Mary J. DeJong
January 21, 1939 – October 25, 2024
A service in witness to Mary’s life and faith will be held on Saturday, November 16, 2024, at 11:00 a.m.at Centre Ave. Church of God, 1917 E. Centre Ave., Portage. Friends may greet the family following the service. Mary will be laid to rest next to her husband at East Martin Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be given to Centrica Care Navigators (Rose Arbor), in c/o the funeral home.
Obituary
Age 85 of Kalamazoo, passed away Friday evening, October 25, 2024. Mary was born in Grand Rapids on January 21, 1939, the daughter of William and Helene (Raterink) Blouw. On June 3, 1960, she married Robert DeJong who preceded her in death. Mary was a school bus driver for Martin, Otsego and Plainwell Schools and was Transportation Supervisor for Schoolcraft Community Schools, a career that spanned over 40 years. She was an avid knitter and had made several afghans while waiting for school teams to be done with their games. She and Bob enjoyed going camping and had several favorite destinations. Mary loved visiting the Music Barn in Martin where she enjoyed listening to music of all kinds. Mary is survived by her son, Kenneth (Kit) DeJong; daughter-in-law, Denise Atwood; grandchildren, Adam (Ashley), Amanda, Damian (Christina), Eric (Codi), Kyle (Chela) and Tyler; six great-grandchildren; sister, Jane (Tim) Hawkins; brother, William “Bill” (Lou Ellen) Blouw; several nieces and nephews; and countless friends, including her fiance, Larry Heyns. Besides her husband, Mary was preceded in death by her parents; a son, Robert.

Sorry for your loss. I work with Mary at Plainwell it was never a dull moment.
Dear family of Mary, I was so sorry to hear of Mary’s passing. I have so many memories of time spent with her at Royal Estates. She was our faithful bus driver on our trips here at the Park. I hated it when she and Larry moved to Kalamazoo but now it was the best decision for them. She will be sadly missed by those who knew her . Larry, may God bless you in yhe coming days. I know you loved her very much and will miss her . Also thinking of Eric, her darling Grandson, who she adored. You’ll always have her with you in memory and I’m sure there are many wonderful memories with your Grandma. Ken and Kit, Denise and families, may God be close in the coming days. Your darling mother is with Jesus and you can take comfort in that. No better place to be. Again I will miss her! Love to all of you, Joanne Chapman