Henry J. De Groot

Henry J. DeGroot died Easter Sunday, March 27, in the Sioux Center Community Hospital. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, April 1, 2005, at Covenant Christian Reformed Church in Sioux Center, Iowa. Graveside services will be held at Hills of Rest Cemetery in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, at 3 p.m. April 1. Visitation in will be between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday, March 31, at Memorial Funeral Home in Sioux Center, with the family present between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Henry was born on September 7, 1916, in Orange City, Iowa. He was the youngest son of John and Clara (Haarsma) DeGroot who immigrated to Northwest Iowa from Friesland, a northern province of The Netherlands, in the 1890s. Henry graduated from Northwestern Academy and Jr. College in Orange City and Nettletons Business College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. As a young man, he worked as an accountant in Sioux Falls. He married Arnolda Ruys of Sioux Falls in September, 1941, and nine months later entered the U.S. Army. He served as a special agent in Army Counter Intelligence in the European theater of World War II for 3 years.

Henry and Arnolda had four children between 1950 and 1958: two sons born in Ft. Dodge, Iowa (one died in infancy); and two daughters born in Sioux Falls. In 1959, Henry left his position as a partner with Sioux Falls Petroleum Company and enrolled in Sioux Falls College as an undergraduate. After earning his B.S. degree, he attended the University of South Dakota, where he earned the Universitys first Masters Degree in Business Administration. He became a Certified Public Accountant in 1962.

Henry was a full-time teacher in the business administration department at Sioux Falls College between 1961 and 1969. During this time he was a leader on the first school boards that started what has become the Sioux Falls Christian Schools system. In 1969 he joined Dordt College and started Dordts Business Education and Business Administration department. He retired from Dordt in 1982. In retirement, Henry and Arnolda lived for three years in Park Forest, Illinois, and spent time with children in Tucson, Arizona; Smithers, British Columbia; and Edina Minnesota. Henry remained an active member of the Covenant Christian Reformed Church in Sioux Center. He was an avid fan of Dordt College basketball teams.

Those who knew Henry recall his deep commitment to his family and his church, his patient and compassionate nature, his organizational skills and his willingness to see the best in everyone.

Henry is survived by three children with their families: David and Dr. Irene DeGroot of Grandville, Michigan, Ruth and Lewis Marshall of Edina, Minnesota, and Janna and Ron Van Driel of Smithers, British Columbia; eight grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and sister-in-law, Reona Reinsma, of Woodland Park, Colorado.

Henry was preceded in death by his wife of 62 years, Arnolda, who passed away on Thanksgiving, 2003; one infant son, Calvin; three brothers, Peter, Leonard and Dick; and a sister-in-law, Alicelouise Duffy.