Leona VAN DEN DRIESSCHE

7 APR 1923 - 4 JUL 2015

• BIRTH: 7 APR 1923, Mishawaka, Indiana
• DEATH: 4 JUL 2015, Mishawaka, Indiana

• MARRIAGE: 8 APR 1960, St Bavo Catholic Church, Mishawaka, IN

INDEX

[N12986] Leona "Van" Vande Voorde
April 7, 1923 - July 4, 2015
MISHAWAKA - Leona "Van" Vande Voorde, 92, of Dubuque, Iowa, formerly of Mishawaka, Indiana, died peacefully on Saturday, July 4, 2015, at Stonehill Care Center. Mass will be on Saturday, July 11 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Bavo Catholic Church in Mishawaka with the Rev. Vincent Joseph officiating. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery in Mishawaka. Friends may call Friday, July 10 from 3-7 p.m., with a Wake Prayer Service at 4 p.m., at Hahn Funeral Home in Mishawaka. A Memorial Mass will take place in Dubuque on Saturday, July 25 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Anthony Catholic Church. Friends may call from 8:45 a.m. prior to Mass at the church. Leona was born April 7, 1923, in Mishawaka, the second of four children born to Felix and Pharilde (DePyper) Van Den Driessche. She married Cyriel Vande Voorde at St. Bavo Church in Mishawaka on April 8, 1960. He preceded her in death on May 21, 1983. Leona was proud to be a first generation Belgian American and enjoyed passing on the Flemish language and traditions to her family. She graduated from St. Bavo School (1938) in Mishawaka and St. Joseph Academy (1942) in South Bend, Indiana, and went on to graduate from St. Mary's School of Nursing (1945) in Cairo, Illinois. Leona was a member of the "Greatest Generation" scheduled to serve as an Army nurse when WWII ended. Leona loved her 54-year career as an RN and continued to read medical journals in her quest for learning more about patient care. She served patients in a variety of hospital settings and as an occupational health nurse for 31 years at Studebaker Corporation, Bendix Corporation, Dodge-Reliance Corporation and AM General Hummer Plant in the South Bend-Mishawaka area. She was the first RN EMT in Indiana and a certified CPR instructor. Leona belonged to the Occupational Health Nurses Association and served in various leadership capacities and as Bendix Salaried Retirees Club as 1st Vice President and President. In Dubuque, she was a member of TOPS and enjoyed her special TOPS friends, St. Anthony Catholic Church and its Bible Studies. Leona was a lifelong Notre Dame fan. Leona was a woman of quiet faith, strong character, honesty, and integrity. She was a hard worker and had a delightful sense of humor. She was a devoted mother and grandmother. Leona made a daily difference in the lives of her family and friends and will be dearly missed and fondly remembered. Those left to cherish her memory are her daughter, Suzanne Lansing, son-in-law, Mark C. Lansing, beloved grandson, Michael (fianc‚e Rebecca Kremer) Lansing, all of Dubuque, sister, Elsie Leitner of Osceola, Indiana, sister-in-law, Mary Emma Van Den Driessche of Mishawaka, and several nieces and nephews in Indiana along with the extended Lansing family in Dubuque and dear nursing school friend, Leona Sobczak. Along with her husband, her parents, brothers, Henry and Cyril, sister-in-law, Martha Van Den Driessche, brother-in-law, Frank Leitner, and nephew, James, preceded Leona in death. In lieu of flowers, a Leona Vande Voorde College Nursing Student Scholarship Fund has been established. "You live on in the hearts of everyone you have touched and nurtured while you were here." Morris Schwarz The family wishes to thank Dr. Brian Sullivan and his nurses, Lorilee and Tabitha, Mercy Medical Staff, the Stonehill Care Center Skilled Nursing, OT, and PT Staff, and Hospice of Dubuque for their caring and compassionate care of Leona and her family. To leave the family an online condolence, please visit our website at www.hahnfuneralhomes.com. Published in South Bend Tribune on July 8, 2015