Tiena (Gelling) Zondervan

Tiena Zondervan passed away peacefully on March 29 after 94 years full of family, friends, farming, fishing, and faith.

Visitation will begin at 10:00 a.m. followed by her funeral service at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 4, at the Raymond Christian Reformed Church in Raymond.  Interment will be at Fairview Cemetery in Raymond.  Arrangements are with the Tri-County Funeral Home in Prinsburg.  www.tricountyfuneral.com

Tiena was born in Colton, South Dakota, on December 29, 1931, to Deddo and Theressa (Reinstra) Gelling. The family moved to a farm near Springfield, SD, where Tiena did all of her schooling. After she graduated from high school, she worked at a store in Perkins, SD and later moved to Luverne, MN and worked at a bank. While working at the bank, she met Henry Zondervan and the two married on June 13, 1961. 

They moved to Raymond, MN where Henry had purchased a farm, and the two of them farmed together until they sold the farm. Tiena enjoyed farm life and was an active partner in the work it entailed. Henry and Tiena approached life with hard work and humor as they raised their five children on the farm. After the children were older, Tiena worked at Willmar Poultry Company for 12 years until 1996. The couple moved from the farm to a home in Raymond in August 1997. 

Never one to shine the light on herself, Tiena worked quietly and tirelessly to support the farm and her family. She had a large garden, and every year filled a cellar with canned fruits and vegetables, and meat. Tiena’s parents ran two bakeries, and Tiena’s children, grandchildren and great grandchildren were the beneficiary of the baking skills she inherited. She was renowned for her cookies, bread, bars, and cinnamon rolls. Eventually she was nicknamed “Grandma candy” for always having a pocket full of candy she shared readily with her grandkids.

A longtime member of Raymond Christian Reformed Church, she always made time for her church community. She participated in Ladies Aid and was a volunteer teacher for a Friendship group for people with disabilities. Always a lover of children, she volunteered for MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) for many years. Over the years she provided homemade food and bars for a great many church activities and Sunday coffee times. She also volunteered at several nonprofit thrift stores until she was in her 90s.

Tiena enjoyed the family’s annual treks to a Minnesota lake, where she spent lots of time fishing, a favorite activity. When her kids were grown and moved around, she loved traveling around the country to visit them. After Henry passed away, she would often hop the train to Oregon to spend time with her children and grandchildren there. She was a hands-on grandma and great grandma, providing countless hours of babysitting and filling their homes with the smell of baked goods.

Tiena was preceded in death by her husband Henry, four of her sisters, and five brothers-in-law. She will be greatly missed by her kids, Doug and Becky Zondervan, Nancy (Zondervan) and Dave Sawtelle, Jean Zondervan and Terry Proctor, Tom and Karen Zondervan, and Betty (Zondervan) and Andy Wallace, as well as her sister Willma Wissink and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Gifts in her honor can be made to Hope Pregnancy Center or the American Heart Association.

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