Brouwer, Marilyn (Mrs. Melvin) 1932-2026

BROUWER, ZEVENBERGEN, BRAS, KOOPMANS

Posted By: Marjorie Brunsting-Volunteer (email)
Date: 7/15/2026 at 14:56:41

Mrs. Marilyn Brouwer, age 93, of Orange City, passed away on Thursday, June 11, 2026, at the Crown Pointe Estates in Sioux Center.

A visitation with the family present will be held on Wednesday, June 17, from 1:00pm to 2:00pm, at the First Christian Reformed Church in Orange City. There will be a funeral service on Wednesday, at 2:00pm, at the church with the Rev. Stephen Terpstra and the Rev. Jordan Helming officiating. Interment will follow the service at the West Lawn Cemetery in Orange City. The Oolman Funeral Home in Orange City is in charge of arrangements.

Marilyn Ruth was born on December 24, 1932, in Worthington, Minnesota, the daughter of Tunis and Agnes (Zevenbergen) Bras. She was raised in the Ocheyedan Harris area and graduated from the Harris High School in 1950.

She was united in marriage to Melvin Brouwer on February 15, 1952, in Ocheyedan. They made their home on a farm near Orange City, where Marilyn was a mother and helped Mel on the farm. Marilyn and Mel were members of the First Christian Reformed Church in Orange City, where she taught Sunday school and sang in the choir. Mel passed away on July 6, 2021, in Le Mars, after more than 69 years of marriage.

Marilyn found great joy attending her children’s and grandchildren’s activities and being active in their lives. The arrival of her two great-grandsons was an extra special blessing to her, and she loved every minute she was able to spend with them. The intelligent conversations she had with them as young children was fun and unforgettable.

Survivors include her two children and their spouses, Judy and Gordon Hemping, of Appleton, Wisconsin; and Steve and Carol Brouwer, of Orange City; two grandchildren, Steven, and his wife, Corinne, of Le Mars; and Kristin Brouwer, of Orange City; and two great-grandsons, Jeremy and Caleb Brouwer.

In addition to her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by two brothers, Lloyd Bras and Raymond Bras, and his wife, Mary; a sister and her husband, Verla and Gerald Elgersma; Melvin’s parents, John and Tracy (Koopmans) Brouwer; his two sisters and their husbands, Gertrude and Edward Bouw, and Nellie and Joubert Wassenaar; and his brother and his wife, John and Nellie Brouwer.

Memorials will be given to Sioux Center Health Hospice and Home Care.

Source: Oolman Funeral Home online obituary.