Margaret J. DeBlauw

Margaret J. DeBlauw age 86 of Hartington, Nebraska died on Monday, January 30, 2023 at the Arbor Care Center in Hartington.

Funeral services will be on Friday, February 3, 2023 at 10:30 am at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Hartington, NE with Rev. Amanda Talley officiating. Burial will be in the Hartington City Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5:00 – 7:00 pm on Thursday at the Wintz Funeral Home in Hartington. Visitation will continue one hour prior to services Friday morning at church. Arrangements are under the direction of the Wintz Funeral Home in Hartington.

A livestream of the funeral will be viewable at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/TLCHartingonNE/ 

Parking at Funeral Home:  The vacant lot to the east of the funeral home and the lot to the south have been cleared off of snow for off street parking.  Please use this parking area.

Pallbearers will be: John DeBlauw, Jordan DeBlauw, Brandon Rosberg, Tyler Nicke, Tory Opfer and Mike Goodwin

Margaret was born to John Scott and Vera (Mikkelson) Gray on September 18, 1936, at the Gray Homestead south of Lynch, NE. She lived on the farm until 1947 then her family moved into Lynch.  Her mother passed away in 1949 and Margaret the 3rd oldest child became the caregiver to her younger sisters; this is where the love of taking care of others started.

Margaret graduated from Lynch Highschool in 1954 and then attended College in Wayne, NE.  Receiving her teacher certificate at age 17; Margaret taught school for a couple years at a rural school south of Crofton followed by a couple years at a rural school in Holt Co.  While teaching at the rural school south of Crofton she met her husband Dennis. Margaret and Dennis DeBlauw married on October 11, 1958, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Constance, NE.   After her marriage she was mainly focused on raising her family. A true homemaker, she had a large vegetable garden, did lots of canning and did the many other tasks needed to raise seven children.  Margaret and Dennis lived south of Crofton until moving to a farm near Fordyce in 1960. In 1977, they moved to Hartington, NE. Where they lived until Margaret went to live in the Arbor Care Assisted Living Facility in 2018.  

In 1982, Margaret started working at the Nursing home in Hartington where she worked as a CNA until retiring in September of 2001.

Margaret was an avid genealogist, she gathered information covering many generations of both her and Dennis’s families.  She also loved John Wayne movies, she had a huge collection of John Wayne movies owning almost all the movies he had ever acted in.  She really enjoyed spending time with her kids and grandkids, going shopping/garage-saleing and out to eat and visiting over a good cup of coffee were some of her favorite things as was taking care of  her kids and grandkids.  Her family was the joy of her life she loved attending school extracurricular activities that her children or grandchildren were involved in.  In her down time she could usually be found in her garden, taking care of a grandkid or two and maybe going to a few garage sales or watching a John Wayne flick.Margaret also battled cancer a few times in her life.

Survivors include: her children, Alan and Julie DeBlauw of Hartington, NE (sons John & Jordan), Vera DeBlauw of Norfolk, NE, Julie Kristensen of Yankton, SD (children Brandon (wife Sadie) and Brittany), Paul DeBlauw and Amy Nicke of Bow, Valley, NE (children Brittany, Brandy, Tucker and Tyler), Jason and Ashley DeBlauw of Gayville, SD (children Keanna and Carson) and Koni and Tory Opfer of Hartington, NE (daughters Jessica and Jaden). Son in law, Mike Goodwin of Buffalo, MO (son Daniel and Spouse Rebecca), 2 great-grandchildren: Oakley Williams and Marley DeBlauw. In-laws: Nancy (DeBlauw) Dowling, Joe Westover, Mike Miller, David Wemhoff, Alice (Joe) Noonan and Mary Ellen Cayler; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband Dennis; daughter Gina Goodwin; her parents; her Brother Richard Gray; her sisters Ruth Ann, Abbie, Betty and Beverly; brother-in-law Roger DeBlauw, and sisters- in-law Irene Gray and Doris Ann Jones.

In Lieu of flowers memorials should be directed to the Dennis and Margaret DeBlauw Memorial Fund.  There is an account set up for this memorial at Cedar Security Bank, Hartington.  Memorials will be distributed at a future date to the Hartington Historical Society, and the City Library.