The funeral service for Lona Van Deelen, 87, of Avon, IN, formerly of Minneota, will be held on Saturday, April 17, 2021, at 11:00 a.m. at Bergen Lutheran Church in rural Granite Falls. A public walk-through visitation will be Friday from 4:00 until 6:00 p.m. at the Horvath Remembrance Center in Minneota, and will continue one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will follow the service at Bergen Lutheran Cemetery.
Lona Lorraine (Amundson) Van Deelen was born on April 25, 1933, to Martin and Mary (Willman) Amundson, the youngest of 5 children. Lona grew up on the family farm near Ivanhoe. After graduating high school, she met and married Odilo Van Deelen on June 29, 1954, and they lived on his family farm near Minneota, until his death in 2013. They raised their only child, Rosemary, there along with numerous cattle, hogs, gardens, and crops. Later in life, Lona went to work at the Clarkfield Care Center for many years. She was always a happy go lucky person who enjoyed meeting new people and loved animals. She was always on the go and hated sitting still. Lona moved to New Mexico to be near her granddaughter Tessa. She enjoyed the weather and mountain view for a few years before moving to Indiana in 2020 to again be with her granddaughter.
Lona died on Friday, November 6, 2020 at the IU West Hospital in Avon, Indiana. She is survived by her granddaughter Tessa and her husband Randall (Josephson) Kissick of Avon, Indiana; sister-in-law Hazel Amundson; and several nieces, nephews, and close friends over the years. She is preceded in death by her parents, brothers Melvin, Henry, and Bert, sister Juliet, husband Odilo, and daughter Rosemary.
