Marlene Bruns

    Mrs. Marlene Bruns, age 85, of Spencer, passed away peacefully on Thursday, August 8, 2024, at St. Luke Lutheran Home after a battle with Alzheimer’s.

    Marlene Carole (Hulstein) Bruns, daughter of Steve G. and Pauline (Vande Hoef) Hulstein, was born on January 14, 1939, on a farm near Sioux Center. She grew up on her parents’ farm, attended Capel Township Country School, and graduated from Sioux Center High School in 1957. She continued her education to become a teacher at Northwestern Junior College in Orange City, and the State University of Iowa in Iowa City.

    Marlene was a woman driven by her purpose and faith in God. She was a devoted educator and her love for teaching and her students reached far beyond the classroom. Many of her students remembered her fondly through the years and some became dear friends as adults. She spent 38.5 years teaching elementary school in Cleghorn, Algona, and Spencer before retiring in 1998.

    A loyal servant of God, Marlene was dedicated to loving people and building community wherever she went. She was content living life to its fullest as a single person and had many opportunities to travel extensively. In her free time, she enjoyed crafting, photography, and catching up with friends. She was a very active member of the community and had a special heart for volunteering. Prayer was of the utmost importance to her and never missed a Monday morning prayer session with her long-time prayer partner.

    On September 26, 1998, she was united in marriage to the love of her life, Ernest G. Bruns, in Spencer. They spent 22 years together loving and caring for each other and serving people around the world.

    Sharing the love of Jesus in any way was important to Marlene. She was baptized at Central Reformed Church in Sioux Center and accepted Christ as a very young person. She was a member of Hope Reformed Church in Spencer where she taught Sunday School, served on several committees, sang in choir, and was in a Bible Study and prayer group. Marlene had a passion for volunteer work overseas as well as at home. She and her husband worked with CRU in Russia, Spain, Turkey, China, France, and Africa. They also worked with missions in Haiti, Mexico, and Nicaragua, as well as other projects with the RCA, CRU, and the CRWRC. They traveled to Malawi, Tanzania, and Kenya in Africa to show Christian films. Summers were spent volunteering at Bible camps in Montana, Minnesota, and Michigan, but they had a special love for working at Inspiration Hills in Iowa. In addition, they served as Youth Grandparents for the Senior High Youth group from 2008 until 2012. 

    Marlene is survived by her nephew, Brent Hulstein and his wife, Mary of Orange City, and their four children: Heather, Hannah, Amanda, and Gerrit, a sister-in-law, Shirley and her husband, Val Cudnoski of Lubbock, TX, as well as other relatives and friends.

    She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, her brother, Gerrit S. Hulstein, his wife, Phyllis, and a niece, Carol Hulstein.

 In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be given to Inspiration Hills - 1242 280th St., Inwood, IA 51240