Bernice Maxine (Gernaat) Postema entered Heaven on March 9, 2023. She was 91. She was born to Albert & Helena (Hoekwater) Gernaat on December 14, 1931. She was the third of seven children. She was raised in a loving Christian home. She learned hard work on the family dairy farm in Falmouth.
She graduated as Salutatorian from Northern Michigan Christian School in 1949. After school, she left the farm, moved to Grand Rapids, married, and had 3 children. She, too, raised her children in a loving Christian home. She worked hard to ensure her children received a Christian education & they are grateful for it.
She was raised to know Jesus & His saving grace. She made sure that each of her children also knew this. Her faith in God brought her through many struggles. She was a member of Princeton Christian Reformed Church where she was involved with Kids Hope, teaching English as a second language, Calvinettes & counting offerings.
She was a lifelong learner. She went to college in her 40’s & received her degree. She attended CALL classes at Calvin College into her 80s. She was an avid reader, always wanting to learn.
She was a Proverbs 31 woman. She was clothed in dignity & her children called her blessed. She was an accomplished seamstress; her clothing was beautiful and classy. She never owned a pair of blue jeans. She taught her daughter to sew & they spent many happy weekends scouting for the best fabric deals & the latest patterns. Needlework was also a passion; she spent many happy hours stitching beautiful samplers to adorn her home. Her family has many treasured pieces to remember her by.
She felt it was so important for everyone to vote, and she taught her children to be responsible voters, to pay attention to politics, and to make their voices heard. This was so important to her that she worked at her voting precinct for many, many years.
There were many heartaches in her life, and she overcame them all with dignity, but losing her son, Craig, in a car accident was the hardest. She was preceded in death by her parents, her sisters, Geraldine & Joan, her brothers, Byron, Kenneth & Gordon, her son, Craig, and a grandson, Andrew Scott.
She is survived by her son, Doug (Shelley), and her daughter, Kim (Mike), her grandchildren, Travis (Shelly), Amanda (Jordan), and Stuart (Kim). She loved us all but those great-grandchildren, she loved them the dearest! They were the crowning glory of her life. Wednesday night family meals at her son’s house were the highlight of her week.
A sister, Muriel (Lawrence), and sisters-in-law, Karen Gernaat & Karen Jipping also survive her.
She was so loved!
A funeral service will be at 1:00 PM on Monday, March 13, 2023, at Yntema Funeral Home, 251 S. State Street, Zeeland. There will be a time of visitation beginning at 12 noon prior to the service on Monday.
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