July 22, 1940-May 18, 2024
With sadness in our hearts, we report the death of our mother Alvena Yvonne Van Der Heyden. Yvonne, as she was known, was born on July 22, 1940, in Chicago, Illinois. She was the younger of two daughters of Howard Bertrand Yaeger and Eleanore Jeanne Caruso. Yvonne’s sister Kay passed away many years ago due to complications from diabetes.
Her father “Bert,” as he was known, chose the path of a single man rather than care for his family. Eleanore, who was born and raised in Italy, remarried to Melvin Blitz. Yvonne took a liking to a dark-haired young man from Belgium whom she married at age 16 with her parents’ permission. Yvonne and André – or “Andy” as he was known – started a family and had six children (Judy Franck, Kathy Leavitt, Daniel, Steven, Andrea Redenbaugh and Lisa Beckham).
With a young family in tow, Yvonne and Andy settled in St. Charles, Illinois near Andy’s parents. They moved several times within St. Charles and together they purchased, owned and operated the Dairy Queen in St. Charles. Yvonne was always Andy’s right-hand gal and they worked together day and night in the ice cream business. The allure of change and a happy life in California brought their family to the foothills in Southern California.
Yvonne and Andy owned and operated That Yogurt Place in Newhall and then The Lunch Box in Sierra Madre. They lived in Newhall for a time, then Saugus and then Glendora. After many successful years at “The Lunch Box, several of their children married off and went their own ways. Yvonne and Andy moved back east to Plano, Illinois, and owned and operated Dad’s Dog House. A few years later, they chose to sell Dad’s Dog House and moved to Hurricane in Southern Utah.
Retirement fit them well in their later years after many, many hard and back-breaking days in the food business. Yvonne and Andy were sealed for time and all eternity in the St. George Utah Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They enjoyed the retired life and made many amazing friends along the way.
Yvonne and Andy moved to The Haven at Sky Mountain in Hurricane, Utah, in the latter years of their lives. Yvonne was preceded in death by her son Daniel on Aug. 18, 2006, and recently by her husband Andy, who left this earthly realm on Feb. 12, 2024. Yvonne enjoyed buying clothes and modeling them for her friends and family. She had a great knack for finding bargains that she would treasure. She also enjoyed passing many of those clothes on to her friends and family.
Yvonne quietly slipped to rest in the early morning of Saturday, May 18, 2024, with family by her side. She was a beloved daughter, wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother to a long list of children who will miss her dearly.
Condolences may be shared on the McMillan Mortuary website. Click here to access the website.