Doris M. Muyskens

Doris M. Muyskens, 81, of Mason City, died Tuesday, September 6, 2016 at the Good Shepherd Health Center. Funeral services will be held 10:00 AM Friday, September 9, 2016 at Grace Evangelical Free Church, 440 N. Illinois Avenue with Pastor Scott Davis officiating. Interment will take place at 4:00 PM, West Lawn Cemetery, Orange City, Iowa. Visitation will be from 5:00 to 7:00 PM Thursday at Major Erickson Funeral Home, 111 N. Pennsylvania Avenue and continue at the church one hour prior to services.

Doris Mae June was born the fourth child of Stanley Frank June and Ruth née Kemnitz June on January 22, 1935, on her older sister Donna’s 4th birthday. She grew up in Merrill, Iowa, where she was a member of the Methodist Church. After graduating as valedictorian of her high school class, Doris worked a year in a candy factory in Sioux City before attending Westmar College in Lemars. She travelled with the concert band, playing clarinet, and fell for a handsome basketball player from Newkirk, Ken Muyskens. After both graduated from Westmar in 1955, they accepted teaching positions at Melvin, Iowa. They were married at the Methodist Church in Merrill on August 19, 1955, “the hottest day of the year.”
Doris taught 4th grade for a year before staying home to raise the first of 5 children. Returning to the teaching field after her youngest was in school full-time, she taught in the Kanawha and West Hancock school systems until she retired in 1995.
Besides raising her 5 children, cooking delicious, nutritious meals, sewing clothes, gardening, canning and freezing produce, Doris regularly volunteered for church and community activities. She loved singing in the choir, and continued to do so in whatever senior living facility she was at. She enjoyed family members coming and singing hymns with her right until the end, joining in with all the words of familiar hymns even after she was unable to communicate coherently with speech. She taught and tutored many students in Kanawha. After retirement, one could often find her at the local, historic one-room schoolhouse demonstrating to school children how past generations received their education. Doris and Ken were instrumental in founding a local chapter of Child Evangelism Fellowship and serving on the state board.
After her husband, Kenneth, was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, Doris was a dedicated and faithful caregiver until his death in January of 2013. Doris was received into the arms of Jesus, and rejoined her beloved husband, Ken, on September 6, 2016.

Surviving to cherish her memory are her children Deborah (Ron) Ausborn of Lytton, Iowa; Karla (Dean) Smidt of Kanawha, Iowa; Kent (Kristi) Muyskens of Yale, Iowa; Dennis (Susan) Muyskens of Mason City, Iowa; Kevin (Sandy) Muyskens of Sheldon, Iowa; as well as her 23 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by, two sisters, LaVon (Jack) Holton of Merrill, IA and Beverly (Ray) Behrens of Bensen, MN, brother-in-law Howard Hop and sister-in-law Sharon Vander Schaaf both of Orange City, along with many nieces and nephews.

Preceding her in death along with her parents, Ruth and Stanley June, and husband Ken, were her sister and brother-in-law Donna and Merlin Bock, her brothers and sisters-in-law Wilmer and Katherine June and Marlo and Janice June. Also preceding her were sister-in-law Joyce Hop, and brother-in-law Wayne Vander Schaaf.