Henry Lee Nunnikhoven was born Feb. 8, 1937, to Abe and Anna (Van Dusseldorp) Nunnik-hoven. He passed away Jan. 31, 2023, at the Comfort House in Pella at the age of 85 years. Funeral service was at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 3, at Trinity Reformed Church in Pella. Interment was in Oakwood Cemetery, Pella. Memorials have been designated for Hospice of Pella or Lake View Camp of Pella.
June 20, 1957, Lee was united in marriage with Norma Langstraat at Central Reformed Church in Oskaloosa. They were blessed with four children.
Lee and Norma started farming in 1958 east of Pella. In 1965, they moved their family to the farm southeast of Pella, where Lee was born and had grown up. Here, Lee and Norma raised their family, teaching them that hard work was its own reward, commitment led to long-term happiness, and playing cards with friends was one of the greatest pleasures in life.
In 1989, they left the farm and moved to their beloved acreage on the east side of Pella. Lee went to work for Ring-O-Matic, where he worked for 22 years. This gave him and Norma the opportunity to deliver pit cleaners to various parts of the country, including Montana, Texas, and New York.
Antique tractors became a favorite interest for Lee. He restored his John Deere B and Farmall 300 tractors and showed them off in many Tulip Time parades and tractor rodeos as a member of the Red Rock Threshers Tractor Club. He loved mastering the teeter-totter and helping at tractor pulls, threshing, and many other tractor activities. He was also a member of the Dutch Masters Auto Club with his 1977 Chevy Caprice Classic … his pride and joy.
When Lee and Norma attended their first bluegrass festival in 1985, he was hooked! Over the years, Lee attended countless bluegrass festivals and jams, joining in the singing and making many wonderful, lifelong friends. He was fondly given the nickname “Teddy Bear” after winning a teddy bear door prize at a festival, and that’s been his name ever since. These festivals and friends were a magnet for Lee, and he told many stories of driving home in the middle of the night after singing until the wee hours.
In his retirement years, in spite of failing eyesight, Lee built scale-model replicas of four barns and the South Porterville Schoolhouse, where he had attended school. He had a great memory for details.
Lee will be remembered as hard-working, resourceful, and God-loving. He was loved by and will be missed by many.
Lee and Norma’s family includes: Marla (Daniel) Comstock of Pella, Vernon Nunnikhoven of Otley, Marcena (Guy) Schwab of Pella, and Marsha (Tim) Vanden Hoek of Sully; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and his sister-in-law Dorothy Nunnikhoven of Pella.
Henry Lee was preceded in death by Norma his wife of 64 years; his parents; his granddaughter Michelle Comstock; his grandson Michael Comstock; and his great-grandson Benjamin Nunnikhoven.
