Martha J. Van Hout

Martha Van Hout, age 99, passed away peacefully at her home on Thursday, September 21, 2006. Martha was born in Tagus, North Dakota on June 17, 1907, daughter of the late Theodore and Georgina (Vander Velden) Van Oudenhoven. She moved to Kimberly in 1914 and had resided in the Fox Valley for the rest of her life. Martha married Cornelius J. Van Hout on August 17, 1925 at Holy Name Church in Kimberly; they enjoyed sixty years of marriage before his death in 1986. Along with their daughters Eunice, Frances, and Yvonne, they owned and operated the Van Hout Grocery Stores. She loved to crochet for her family members – they all have keepsakes.

She is survived by two daughters: Eunice Earle of Appleton and Yvonne (Earl) Gregorius of Menasha; ten grandchildren: Jean (George) Baer, Joan Schultz, Sandra (J.C.) Newcombe, David (Vicky) Earle, Tom (Debbie) Swedberg, Dan (Holly) Swedberg, Tammy (Mike) Hansen, Debra Kister, Darla Scherer, Della (Don) Tipler; eighteen great-grandchildren; six great-great-grandchildren; a sister: Frances Boehme of Delavan. Martha was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Cornelius in 1986, a daughter Frances (Kenneth) Swedberg, two sons-in-law Harold Schanke and G. Patrick Earle; eleven brothers and sisters, a granddaughter Dana Scherer, and a great-grandson Ryan Thomas Swedberg.

The funeral liturgy for Martha will be held at 12:00 Noon on Tuesday, September 26, 2006 at HOLY SPIRIT PARISH, 600 E. Kimberly Avenue in Kimberly with Fr. Tom Pomeroy officiating. Interment will be in the parish cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home on Monday from 5:00 PM until 7:00 PM and again at the church on Tuesday from 11:00 AM until the hour of the service. There will be a parish prayer and scripture service at the funeral home at 7:00 PM Monday.

Martha lived a long, blessed life. She was one of a small group of people who could say that she had seen everything from men in covered wagons to men in space.

Jansen Fargo Funeral Home
204 E. Kimberly Avenue
Kimberly, WI 54136
920-788-6202