Eric Daniel Boender

May 5, 1981 - October 16, 2020

Eric Daniel Boender, age 39, of Oskaloosa, passed away on Friday, October 16, 2020 at the University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa. He was born on May 5, 1981 in Oskaloosa, Iowa, the son of Daniel Boender and Sandy (Vander Meyden) Hughes. He attended the Oskaloosa Christian Grade School and Oskaloosa Junior & Senior High School and graduated with the Class of 2000. On October 1, 2016 he was united in marriage to Michelle (Drahos) Sparks in Oskaloosa. Following high school, Eric went to work at Pella Plastics. He later went into logistics work for Pella Corp including the SWAT Team, until taking a job at L&L Enterprises and Mahaska. He then worked at Ideal Ready Mix in Oskaloosa. During his seasonal layoff from Ideal, he worked a winter pushing snow for the State of Iowa. Eric enjoyed being outdoors, mowing the lawn, shooting guns, go-cart racing, cooking, grilling, golfing and riding ATV’s. Eric loved spending time with family and friends, teasing his nephews and hunting, especially deer hunting. In his younger years he enjoyed playing with his cousins, raising horses and showing them in 4-H. His real joy in life was spending time with his boys. In March of 2019 Eric was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic kidney cancer. Eric was such a fighter all the way to the end. Eric went through four immunotherapy treatments, one chemo pill for nine months, a clinical trial, a week of radiation on four different sites and one last chemo pill combination for a month. This past week we learned that his cancer was still progressing and spreading even more than before. We also learned that he had acute pancreatitis likely caused by one or more of his medications. He was in the hospital at the U of I for the last week, he had a small fever off and on and really bad pain in his stomach. He had one last CT scan Thursday morning and we learned that his pancreatitis was severe, so severe that it was infected and parts of his pancreas were already dead and the infection had spread to his spleen. He was given an antibiotic but the infection was just too much for him and he was surrounded by his family as he passed. Eric knew he was loved by so many, such a fighter. He was a loyal friend and will be missed by many. Eric is survived by his wife, Michelle Boender of Oskaloosa; his sons, Owen McKinney and Peyton Boender both of Oskaloosa, a step-son, Mattix Sparks of Oskaloosa; his father, Daniel (Mindy) Boender of Oskaloosa; his mother, Sandy (Jerry) Hughes of Oskaloosa; a brother, Chad (Tonya) his nephews Zachary, Elliott Boender of Knoxville & baby due in January; a step-brother, Jacob (Gabby) Baugh; a step-sister, Nicole Struss; his maternal grandfather, William A. Vander Meyden of Oskaloosa; his uncles, Dave (Kerri) Boender, Dean Hoksbergen, Bruce (Michelle) Vander Meyden of Oskaloosa and Brian Vander Meyden of New York; two aunts, Diane Boot of Florida and Nancy (John) Graham of Oskaloosa; cousins and their families, Angela, Brad, Matt, Doug, Michelle, Jason, Maggie, Mallory and Jay. He is also survived by his beloved yorkie, Bella. He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Lyle and Shirley Boender and Martha Vander Meyden and his aunt, Carol Hoksbergen. Funeral services will be held Thursday at 10:30 at Third Reformed Church in Pella (708 E 13th Street, Pella) with pastor Phil DeBoef officiating. Burial will be in the Forest Cemetery in Oskaloosa. Open visitation will be held Wednesday, October 21, starting after 12:00 p.m. at Stillwater Cabin (Boender Cabin 2052 275th Street, Oskaloosa.) The family will be present at the cabin Wednesday from 5:00-8:00 p.m. to greet guests and relatives. The Bates Funeral Chapel is in charge of the arrangements. According to the rules put in place by the Iowa Department of Public Health, proper social distancing and reasonable personal protective equipment is advised for attending a religious public event. The funeral service will be live streamed at the funeral home’s YouTube Channel for those wishing to support the family from a distance. Memorials may be made to Mahaska Health Partnership Infusion Center or a charity of the donors choosing. Special thanks to the medical professionals that had a part in Eric’s care though his journey. His oncologist Dr. Rohan Garje at the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Clinic at the University of Iowa. Dr. Kenneth Nepple his Urologist at the University of Iowa Hospitals and finally Dr. Life here in Oskaloosa at Mahaska Health. Special thanks to Phil DeBoef for walking with Eric during this time. Also to his family and friends who have supported him with thoughts, kind and supportive words, prayers, contributions and many other kind actions. We thank God for letting us love Eric for as long as he did.