Shirley Van Drie

No matter where she lived, Shirley Van Drie had an "open-door policy" at her house, daughter Sara Rhoads said. If you needed food or a place to stay, you were welcome.

Niece Carol Albrecht said her Aunt Shirley, along with her sister, Muriel Vander Woude, loved to help people. "If something was happening to somebody, they would bake a pie for them."

Van Drie, a former Columbia resident, died Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010, at Boone Hospital Center. She was 84.

She was born Oct. 23, 1925, in Roseland, Ill., to Walter and Minnie (Maddrom) Boomker.

Shirley Van Drie met her husband Louis through his cousins, who attended her church. The couple married in Roseland on Oct. 25, 1952, and moved to a farm in Ocheyedan, Iowa shortly after. The couple moved again to Rockwell City, Iowa, in 1969 before settling in Columbia in 1977.

Mrs. Van Drie was a Sunday school teacher, and her Christian faith was an important part of her life.

"She was very creative with making Scripture verses so easy to remember," Rhoads said.

Rhoads thanked her mother for "being so goofy" before she died.

"It taught me how to be a good mom," she said.

Mrs. Van Drie embraced the philosophy that anything worth doing is worth doing big, Rhoads said. "If you were throwing a fit, she'd lie down next to you and throw a bigger one... You forgot about yours because she was making a bigger fool of herself."

Mrs. Van Drie taught her children to sing and played the piano by ear. Rhoads said the love of music in her family came from her mother.

In describing her, Rhoads hummed and recited lyrics to the song, "A Handful of Weeds:" "She's the one who told me about Jesus/She's the one who taught me to sing/She deserves an armful of roses/But she's satisfied with an armful of weeds."

Mrs. Van Drie was "creative and fun," Rhoads said. "She loved chocolate. She would vacuum with chocolate chips in her apron."

Albrecht said Mrs. Van Drie "was happy to have Uncle Louie and her children. That meant the most to her. They brought her a lot of joy."

Mrs. Van Drie is survived by her three sons, Louis Van Drie Jr., Lorin Van Drie and Leroy Van Drie; four daughters, Sheryl Van Drie-Goodwin, Sandra Yockey, Shawn Ricketts and Sara Rhoads; 24 grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and two nieces.

Her husband and sister Muriel died earlier.

Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Memorial Funeral Home, 1217 Business Loop 70 West. Services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at the same location. Burial will follow at the adjacent Memorial Park Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to the family in care of Memorial Funeral Home.

Online condolences can be sent to sararhoads@embarqmail.com.