Wayne Ekdom

WAYNE RICHARD EKDOM was born to John and Hattie (Visser) Ekdom on March 21, 1935 in Hawarden, Iowa. In 1936, he moved to Ireton, Iowa. After graduating from Western Hull Christian High in Hull, Iowa in 1953, he attended Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa for two years. In 1957, he graduated from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. On August 3, 1956, he was united in marriage to Marie De Haan at the Ireton Christian Reformed Church. Following their marriage, they resided in Grand Rapids where he was employed by Old Kent Bank. In 1959, Wayne and Marie moved to Pipestone, Minnesota with their two young daughters. Wayne worked at the insurance department at First National Bank. In 1982, he became self-employed as the owner of Ekdom Insurance Agency. Wayne retired 15 years later in 1997. After struggling with health issues for over ten years, Wayne entered Ashton Nursing Home in November, 2006. He transferred to the Good Samaritan Communities of Pipestone in September, 2010. Even as Wayne’s illness kept him in a wheelchair, he took great pleasure in visits from his family and friends. He was able to enjoy the birth of his great-grandson and smiled with joy when the child was placed on his lap. Wayne passed away surrounded by his family on December 6, 2012 at the age of 77 years, eight months and 15 days.

Wayne was a member of the Pipestone Christian Reformed Church and served as deacon and elder and helped launch the Cadet Program for boys. He enjoyed music and conducted many orchestras in his own living room. He was a servant at heart and used his woodworking and hands-on skills to help others in even simple ways by fixing a screen door or building a needed picnic table or set of steps. He got great joy out of collecting old and unusable bikes, painting and repairing them and giving them away to community children who didn’t have a bike of their own. He was an avid Nascar fan.

He is lovingly remembered by his wife of 56 years, Marie Ekdom of Pipestone, Minnesota; three children, Myra (Michael) Jackson of Ames, Iowa and their three children, Jacob (Abigail), Coleman and Samuel; Linda (Greg) Klein of Pipestone, Minnesota and their two children, Sarah (Adam) Brinkman and Robert; and Steven (DeAnn) Ekdom of Allen, Texas and their three children, Brianne, Bethany and John; and one great-grandson, Dylan Brinkman; and three brothers, Stephen (Geraldine) Ekdom of Orange City, Iowa, Adrian (Irene) Ekdom of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Donald (Christine) Ekdom of Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is preceded in death by his parents.