Pauline (Ohling) Ailts

   PAULINE ALICE AILTS, 84, of Luverne, died Monday, October 9, 2023, at the Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage. She was born November 15, 1938, in Midland Township, near Little Rock, IA, to John and Aafka (Martens) Ohling. Pauline was baptized on January 1, 1939, at the Bethel Reformed Church in rural Ellsworth. She attended country school in Midland Township and graduated from Little Rock High School in 1956. After graduation, Pauline moved to Sioux Falls, SD where she worked at the Sioux Valley Hospital as a nurse’s aide. She then went to work at the Sioux Falls Stockyards as a secretary. She later worked as a bank teller at a bank in Sioux Falls.

   Pauline married Harley Ailts on November 28, 1958, at the Bethel Reformed Church in rural Ellsworth. The first year of their marriage, the couple lived at Anamosa, IA. In 1959, they moved to Ellsworth. The family moved to Luverne in the summer of 1962.

  Pauline’s life was a beautiful story of love and adventure. For forty five years, she took the wheel as a school bus driver, bringing joy to countless kids in Luverne Public Schools until her well-deserved retirement in 2018. Her grandkids were the stars in her sky, and she, along with her husband Harley, was their number one fan, rarely missing a game and even giving her granddaughters the treat of bus rides to and from their games. With seventeen great-grandkids in her later years, she kept up with their lives through snapchat. But her interests span far and wide, from shopping trips to card games, from helping Harley with his woodworking to attending numerous craft shows, and from tending to her garden to cooking in her kitchen. Camping, square dancing, snowmobiling, researching her family heritage, listening to politics, and wintering in Arizona filled her days with excitement and joy. She was also a beloved member of the American Reformed Church, Luverne, for sixty five years. Pauline’s legacy encourages us to embrace life with the same enthusiasm and grit as she did. Though she may be physically gone, we are confident her eternity in Heaven has just begun.

   Pauline is survived by her son, Kevin (Crystal) Ailts, Luverne; two daughters, Kandace (Mike) Rust, Magnolia; and Karla (Tom) Owen, Winnebago; seven grandchildren, Sarah (Christopher) Nuffer, Katie (Matthew) Van Grootheest, Lindsay (Ryan) Lonneman, Erika (Jesse) Brake, Lexi (Tony) Lynn, Kathie (RJ) Linder and Bob (Karrie) Owen; seventeen great-grandkids, Afton, Aubrey, Kallista, Huntley, Axel, Gracelyn, Kaleb, Eastyn, McKinley, Korbin, Hudsyn, Koyer, Gavin, Olivia, Preslie, Haddie and Cormac; two brothers, Egbert Ohling, Rock Rapids, IA; and Paul (Eleanor) Ohling, George, IA; and a sister, Gerda DeBoer-Jannsen, Luverne.

   She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Harley on April 29, 2010; and a sister, Hilke Garrels.

   Visitation will be from 5-7 pm Thursday, October 12, at the Dingmann Funeral Home in Luverne; and one hour prior to the service at the church on Friday. Funeral will be 10:30 am Friday at the American Reformed Church, in Luverne, officiated by Pastor Mike Altena. Burial will be in the Maplewood Cemetery in Luverne.

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