Vera Diediker, 103, of Laurel, died on Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023 at Hillcrest Care Center in Laurel.
Services will be on Thursday, Nov. 30 at 10:30 a.m. at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Laurel with Pastor Jeffery Warner officiating. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 29 at the church. Visitation will continue one hour prior to services on Thursday. Burial will be at Trinity Lutheran cemetery in Martinsburg.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Wintz Funeral Home in Laurel.
Vera, the oldest of nine siblings, was born on Nov. 4, 1920 to Adolph and Bessie (Kohout) Buryanek on the family farm near Westfield, Iowa. She attended Westfield Elementary and High School graduating as the valedictorian of her graduating class. She attended Westmar College for one year earning her preliminary teaching license and taught in country schools in the Westfield area. She taught second grade in Westfield as well as coaching the girls’ basketball team before moving to Rockwell City, Iowa where she taught second grade as well as filling the elementary principal role. She later moved to Council Bluffs, Iowa where she taught second grade for two years.
On Aug. 28, 1952 she married Donald George Diediker and they moved to a farm near Martinsburg. To this union five children were born. Don and Vera would farm in the Martinsburg/Ponca area for 19 years before moving to a farm near Laurel in 1971. Vera took time off from teaching until her first three children were in school and then went back to teaching in country schools in the Martinsburg area. She would later teach at Martinsburg Public Schools, Ponca Public Schools, and finished her career in education at Laurel Concord Public Schools. Vera would continue to take college classes during the summer and received her four year degree from Wayne State College in 1970. Even after she left a full time teaching career of over 30 years, she would tutor students whenever there was a student who needed help.
Vera’s calling was teaching, but in her spare time she taught Sunday School and was an active member of her church’s Ladies Aid. Her hobbies included gardening, sewing, playing cards and she was a fabulous cook.
Survivors include sons Steve (Pam) Diediker of Hinton, Iowa, Dave Diediker of Wayne, Don (Erica) Diediker of Laurel, and daughter Kari Boyle of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; grandchildren Matt (Megan), Jeff (Ashley), Bryan, Seth, Adam (Andrea), Andi (Katie), Aaron (Heidi), Andrew (Hannah), and Arik (Alexandra) Diediker, Abbie (Shane) Baack, Jake (Michelle), Lucas (Miah), and Tanner Boyle; 18 great grandchildren; sisters Mary Osborne of Kellogg, Iowa and Marlis (Frank) Asprey of Sacramento, California, sisters-in-laws Tess Buryanek and Delores Buryanek of Westfield and Sandy Maynard of Carmel, Indiana, and numerous nephews and nieces.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband of 52 years, Don; daughter, Diane, in infancy; siblings and their spouses Millie (Clyde) Westrosky, Helen (Adam) Tindall, Betty (Bob) Phillips, Len Buryanek, Jim Buryanek, Frank (Marlene) Buryanek, brothers-in-law Arnold Bollhofer, Roger Osborne, Duane (Betty) Diediker, Darrell Diediker, sister-in-law and spouse, Lorna (Harry) Gries and son-in-law, Dave Boyle.
Pallbearers will be her grandchildren Matt Diediker, Jeff Diediker, Bryan Diediker, Seth Diediker, Adam Diediker, Andi Diediker, Aaron Diediker, Andrew Diediker, Arik Diediker, Abbie Baack, Jake Boyle, Lucas Boyle, and Tanner Boyle.
