Velva Destival

Velva Mardean Destival was born on February 20, 1924, to William and Antoniette Balhorn in rural Benton County.  She eloped and married Ora Butts on February 14, 1942.  They were parents of 3 children, Karen (Dennis) Mann, Kaye (Larry) Smith, and Roger (Cynthia) Butts.  Ora passed away in August of 1980.  Velva then married Robert Destival on August 13, 1983.  Bob died in December of 2014.  Velva was employed in several financial institutions in Des Moines and Waterloo, retiring from GMAC Mortgage.  She enjoyed many types of stitcheries, from crochet to embroidery.   She made doilies and wall hangings for her family.  Quilts were made for each child and grandchild.  She also made table runners, placemats, and Christmas tree skirts.   Velva also enjoyed golfing, which she started when she was 60.  She was a resident of Friendship Village in Waterloo for over 9 years and passed away there on March 4, 2024, at the age of 100 plus 2 weeks.  Velva was preceded in death by her parents; 2 husbands; 5 brothers, Melvin, Lloyd, Merle, Marvin, and Alan Balhorn; 2 sisters, Verda Dixon and Marilyn Balhorn; a daughter, Karen; a great great granddaughter, and nieces, nephews, and many in-laws.  Velva is survived by a daughter, Kaye; a son, Roger; 2 sisters, Glenda Corneli and Carol Christoffersen; 6 grandchildren, Terri Flynn, Michael Mann, Thomas Gurwell, Randall Gurwell, Heather Brubaker, and Meredith Espenscheid, 13 great grandchildren, Mark Gurwell, Mike Gurwell, Tommy Gurwell, Dylan Gurwell, Dustin Gurwell, Avory Gurwell, Hope Brubaker, Logan Brubaker, Madeline Espenscheid, Makenzie Espenscheid, Megan Mann, Lindsay Shields, and Sunny Shields; 2 great great grandchildren; 2 step children, Vicky (Jerome) Haggerty and James Destival; 5 step grandchildren, Tyler Espenscheid, Shauna Kucera, Ryan Haggerty, Meghan Murphy, and Nancy Destival; 4 step great grandsons; a step great great grandson; and many nieces, nephews, and in-laws.  A private family burial will take place at a later date.