Wally Groeneweg

Wallace "Wally" Groeneweg, 77, of Sioux Center, Iowa, formerly of Sheldon, Iowa, died Friday, March 25, 2011 at the Sioux Center Community Hospital. Visitation will be held Thursday from 4-8PM, with the family present from 5-7PM at Memorial Funeral Home of Sioux Center. A prayer service for family and friends will be held Friday at 9:45AM at First Reformed Church of Sioux Center. Interment will follow the prayer service in Memory Gardens Cemetery of Sioux Center. A memorial service will be held Friday at 10:30AM at First Reformed Church of Sioux Center with Rev. Bob Holtrop officiating. The Groeneweg family prefers memorials be directed to Sioux Center Home Health & Hospice or Sioux Center Christian School. Condolences may be sent at www.MFHonline.com. Wallace (Wally) Groeneweg was born September 18, 1933 to Walter and Jessamine (Van Sloten) Groeneweg in Hull, Iowa. He graduated from Hull Western Christian High School. Wally served in the United States Army from August 1954 through June of 1956. He was stationed in Denver and Bordeaux, France; he was trained as a medic. Following his honorable discharge, Wally worked for his father's manufacturing company in Hull. On Valentines Day of 1958, Wally married Carol Bomgaars at the Free Grace Reformed Church of Middleburg, Iowa. After their marriage the couple lived in Hull until 1963, when they moved to Ames, Iowa where Wally graduated from Iowa State University. Wally and Carol settled in Sheldon, Iowa where Wally was a farm loan officer for Metropolitan Life Insurance Company for two years. In 1969, he began working at Citizens State Bank of Sheldon; he later became the Senior Vice President of the bank in 1987. Wally retired in 1999 and the couple moved to Sioux Center in 2004. Wally served as a board member at Citizens State Bank from the time of his retirement until his illness. Wally was a member of Bethel Reformed Church of Sheldon and served as an elder and deacon. He also enjoyed teaching Sunday School and being a youth leader. Wally and Carol spent 11 years wintering in Mesa, Arizona where they attended New Hope Reformed Church. More recently he was a member of First Reformed Church of Sioux Center. In his free time, Wally enjoyed traveling to his children in Washington and California, and attending his children's and grandchildren's activities. Wally played golf, card games and enjoyed other activities with friends. He enjoyed volunteer work on various projects in the community. Wally is survived by his wife, Carol Groeneweg of Sioux Center; three children: Brian (Cindy) Groeneweg of Sioux Center, Mark (Lisa) Groeneweg of Lynden, Washington and Troy (Melanie) Groeneweg of Valencia, California; nine grandchildren: Jason (Danielle) Groeneweg, Brittany (Dan) Foreman, Raelle (Brent) Van Maanen, Matthew Groeneweg, Craig Groeneweg, Kaitlen Groeneweg, Megan Groeneweg, Kari Groeneweg, Robbie Groeneweg; four great-grandchildren; two brothers: William (Lorraine) Groeneweg of Orange City and Verlyn Groeneweg of Sioux Center and a sister-in-law, Joyce Groeneweg of Sioux Center. Also left to cherish his memory are members of the Bomgaars family: Jan (Ken) Mc Murray of Marion, Iowa, Linda Eastlick of Spirit Lake, Iowa, Colleen Bomgaars of Sioux Center and Paula Krumm of Sunnyvale, California as well as numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Jessamine Groeneweg; brother, Ron Groeneweg; parents-in-law, John and Jenn Bomgaars and brother-in-law, Dave Bomgaars.