other children, Bob and Sue, while living there. In 1954, the growing family moved into their own home on Crosby NW, where son Dan rounded out the happy family.

Phyllis was a wonderful mother, who loved to dote on her husband and children, and always loved "doing" for them. She was also a fantastic cook, and her daughter Sue especially remembers how the smell of Phyllis' delicious pies would waft through the home every Saturday.

The Folkertsmas did much together as a family, as well, and the kids remember so fondly the family's traditional two-week camping trips to Grand Haven State Park. There they'd pitch their old Army surplus tent, under the same shade tree every summer, close by to where they sold bait to the fishermen along the Grand River channel. Phyllis loved to camp, and especially loved those trips.

In 1972, the family bought a trailer at Hess Lake, near Newaygo, where they formed so many special memories over the next 20 years. They spent those sun-kissed summer days out on the water, riding around in the pontoon boat, playing cards with the neighbors and enjoying the terrific fishing.

Phyllis and Herm sold the trailer in 1992, opting instead for a home on Fruitridge in the Alpine Meadows neighborhood. From 1981 to 1993, the couple also headed south to Florida in the wintertime, where they made so many dear, close friends.

Phyllis loved winters in Florida for much more than the weather, however. She also loved being near Spring Training! She had a lifelong passion for baseball, and especially loved the Atlanta Braves, who trained nearby their home. One of the highlights of her life was going to see the Braves play the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field in 2005. She and her son Dan got to the game early, and talked their way down onto the field, where they even got player autographs!

That was Phyllis, though: when she did something, she threw her whole heart into it. She walked every day for many years, and also enjoyed volunteering at the Christian Rest Home in her spare time. When she moved to the Christian Rest Home in 2001, she became very active, folding clothes, doing ceramics, working in the library, attending cooking classes (not that she needed classes!), and even serving on the welcoming committee! She always loved playing games, too, and made a nightly tradition of playing RummiCube with her friends at the rest home.

Most of all, Phyllis loved her family, especially when her grandkids started arriving. She loved doing things for the grandchildren, making them things and spending time with them. She also never, ever forgot a birthday, either.

Sadly, Phyllis died on Sunday, February 25, 2007, at the age of 84.

Phyllis was a wonderful woman, who put her whole heart into everything she did, and everyone she loved. She was a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother, and a friend to so many over the years. Most of all, she was a woman who lived and loved her life to the fullest, and taught us to do the same. She will be greatly missed.

She is survived by her husband Herman, children Phillip and Nancy Folkertsma of Grand Rapids and their children Rick and Kim Folkertsma and Lori Tuttle; Robert and Kate Folkertsma of Panama City, FL., and their son David Folkertsma; Sue and Rick Visser and their children Tara and Mike Sherd, Tammy and Chris Roberts, Rick Visser; Dan and Sandi Folkertsma and children Casey, Dani and Connor Folkertsma. Also surviving are Nancy Folkertsma and great grandchildren Chelsea, Chaney, Alvin, Taylor, Kyler and Ainsley; her sister June West and her brother-in-law and sisters-in-law Duke and Janet Folkertsma and Betty Folkertsma and numerous nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be held 1PM on Thursday at Heritage Lifestory Funeral Homes-Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake Michigan Dr NW with interment in Washington Park Memorial Gardens. Friends may meet the family on Wednesday from 7-9PM and on Thursday for one hour prior to the service. Memorial contributions may be made to the Christian Rest Home, 1000 Edison NW, 49504 or the Franciscan Life Center Music Program, 11650 Downes St NE, Lowell 49331. To read Phyllis' Life Story, share a favorite memory or sign the guestbook visit www.lifestorynet.com.