Leona Harmsen

Leona Arlene Harmsen was born December 5, 1926 in Sanborn, Iowa, the daughter of John and Alice (DeVries) Van Veldhuizen. She graduated from Newkirk High School and from Westmar College in LeMars, Iowa receiving her teaching degree. Leona was united in marriage to Peter Harmsen on June 18, 1946 in Sheldon, Iowa. The couple moved to Worthington, Minnesota in 1972 and then to Arnolds Park in 1993. She taught at three different country schools and worked at Johnson Jewelry in Worthington from 1972-1981. She enjoyed golfing, sewing, gardening and loved to cook. She did demo presentations for Metz Baking Company and Wells Blue Bunny for several years. She was a member of the First Reformed Church in Sheldon, Bethel Reformed Church in Sheldon, Westminster Presbyterian Church in Worthington and the First Presbyterian Church in Spirit Lake, Iowa. Leona passed away November 2, 2008 at Lakes Regional Healthcare in Spirit Lake, Iowa at eighty-one years of age. She is survived by her husband, Peter; son and daughter-in-law, Brad and Jill Harmsen and their children, Michael and Megan; daughter and son-in-law, Barb and Doug Johnson and their children, Katie and Paul Johnson. Leona was preceded in death by her parents, John and Alice Van Veldhuizen.