Patricia Lee Niemeyer

INWOOD, IA: Patricia Lee Niemeyer (85) of Inwood, Iowa, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at Lyon Specialty Care in Rock Rapids, Iowa. A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 AM, Saturday, August 29, 2026, at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, rural Inwood, Iowa, with Pastor Jamie Mogler officiating. Visitation with the family will be from 9:30 - 10:30 AM, prior to the service and also at the luncheon following the service. Private family inurnment will take place at Richland Cemetery at Inwood.

   Patricia Lee Niemeyer was born to Marinus and Catherine (Waldrip) Vande Kieft on August 2, 1941, in Bellflower, Los Angeles County, California. She was the oldest of five children and moved with her family from Artesia, California to a farm near Inwood, Iowa in 1948. Pat completed school through the eighth grade and attended some high school, working with her parents on the family farm.

   She was united in marriage to Gerrit Niemeyer on December 16, 1959, at the First Reformed Church in Inwood. The pair had met candling eggs and later welcomed four boys to their union. Together they enjoyed driving across the country, square dancing and socializing, and spending time with family in Arizona and California. Pat was an avid quilter and sewer, creating many pieces to wear, display, and find comfort in. She was a farmer and a homemaker and dedicated many hours to her flower and vegetable gardens.

   After they were married, Gerrit and Pat farmed with his uncle Bernard for a few years. The family moved to a farm in Howard, South Dakota in 1962 and returned to the Inwood area in 1964. Pat and the boys accompanied Gerrit during this time on many truck routes under his own business and various other carriers, seeing many miles of the country together.

   In 1973, Pat and Gerrit purchased her family’s farm and farmed together until their retirement. They had both dairy cows and a Limousine cow/calf operation. The family also raised hogs, chickens, an abundant garden, and a variety of grain crops. They remained on the farm until moving to assisted living in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in 2018. Pat later moved to Lyon Specialty Care in Rock Rapids, Iowa where she lived the remainder of her life.

   Pat worked a variety of jobs and served her community throughout her life. For a time, she worked at the A & R Grocery store, was a meter reader for the Rural Electric Co-op, sold Avon products, assisted at Fellowship Village and joined a family business part-time at Mama’s Greenhouse. Pat served as a minority advisor for the Lyon County Farm Service Agency committee for eight years and was elected as the first woman member to the agency in 2006, serving two 3-year terms. She also volunteered with 4-H and was active in university extension organizations for over 25 years, even earning her Master Gardener certification in 2001.

   Pat was proud of her family and friends. Along with her husband, she supported their activities and interests, encouraged their faith, and always enjoyed their visits. For many folks coming up the drive, Pat would put the coffee on, have a treat on the counter, and be ready to catch up in no time. She could lose an afternoon out in the garden, working in the kitchen, or starting a project in the sewing room with her favorite Elvis hits on the radio. Though disease took much of her joy in her final years, Pat will be remembered as a generous, joyful, and hardworking mother, grandmother, and friend.

   She is survived by her sons, Oepke (Beth) Niemeyer, Douglas (Kristin) Niemeyer, and Grant (Jane) Niemeyer; grandchildren, Jessica Page, Andrew (Sarah) Niemeyer, Margo Niemeyer, Adam Niemeyer, Carmen (Sam Brovold) Niemeyer, Jennifer (Tyler) Grilley, Opal, Sophia, Hazel, and William Niemeyer; great-grandchildren, Olivia, Julia, and Jackson Page, Jadalyn Grilley, Baylor Niemeyer, Iris Brovold, Taliana Grilley, Ford Niemeyer, and Onida Brovold; sisters, Millie Rensink and Shirley Achterhof; and brothers, Jim (Jan) Vande Kieft and Ron (Deb) Vande Kieft; as well as many nieces and nephews.

   Pat was preceded in death by her husband, Gerrit; her parents, Marinus and Catherine Vande Kieft; and son, Patrick in infancy.