Jeanette Top, 94, Hills, died Monday, June 24, 2019, at the Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage in Luverne.
A funeral service was Saturday, June 29, at the Christian Reformed Church in Luverne. Burial followed at the Christian Reformed Cemetery in Hills.
Jeanette VanDerWeerd was born on Nov. 22, 1924, to John and Maggie (Buyert) VanDerWeerd in Steen. She grew up in the Steen and Lester, Iowa, area and attended country school through the eighth grade. The oldest of six children, she worked on the family farm. When she was 17 years old, her father died and Jeanette and her siblings took on a large role in running the farming operation. In addition, she also worked at the Hills Creamery and as a telephone operator.
On Nov. 10, 1948, Jeanette married Bernie Top at the Steen Reformed Church in Steen. The couple raised their family and farmed near Edgerton and Valley Springs, South Dakota, until 1969 when they settled on a farm near Luverne. Jeanette worked part time for many years as a certified nurses’ aide. She was employed at area nursing homes and at the Luverne Community Hospital in the newborn nursery. She very much loved caring for the babies. In 1997 she formally retired.
Jeanette enjoyed music and she and her siblings played at area nursing homes and other small venues. In 2012 she and Bernie moved into the Tuff Village in Hills. Bernie died on May 26, 2015. In March 2019, Jeanette moved into the Tuff Memorial Home in Hills.
Jeanette received her baptism in January 1925 at the Steen Reformed Church. She was currently a member of the Christian Reformed Church in Luverne. She loved music and playing the piano, which she was doing until the last few months. She was a talented seamstress. She presented a handmade quilt to each one of her grandchildren. She was hard-working and devoted to her family and her faith.
Jeanette is survived by five children, Brenda (Glenn) Schaap of Sioux City, Iowa, Marlon Top of Steen, Terry Top of Schererville, Indiana, Brian (Gloria) Top of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Nancy (Drew) Schelhaas of Sioux Falls; 13 grandchildren; 29 great-grandchildren; five siblings, Henry (Dorothy) VanDerWeerd and Wilma DeRoo, all of Brandon, Henrietta Timmer and Edna Jongerius of Sioux Falls, and Mae (Jerry) Tinklenberg of Palo Alto, California; and two sisters-in-law, Joan Fransman of Hills, and Rena Top of Milaca.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Bernie, and her parents.
Memorials may be directed to the Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage.
Arrangements were provided by Hartquist Funeral Home in Luverne, www.hartquistfuneral.com.
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