Bernardine Vander Ploeg

Bernardine J. "Berna" Vander Ploeg was an honest and devoted mother, grandmother and friend. Her life was not marked by glitz or glamour, but instead a stable and fulfilled commitment to the true bounties in life.

The year was 1930 and America was in peril. The gilded age of the 1920s had melted away into a sour oppressive era known as the Great Depression. The fires of the Industrial Revolution had consumed all of their fuel and merely finding food to eat challenged many Americans. Into this turbulent time came Berna, along with her twin brother Bernard, born on a cool spring morning on April 25, 1930.

Berna and Bernard had a very happy childhood despite the financial turmoil surrounding them. Her parents were extremely skilled in managing money and passed this skill down to their children. They lived in the quiet town of Martin Michigan, a town from which Berna would seldom stray.

Berna learned to appreciate the importance of family early, as her parents brought the children up in a very close environment. She had excellent parents and because of this, stayed away from trouble and grew up well mannered and even-keeled. Berna never liked to be separated from her family for very long. She always stayed close to home, even into adult life. She attended the high school in Martin, Michigan, where she excelled at basketball. She was a good student, and liked to sew in her free time. She always had a very tight circle of friends, few in number, but immensely strong and loyal to each other.

One of these friends introduced Berna to a shy young man named Alvin Vander Ploeg. The two met on a blind date one night and the Berna was smitten. She used to wait for long periods of time on her porch waiting for Alvin to cruise by. She was often frustrated when he didn't stop, but when he finally did she became elated. She graduated high school in 1949 and they married a year later, on June 25th, 1951. The young couple settled down in Martin and began a family. They had two children, named Renae and Bernie. Berna worked at the local grocery store for several years to help support her family. Later in life she worked for the Upjohn Company. She always loved to garden and cook with the fresh vegetables she grew. Her children - and everyone else for that matter - loved the wonderful dishes she would create, and her cooking gained a strong and positive reputation. Besides cooking, Berna and Alvin liked to spend the humid summer evenings catching fish from their pontoon boat on Gunn Lake. After the children had grown and left, Alvin and Berna spent many hours doing the things they loved the most. Berna soon discovered the joys of being a grandmother, a role that she relished. She always worked hard to instill in her children and grandchildren the importance of family. To this end she was without a doubt a success. Her fun and caring personality lit up the lives of those around her.

Berna died Thursday, June 12th, 2003 at Borgess Medical Center. She is survived by her husband of 51 years, Alvin; her children Renae and Rick Levett, Bernie and Lori Vander Ploeg, both of Plainwell; her twin brother Bernard and June DeForest of Martin; 4 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren.

The family will receive friends on Monday from 2-4 and 6-8 PM at the Rupert, Durham, Marshall & Gren Funeral Homes, Plainwell Chapel. A Celebration Of Life Service will commence Tuesday at 1:00 PM.

To read Berna's complete life story, share a memory, send flowers, or make a memorial contribution to the Michigan Heart Association, please visit her personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com.

She was a caring, benevolent woman who relished the closeness of family more than any material possession. The warmth of her smile and her unending love will be missed by all that knew her.