Bonita Louise Vander Tuig

Bonita Vander Tuig, 90, of San Jose, California, passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 10, 2023 at Belmont Village Senior Living in San Jose. She died after a brief illness, with her children by her side. An internment service was held for the immediate family on June 19th at Los Gatos Memorial Park.

Bonnie was born to Warner and Johanna (Van Duren) Vande Voort in Oskaloosa, Iowa, and grew up with her sister on a farm just outside of Pella, Iowa, a small Dutch farming community. The family later moved into town, and Bonnie graduated from Pella High School in 1949. She would remember Pella and "The 49ers" with great fondness all her life. In 1954 she married George Vander Tuig in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where they had just graduated from Calvin College. Upon graduation, she began her career in nursing at Blodgett Memorial Hospital in Grand Rapids. She and George packed up the car and the kids and moved to San Jose, CA in 1963, where their third child would be born. A few years later, she resumed her nursing career at San Jose Hospital (later San Jose Medical Center), which she always said was "the best place to work, ever." She retired from San Jose Medical Center after more than 30 years in nursing.

A devoted mother and grandmother, Bonnie loved spending time with her family. She was happiest when everyone was together, especially when her grandchildren were around. She enjoyed her Dutch family heritage and treasured her memories of growing up on the farm, often telling stories from her childhood. She loved to recall how she kept the little one-room schoolhouse from closing by starting school a year early at the tender age of four. This brought the total number of children up to an acceptable minimum of four students. Not surprisingly, her favorite hobby was genealogy, researching her Dutch family line from the Netherlands to Pella, Iowa and beyond. Sepia tone pictures of her family and ancestors were always prominent on the walls of her home.

Bonnie is survived by her three children: Keith Vander Tuig of San Jose, CA, Amy Vander Tuig of Denver, CO, Mark and daughter-in-law Jenti Vander Tuig of Morgan Hill, CA; her granddaughters Anissha Vander Tuig and Mayah Vander Tuig; her sister, Letha Van Dyk of St. Simons Is., GA; her cousin, Jo Palmquist of Denver, CO; and many nieces and nephews.

Thanks to the staff and friends at Belmont Village, San Jose, for all their care and kindness over the last two years.