Louis Vust

                                                                                              Live Stream Link: Louis Vust Funeral Service

     Louis Vust age 95, of Little Rock, Iowa, died Sunday, October 20, 2024, at Sanford Sheldon Hospital in Sheldon, Iowa.

      Visitation with the family present will be held on Thursday, October 24, 2024 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Tabernacle Baptist Church in George, Iowa.

      Funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. Friday, October 25th at the Tabernacle Baptist Church in George, with Pastor Bryan Anderson officiating. Burial will follow in the Evergreen Lawn Cemetery in George.

     Louis Marvin Vust was born July 24, 1929 to Lucas and Jennie (Reemtsma) Vust on a farm west of Little Rock where he helped his father farm. He attended country school at Elgin Township #4 until the 8th grade and then helped farm full time. One of his teachers, Leta Bruns, encouraged his singing and would ask him to sing solos. 

     On May 25, 1951 he was united in marriage to Joanne Joyce DeBerg and was drafted into the army that August and served for 2 years, including a tour of duty in Korea. After honorable discharge, Louis and Joanne settled on a farm adjoining his father’s where he farmed into his 70s with his brother Walter. 

     Louis loved the Lord and had a servant’s heart. He attended the Tabernacle Baptist Church in George all his life and was active as a Sunday school superintendent, trustee, deacon and building committee member. Music was another of his lifelong passions. He sang at many funerals, weddings, and other events, often duetting with Joanne. He was a member of the Ambassador Quartet and sang lead for 42 years as they performed gospel concerts many Sunday nights throughout the 4-state region. 

     Louis was mechanically adept. He and Ken Mulder did part time work on upholstery projects and building wagon boxes and cabinets. He did most of his own maintenance on his farm equipment and joined Demco Manufacturing part time in 1970 where he eventually worked in the engineering department for many years. He also served on the Little Rock school board and REC board.

     Louis was an avid reader and enjoyed crossword puzzles, Jeopardy, travel, collecting Allis- Chalmers model tractors, fishing and bird watching. Highlights were getting married and the birth of his 2 children, LaVerle and Mary Jo. He delighted in his role as Grandpa to Kristy and Kary. He also enjoyed trips out west, camping with his family and friends and going to his grandkids’ sporting events. Many winters were spent in the Florida Keys and Casa Grande, Arizona. For many years he took biannual fishing trips to Sauk Centre, Minnesota with family and friends. He looked forward to nightly phone calls with LaVerle and was honored to have his great grandson named after him. 

     In the last years of his life, Louis was able to care for his beloved Joanne as she slowly sank into dementia. He was able to maintain an independent lifestyle for them on the farm with help from Mary Jo and Darryl until three weeks before her passing on February 16, 2024. He then lived on the farm for another 8 months until he was hospitalized. He passed away on October 20 at the age of 95 at the Sanford Sheldon Medical Center. 

    He is survived by his son LaVerle (Clara) Vust of Miami, daughter Mary Jo (Darryl) Huls of Boyden, granddaughters Kristy (David) McVay of Houston and Kary Huls of Boise, great grandson Louis McVay and many nieces and nephews.

     In addition to Joanne, he was preceded in death by his parents Lucas and Jennie, brothers Fred, Jake and Walter, brother-in-law Lyle Popkes who was like a brother, and sisters Mary Klaassen, Fern Popkes, Ruth Backer and June Vust.