Lynda Sharlene Langstraat

Lynda Sharlene Wielenga Langstraat was born July14, 1946 to Louis H Wielenga and Anna Kroese Wielenga in Hull Iowa. She lived in Hull as an infant and moved to the family farm when she was seven years old. On the farm she gained a lifelong love for cats, dogs and horses. As a child she went to Hull Christian Grade School and graduated from Hull Western Christian High School. She then went to Washington School of Practical Nursing in Sioux Falls and graduated in 1967. She met her husband, Dennis Langstraat, on a blind date in 1967, and they were married the following year. Their son Jeff was born in 1968 in Orange City, Iowa. He was delivered by the same doctor that delivered Dennis. In 1969 Dennis left for officer’s training in the US Air Force, and Lynda and Jeff moved to the farm for a short period of time to live with her parents. Later in 1969, the family moved to Big Spring, Texas, where Dennis served as an instructor pilot in the air force. In 1970, Kristin was born in Big Spring. For the more than four years that they lived in Big Spring, Lynda enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom and taking arts and craft classes at the Officer’s Club. After Dennis’s release from the Air Force, the family moved back to Iowa where Dennis taught high school science for a year and then went to veterinary school at Iowa State University. This was an extremely busy time in Lynda’s life. Between working as an LPN, maintaining a household, and keeping her husband motivated in school, she had very little relaxation time. In 1981, Dennis graduated from veterinary school, and the family moved to Sherburn, MN. Lynda’s pace slowed somewhat, but she continued to work part time. She also became acquainted with the hard seats of every gymnasium in southern Minnesota while watching high school sports that Jeff and Kris participated in. Many life-long friends were made while they lived in Sherburn. In 1992, Dennis and Lynda, now empty nesters, moved to Nicollet MN. Lynda worked part time while living in Nicollet, and she and Dennis bought a cabin in the Okoboji,Iowa area. She greatly enjoyed remodeling the cabin, boating, hiking, and enjoying the Iowa Great Lakes area. A lot of great down time was spent with her brother and his family at the cabin. Throughout her married life, Lynda worked as an LPN in hospitals in Orange City, Britt, Dexter, and Ames IA and Trimont and Fairmont, MN. She also worked as an educational aide for preschool kids after she finished her nursing career. Since retirement and moving to Spirit Lake, she enjoyed several cruises and trips to Florida before Covid and Cancer interfered. She had many friends in the area and loved playing Mahjong on Fridays and Thursday coffee at the church. She was active in UMW. Most of these activities were somewhat curtailed after her diagnosis and treatment for her cancer, although her love of ISU sports, the Twins, and the Vikings continued. She was an avid reader of books for most of her life. Her entire life was spent with cats or dogs in the home. She found a love for them on the farm and it never abated. She loved her husband, her kids, and her animals; not always in that order. Her dog, Allie, and her cat, Fidget were her constant companions during the down days of chemotherapy. She leaves behind Dennis, her loving husband of fifty seven years; her children, Jeffrey Langstraat, PhD of Pittsburgh,Pa and Kristin Langstraat, DMin (Mike FitzGerald) of Cincinnati, OH; brother, Larry(MaryLou)Wielenga; and brothers- and sisters- in -law Wayne(Kathy) Langstraat, Roger(Sandy) Langstraat, and Ruth Langstraat,MD (Roxanne Whitelight). Many neices, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, and friends are also left to mourn her. A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am on Saturday, October 18, 2025, at the United Methodist Church in Spirit Lake, Iowa. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service on Saturday at the church. A private family burial will be held in the Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Arrangements are under the direction of the Robinson Funeral Home in Spirit Lake. Online condolences may be left at www.spiritlakefuneralhome.com In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to Avera Hospice in Spirit Lake or the Spirit Lake Methodist Church 150 fund.

Lynda Sharlene Langstraat

July 14, 1946 - October 1, 2025