Rena Van Nuys, 89, a longtime resident of Rapid City, died October 2, 2011, at the Victorian. She was born to Frank and Regina Levander in New York City on November 15, 1921.
After graduation from Friends Academy, Locust Valley, Long Island, she attended Swarthmore College in 1939, graduating with honors with a double major in history and literature in 1943. She continued her education at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., receiving a master's degree in 1949. Rena began a lifetime of teaching, both college and high school, as an instructor at Moravian College, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
She met Kelvin Van Nuys, a professor of religion and philosophy, at the school and they were married on June 8, 1952, at Kingwood Community, Frenchtown, NJ, under the care of the Religious Society of Friends.
Soon after their marriage, the young couple moved to Whittier, CA, where a daughter, Laura Regina, was born in 1954. A son, James Maxwell, was born in 1955. In 1956, the family moved to western South Dakota, where Kelvin's mother and many of his relatives pioneered in the late 1880s. Kelvin took up the post of professor of philosophy and humanities at South Dakota School of Mines. A second son, Frank Whitehead, was born in Rapid City in 1961. The family moved to Wilmington, OH, in 1963, where both Kelvin and Rena taught at Wilmington College, a small Quaker liberal arts college.
Upon Kelvin's retirement in 1979, they returned to Rapid City and have lived here since. During her retirement, Rena served for many years as education director and clerk at Dakota Art Gallery, located in Dahl Arts Center. Rena also shared her love of art with many area schoolchildren, volunteering at Robbinsdale Elementary School to teach art appreciation and drawing to third grade classes.
Rena was honored as Citizen of the Month for her volunteer work in the schools. In 2003, she was honored as an educator and benefactor by the Rushmore Cultural Affairs Committee of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Rena had a wide network of friends and was active in many organizations. She was a member of the Rapid City Friends Meeting, the AAUW dinner discussion group, a board member of Dakota Artists Guild, and a member of the Current Events Club and the Herbert Weisz Philosophy Club.
Rena is survived by her husband of 59 years, Kelvin; her children, Laura and Art Tonkyn and their son, Jeffrey, Nemo, James Van Nuys and his children, Callan and Cole, Rapid City, and Frank and Janet Van Nuys and their daughter, Maya, Rapid City. She is also survived by a brother-in-law, Maxwell Van Nuys, Denver, CO.
A memorial service will be Sunday at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home, under the care of the Rapid City Friends Meeting. Inurnment will be at Mountain View Cemetery, Rapid City.
After graduation from Friends Academy, Locust Valley, Long Island, she attended Swarthmore College in 1939, graduating with honors with a double major in history and literature in 1943. She continued her education at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., receiving a master's degree in 1949. Rena began a lifetime of teaching, both college and high school, as an instructor at Moravian College, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
She met Kelvin Van Nuys, a professor of religion and philosophy, at the school and they were married on June 8, 1952, at Kingwood Community, Frenchtown, NJ, under the care of the Religious Society of Friends.
Soon after their marriage, the young couple moved to Whittier, CA, where a daughter, Laura Regina, was born in 1954. A son, James Maxwell, was born in 1955. In 1956, the family moved to western South Dakota, where Kelvin's mother and many of his relatives pioneered in the late 1880s. Kelvin took up the post of professor of philosophy and humanities at South Dakota School of Mines. A second son, Frank Whitehead, was born in Rapid City in 1961. The family moved to Wilmington, OH, in 1963, where both Kelvin and Rena taught at Wilmington College, a small Quaker liberal arts college.
Upon Kelvin's retirement in 1979, they returned to Rapid City and have lived here since. During her retirement, Rena served for many years as education director and clerk at Dakota Art Gallery, located in Dahl Arts Center. Rena also shared her love of art with many area schoolchildren, volunteering at Robbinsdale Elementary School to teach art appreciation and drawing to third grade classes.
Rena was honored as Citizen of the Month for her volunteer work in the schools. In 2003, she was honored as an educator and benefactor by the Rushmore Cultural Affairs Committee of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Rena had a wide network of friends and was active in many organizations. She was a member of the Rapid City Friends Meeting, the AAUW dinner discussion group, a board member of Dakota Artists Guild, and a member of the Current Events Club and the Herbert Weisz Philosophy Club.
Rena is survived by her husband of 59 years, Kelvin; her children, Laura and Art Tonkyn and their son, Jeffrey, Nemo, James Van Nuys and his children, Callan and Cole, Rapid City, and Frank and Janet Van Nuys and their daughter, Maya, Rapid City. She is also survived by a brother-in-law, Maxwell Van Nuys, Denver, CO.
A memorial service will be Sunday at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home, under the care of the Rapid City Friends Meeting. Inurnment will be at Mountain View Cemetery, Rapid City.
Rena Van Nuys, 89, a longtime resident of Rapid City, died October 2, 2011, at the Victorian. She was born to Frank and Regina Levander in New York City on November 15, 1921.
After graduation from Friends Academy, Locust Valley, Long Island, she attended Swarthmore College in 1939, graduating with honors with a double major in history and literature in 1943. She continued her education at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., receiving a master's degree in 1949. Rena began a lifetime of teaching, both college and high school, as an instructor at Moravian College, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
She met Kelvin Van Nuys, a professor of religion and philosophy, at the school and they were married on June 8, 1952, at Kingwood Community, Frenchtown, NJ, under the care of the Religious Society of Friends.
Soon after their marriage, the young couple moved to Whittier, CA, where a daughter, Laura Regina, was born in 1954. A son, James Maxwell, was born in 1955. In 1956, the family moved to western South Dakota, where Kelvin's mother and many of his relatives pioneered in the late 1880s. Kelvin took up the post of professor of philosophy and humanities at South Dakota School of Mines. A second son, Frank Whitehead, was born in Rapid City in 1961. The family moved to Wilmington, OH, in 1963, where both Kelvin and Rena taught at Wilmington College, a small Quaker liberal arts college.
Upon Kelvin's retirement in 1979, they returned to Rapid City and have lived here since. During her retirement, Rena served for many years as education director and clerk at Dakota Art Gallery, located in Dahl Arts Center. Rena also shared her love of art with many area schoolchildren, volunteering at Robbinsdale Elementary School to teach art appreciation and drawing to third grade classes.
Rena was honored as Citizen of the Month for her volunteer work in the schools. In 2003, she was honored as an educator and benefactor by the Rushmore Cultural Affairs Committee of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Rena had a wide network of friends and was active in many organizations. She was a member of the Rapid City Friends Meeting, the AAUW dinner discussion group, a board member of Dakota Artists Guild, and a member of the Current Events Club and the Herbert Weisz Philosophy Club.
Rena is survived by her husband of 59 years, Kelvin; her children, Laura and Art Tonkyn and their son, Jeffrey, Nemo, James Van Nuys and his children, Callan and Cole, Rapid City, and Frank and Janet Van Nuys and their daughter, Maya, Rapid City. She is also survived by a brother-in-law, Maxwell Van Nuys, Denver, CO.
A memorial service will be Sunday at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home, under the care of the Rapid City Friends Meeting. Inurnment will be at Mountain View Cemetery, Rapid City.
After graduation from Friends Academy, Locust Valley, Long Island, she attended Swarthmore College in 1939, graduating with honors with a double major in history and literature in 1943. She continued her education at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., receiving a master's degree in 1949. Rena began a lifetime of teaching, both college and high school, as an instructor at Moravian College, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
She met Kelvin Van Nuys, a professor of religion and philosophy, at the school and they were married on June 8, 1952, at Kingwood Community, Frenchtown, NJ, under the care of the Religious Society of Friends.
Soon after their marriage, the young couple moved to Whittier, CA, where a daughter, Laura Regina, was born in 1954. A son, James Maxwell, was born in 1955. In 1956, the family moved to western South Dakota, where Kelvin's mother and many of his relatives pioneered in the late 1880s. Kelvin took up the post of professor of philosophy and humanities at South Dakota School of Mines. A second son, Frank Whitehead, was born in Rapid City in 1961. The family moved to Wilmington, OH, in 1963, where both Kelvin and Rena taught at Wilmington College, a small Quaker liberal arts college.
Upon Kelvin's retirement in 1979, they returned to Rapid City and have lived here since. During her retirement, Rena served for many years as education director and clerk at Dakota Art Gallery, located in Dahl Arts Center. Rena also shared her love of art with many area schoolchildren, volunteering at Robbinsdale Elementary School to teach art appreciation and drawing to third grade classes.
Rena was honored as Citizen of the Month for her volunteer work in the schools. In 2003, she was honored as an educator and benefactor by the Rushmore Cultural Affairs Committee of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Rena had a wide network of friends and was active in many organizations. She was a member of the Rapid City Friends Meeting, the AAUW dinner discussion group, a board member of Dakota Artists Guild, and a member of the Current Events Club and the Herbert Weisz Philosophy Club.
Rena is survived by her husband of 59 years, Kelvin; her children, Laura and Art Tonkyn and their son, Jeffrey, Nemo, James Van Nuys and his children, Callan and Cole, Rapid City, and Frank and Janet Van Nuys and their daughter, Maya, Rapid City. She is also survived by a brother-in-law, Maxwell Van Nuys, Denver, CO.
A memorial service will be Sunday at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home, under the care of the Rapid City Friends Meeting. Inurnment will be at Mountain View Cemetery, Rapid City.
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