Abelene (VanderBurgh) Schuur

     Abelene Schuur was born on September 12, 1917 on the family farm in Moulton Township of Murray County Minnesota to Leonard and Jennie (Lolkus) VanderBurgh, both immigrants in 1893 from Zuid Holland, the Netherlands. Abelene was the 7th of 8 children and the youngest daughter. She was named after her grandfather Abel VanderBurgh and was baptized and made profession of faith in the Chandler Reformed Church where her parents had been charter members in 1911.  She and her family moved to a farm one mile east of Leota where she started school. After seven years, they moved back to the farm two miles south of Chandler where she was born. She graduated from 8th grade at District #83 school, which was four mile round trip walk, and then worked on the family farm milking cows and other chores and learning household arts.   

     Abelene attended school and church with Henry Schuur, also a son of Dutch immigrants, Hemert and Bertha. After a four-year courtship, she married Henry "Hank", the love of her life on January 26, 1939 in the same house she was born in. They started their life together at a farm near Lake Wilson.  In 1946, Henry, Abelene and their sons, Harlan and Rodney moved to Chandler where he operated Schuur Implement on Main Street. The family increased with the addition of Milton, Sharolyn, Clark, and Curtis with an 18-year span from oldest to youngest.  The first two children were home births, the next two were born at the Home Hospital in Slayton, and the last two at the new hospital in Slayton.  In 1958, the family moved to a farm south of Chandler across from the cemetery.  Henry and Abelene retired to Chandler in 1987 where Henry passed away on August 28, 1998 after nearly 60 years of marriage. Her sadness was doubled when her oldest son, Harlan passed away on January 20, 1999. 

     Abelene enjoyed a full and active life and had many talents and interests.  She loved being a homemaker and was known as a skilled baker, seamstress, and hairdresser.  She loved to sew clothes for her children and also for others.  Many women enjoyed her weekly hair sets and she even gave perms. As was the norm in those days, she grew her own vegetables, raised chickens, and preserved all for the winter use.  Abelene and Henry served as church custodians along with Abelene’s mother. A special treat was bread pudding using bread crusts after communion as one of the custodian’s jobs was cutting up the bread.  She and Henry were faithful members of the Chandler Reformed Church where Abelene was active in Girl’s Circle, Ladies’ Aid, RCW,  and enjoyed working in the kitchen.