Darlene Pereboom

Funeral services for Darlene Pereboom were held on Thursday, September 30, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. at the Berean Fundamental Church in Gregory, SD, with Pastor Scott McClellen officiating.

Music was provided by Janeen Hlavka, pianist. Patty Jones and Jeanie Duerfeldt were in charge of registration and Joy Serr was flower attendant.

Casket bearers were Tanner Pereboom, Jon Marts, Jerry Marts, Garry Wetzler, Cory Wetzler and Justin Serr.

Burial was in the Graceland Cemetery in Burke, SD. Kotrba-Smith Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Darlene Dee Pereboom was born on August 3, 1940, at the Gregory Hospital to William and Esther (Layh) Bunn. She was raised on the family dairy farm southwest of Carlock. Darlene started helping with the milking at age five, and continued until she left for high school. When she went to high school, there wasn’t any bussing for rural kids so the students would live in town with a boarder.

After graduating from Gregory High School in 1958, Darlene continued her education at Black Hills Business College. After completing her training, she stayed in the Hills and worked in the secretary pool at Ellsworth Air Force Base. There she met a truck driver named Fritz Pereboom. They married in 1966 and lived in Sturgis for several years. During this time, they welcomed Pam and Doug into the family. They moved to Gregory in ’71, with baby Mike joining them soon after.

Fritz and Darlene had an opportunity to co-own a trucking company in Sturgis, so back to the Hills the family went. This was a busy, but fun time for her. She was a Girl Scout leader, taught Sunday school and provided childcare. Most of all, Darlene loved when she, Fritz, and the kids would go boating on Pactola Lake and Angostura Reservoir.

In 1978, the family moved back to Gregory County, on property south of Burke. For many years Darlene worked hard to help support her family, working at both Dr. Sweet’s clinic and at the Hillcrest Inn. In 1990, she started a new job at the Gregory Hospital. She and Fritz moved to Gregory in 1992. She worked in the front office for the next 21 years. She lost Fritz in 2000 to a heart attack. As her Parkinson’s progressed, she moved to Silver Threads Assisted Living and then on to Avera Rosebud Country Care Center. Darlene passed away on September 23, 2021, at the age of 81 years.

Darlene enjoyed traveling, and felt lucky when she could join Fritz on a haul. She and Annie went on a 3-week tour of New England during the fall of 2001, she joined her daughter Pam’s family for a cruise to Alaska, and she took many trips to Branson. Darlene also loved to go out to Seattle to visit every summer.

Darlene is survived by her children and grandchildren, Pamela (Wayne) McCann, Jordan, Janessa, and Jenaya McCann, all of Bothell, WA, Douglas (Lynn) Pereboom, of Burke, SD, and Michael Pereboom and Tanner Pereboom, both of Mitchell, SD. She is also survived by her sister Annie and brother-in-law Jerry Marts, her brother Bill Bunn and sister-in-law Donna, her sisters-in-law Glennis Pereboom and Sandy Pereboom, and sister-in-law and brother-in-law Bonita and Denton Jonason, and many nieces and nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews.

Darlene was preceded in death by her husband Jerome “Fritz” Pereboom, her parents Bill and Esther Bunn, in-laws Jim and Eva Parsons, and brothers-in-law Pierre Pereboom and James Pereboom.