Neesha J. Soules, 75, formerly of Wayland and Grand Rapids, died May 12 at Moffit Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., after a 10-week battle with lymphoma.
The former Neesha Holbrook, she was a 1966 graduate of Wayland High School.
Growing up in Wayland, Neesha learned many life values from her parents. An ambitious and studious student, she got a full scholarship to Michigan State University where she earned her bachelor of science degree in horticulture.
She married Gary Soules, and together they had four children.
When the kids were older, Neesha re-entered the world of work as a real estate agent and after her children were grown went back to school to earn her paralegal degree from Davenport College. From there, she landed a job as a paralegal and spent the rest of her career writing court decisions on medical disability cases for the Social Security Department in the State of Michigan.
She and her second husband, Thomas Vliek, made their home on a hobby farm in Allendale.
She is survived by her husband, Tom Vliek; children: Chad Soules, Shane and Bonnie Soules, Apel Soules, and Cherish Minney; grandchildren; Cameron Minney, Jordan (Brittany) Soules, Makena Soules, Hailey Soules, and Noah Soules; great-granddaughter, Reagan Soules; step-children; Mike and Martha Vliek; brothers and sister Dick and Lorna Holbrook, Bill and Sandy Holbrook, Debbie Bonney; as well as nieces and nephews.
A service to remember and celebrate Neesha’s life will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 4, at Heritage Life Story Funeral Home – Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake Michigan Drive NW. Friends are invited to begin visiting with her family at 1 p.m. and there will be time for continued visiting following the service.
For those who wish to make a memorial donation, her family encourages St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, her longtime favorite charity.
