Joseph Peter DEKEVER

5 APR 1943 - 28 JAN 2022

• BIRTH: 5 APR 1943, Mishawaka, St Joseph, IN
• DEATH: 28 JAN 2022, Mishawaka, St Joseph, IN

• MARRIAGE: 21 AUG 1965, St Casimir Catholic Church South Bend, IN

INDEX

[N31235] Joseph Peter DeKever
April 5, 1943 - January 28, 2022

Joseph Peter DeKever, 78, went home to Jesus on Friday, January 28, at Center for Hospice Care in Mishawaka, surrounded by his loving family.Joe was born in Mishawaka on April 5, 1943, to the late Peter and Elsie (Janssens) DeKever. He grew up at 520 and 523 West Eighth Street in Mishawaka, graduated from St. Bavo School in 1957, and was a proud member of the Mishawaka High School Class of 1961. Joe attended classes at the Indiana University extension in South Bend. In the spring of his senior year of high school, Joe was hired as a teller at Mishawaka Building and Loan, which later became Mishawaka Federal Savings, MFB Financial, and finally Mutual Bank. He served in various capacities at the bank during his 44 years of employment there, including many years as the River Park branch manager, and was a vice president. Joe retired from Mutual Bank in 2005. On August 21, 1965, Joe married the former Mary Ann Markiewicz at St. Casimir Church in South Bend. He always felt strong belonging with Mary Ann’s large extended family and enthusiastically participated in the annual Markiewicz Family Christmas parties from the 1960s until the most recent holiday. Joe liked to point out that he lived his entire life in Mishawaka, except for one month that he and Mary Ann resided in a River Park apartment after they were married. The DeKevers then returned to the West End and later lived on Imus Drive before moving to Linden Avenue in 1979. Joe and Mary Ann have three children, who survive: Peter DeKever, Andrew (Mary) DeKever, and Mary (Frank) Murphy. They also have four surviving grandchildren: Patrick DeKever, Mary Kate Murphy, Theresa Murphy, and Sarah Murphy. A grandson, Francis Murphy, predeceased him. Joe is also survived by his sister-in-law, Margaret (Tom) Vander Heyden; niece, Liz (Adam) Folkerts; nephew, Mike (Molly) Vander Heyden; and grandnephew Graham Folkerts. Joe was a lifelong Catholic and valued his faith. He grew up in St. Bavo parish and later was a member of St. Monica Church and then, for more than 30 years, Queen of Peace Church. Over the years, he served as an usher and a Eucharistic minister and was on the parish board. Joe lived his faith every day and taught his children and grandchildren to do the same. He participated in various church activities that nurtured his faith and was devoted to the pro-life movement. He volunteered for Right to Life, served on its local board of directors, and participated in the March for Life in Washington, D.C. In addition to his family and faith, the other great love of Joe’s life was Mishawaka. Joe was a Mishawaka patriot, fiercely proud of his hometown and its many virtues. He would often contact local businesses and media when he saw errors in their advertising or news coverage about Mishawaka. Joe was elected to the Mishawaka Common Council in a special election in 1978 and was then re-elected to two full terms in 1979 and 1983. He served on the council until 1987, was on the Mishawaka-Penn Public Library board, and volunteered at Pet Refuge. Joe also wrote the popular “Joe’s Jottings” column in the Mishawaka Enterprise from the 1960s until about 1980, wrote a similar column for the Penny Saver for ten years, and then resumed the column for the Enterprise in 2000 and continued there until his death. Joe focused mainly on sports, especially Mishawaka High and Indiana University, but also used the column to comment on other topics that he found interesting and wanted readers to know about. Since 2016, Joe was on the board of directors for the Mishawaka Historical Museum. His countless fundraising phone calls and meetings with donors did so much to advance the museum, which will soon open downtown. Joe was an ardent sports fan and possessed an incredible memory for names of players and details of key games stretching back into the 1950s and 1960s. He was most proud of attending 60 Indianapolis 500 races, the first in 1962 and the last in 2021. Joe also went to eight Summer Olympics and two Winter Olympics, where he witnessed numerous historic moments including the 1980 gold medal hockey game. Joe saw several NCAA finals in basketball, the World Series, the NBA finals, and the Super Bowl. He attended hundreds of Mishawaka High football and basketball games and was thrilled to see the Cavemen win state hampionships in volleyball and wrestling. Joe found these sporting events so enjoyable, in part, because he was able to attend them with Mary Ann and other family members. Joe was a fan of the Indiana Hoosiers, White Sox, Colts, and Pacers.Though Joe bled maroon for Mishawaka High, he learned to wear black and gold and even cheer for Penn. Joe attended all 245 of the Spell Bowl and Academic Super Bowl social studies competitions that Pete coached in, and he was the teams’ biggest fan. Joe was in charge of publicity for Pete’s teams, and virtually every newspaper article and all the TV coverage about those teams for 25 years was the result of his efforts. Recently, Joe again donned his Penn gear to proudly cheer for grandson Patrick on the Penn freshman and junior varsity football teams. Joe also loved to travel. He and Mary Ann visited all 50 states and each continent, including an expedition to Antarctica in 2005. Joe also climbed Pike’s Peak and traveled as far north as Barrow, Alaska, on the Arctic Ocean. Joe was friendly, optimistic, generous, and passionate about many subjects and causes. He was devoted to Mary Ann and a loving father and grandfather. Joe was a unique and extraordinary man. Though his family wishes they could have had more years with Joe, he lived a full and blessed life. Joe checked off many items from a long bucket list, the last of which was to die in his beloved Mishawaka. With the cooperation of Memorial Hospital staff, Joe was transported from South Bend to the Center for Hospice in Mishawaka late Friday afternoon. Knowing that he was home in Mishawaka and would soon be in heaven, Joe passed quickly to his eternal reward and now lives joyfully with his parents and grandson. Joe’s family wishes to thank the staff at Memorial Hospital and at Center for Hospice Care for their expertise and compassion. Visitation will be at Hahn Funeral Home, 505 West Eighth Street in Mishawaka, from 2-8 p.m. on Thursday, February 3. A rosary will be said at 5 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m. on Friday at Queen of Peace Church, 4508 Vistula Road, Mishawaka. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery, Mishawaka. Please make memorial donations in the form of Masses for Joe at Queen of Peace or other Catholic churches or donate to the Mishawaka Historical Museum. To leave an online condolence or to share a memory, please visit www.hahnfuneralhomes.com.
Posted online on January 31, 2022
Published in South Bend Tribune