Obituaries » Joanne Schouten
Joanne Schouten
June 15, 1939 - September 14, 2023
Service Date: October 28, 2023
Church Prairie Ridge Church
Joanne (Joni) Claire Schouten, age 84, passed away on September 14, 2023, at Perry Lutheran Services in Perry, Iowa.
Joni was born June 15, 1939, in Rugby, North Dakota. She was the second of three children born to Einar and Helen (Tollefson) Johnson. She attended school in Lakota, North Dakota, and was active in many extra-curricular activities. She was Valedictorian of her class of 1957. Joni attended Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota for two years and transferred to the University of Minnesota, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1962. After graduation, she worked as a surgical nurse in Litchfield, Minnesota.
Joni married Roger Schouten on February 8, 1964. They had three children: Tara Schouten Erredge, of Ankeny, Iowa, Julie Schouten, of Rochester, Minnesota, and Krista Dohrmann, of Kasson, Minnesota. The family lived in Litchfield, Minnesota, Long Lake, Minnesota, Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Kasson, Minnesota before retiring to their beloved lake home in Bemidji, Minnesota in 1992. In 2009 they moved to Ankeny, Iowa.
Joni was loving, a peacemaker, an active participant in the churches she attended, had many close friends, was creatively gifted, and enjoyed humor – especially in the form of a good Ole and Lena joke. In her free time, her hands were often busy with projects ranging from sewing and painting to playing the piano, composing two hymns, singing, and even drawing the floor plan for their Bemidji home. She enjoyed playing cards with friends and family. Joni served as a SPED associate in a Kasson classroom and spent many hours volunteering at Crocker Elementary in Ankeny, Iowa. When she was out shopping or having a bite to eat in town it was common for students who saw her to come running to her in delight, shouting “Grandma Joni!” and wrapping her in a hug.
She is survived by her husband of almost 60 years, Roger Schouten, sister Linda Ritter, and children Tara Erredge (daughter), David Erredge, Julie Schouten (daughter), and Krista Dohrmann (daughter) and six grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren with another on the way. She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Loren Johnson.
A memorial service will be held at Prairie Ridge Church (825 NW 36th St., Ankeny) on Saturday, October 28, 2023, at 11:00 a.m.
In loving memory of Joni, memorial contributions may be directed to Perry Lutheran Home – King’s Garden (2323 Willis Ave., Perry, IA 50220) or St. Croix Hospice (1555 SE Delaware Ave. Suite Q, Ankeny, IA 50021).