Mrs. Donita F. Van Horn

Donita Van Horn, 81, of St. Paul died Sunday, June 15, 2008 at her home in St. Paul.



Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Thursday at Jacobsen-Greenway Funeral Home in St. Paul. The Reverend Thomas Hyde will officiate. Auxiliary services will be conducted by the Carl Mogensen American Legion Auxiliary Unit #119 of St. Paul. Interment will be in the Elmwood Cemetery in St. Paul. Visitation will be held on Wednesday, from 4 - 8 p.m. at the funeral home.



Memorials are suggested to the Valley County Hospice.



Mrs. Van Horn was born August 11, 1926 in Sargent to George and Maggie (Vanderveen) Poland.



Donita was raised in Sargent and attended Sargent Schools where she graduated in 1944.



In the fall of 1944, Donita attended St. Francis Hospital Nurses Training. She met her future husband Dwaine Van Horn on November 25, 1945.



They were married on Febuary 27, 1946 in St. Paul. They moved to Fullerton and then moved to St. Paul where they lived for three years. The couple moved to Grand Island in 1950 and lived there until 1992 when they moved back to St. Paul. Donita worked at the Veterans Hospital as the information desk and switchboard operator in 1967 and retired in 1987.



Donita's family was her greatest enjoyment. She was known for her volunteer work. Donita also enjoyed helping others at any time.



She was a member of the Carl Mogensen American Legion Auxiliary Unit #119 in St. Paul and Extension Clubs in Grand Island and St. Paul. She also was a member of the Just Us Girls Club in St. Paul, and the National Association of Retired Federal Employees.



Donita is survived by a son and daughter-in-law, Delwyn & LaDonna Van Horn of Tulsa, OK; a daughter & son-in-law, Dwana & Larry Rice of Grand Island; four grandchildren; Joi & her husband Troy Pistulka, & Jodi Lang all of Grand Island, Christin & her husband Cameron Nance of Anchorage, AL and Michael & Christina Van Horn of San Antonio, TX; three great-grandchildren Zachary Pistulka, Masin Lang and Hunter Nance; one brother & sister-in-law Glenn & Laurel Poland of Sargent; & one sister & brother-in-law Evelyn & Earl Dawson of Visalia, CA.



She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Dwaine on July 13, 1993; & two brothers, Raymond & Kenneth Poland.