Darlene was born the youngest of four siblings on December 22, 1926, in Hospers, Iowa, to parents William and Hattie (Mouw) Bloemendaal. After graduating from Hospers High School in 1944, she moved to Sioux City, Iowa, working for New York Life Insurance Company. She then moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, working for Admiral Corp, and later returned to Sioux City and New York Life again.
In 1951, Darlene married her husband of 62 years, Benno Krull of LeMars, Iowa. They lived in Sioux City, Odebolt, Des Moines, Harlan, Iowa; and eventually moved to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1968. Their union blessed them with two children, Benson and Tamara. In addition to being a loving Mother and Wife, Darlene worked as a school secretary at Westridge in Harlan, Iowa, and at Maplewood Elementary in the North Kansas City School District, retiring in 1985.
Darlene enjoyed playing bridge, crosswords, reading, sewing, Bible studies, and ballroom dancing. She was a member of King of Kings Lutheran Church, and later, Gashland Baptist Church, both in the Kansas City area. She and Ben enjoyed their summer trips to Eagle Lake in Minnesota and winter vacationing in Florida as well as trips to a variety of locations in the US, Mexico, Europe, and Hong Kong, China.
Ben passed away in October of 2013, and in 2017, Darlene moved to Battle Lake, Minnesota to be closer to family.
Darlene is survived by her children, Benson Krull (Connie) West Richland, Washington, and Tamara Curtis (Gene) Battle Lake, Minnesota; seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, siblings, and daughter-in-law, Marjorie (Loncar) Krull.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at 10 A.M., followed by the Memorial Services at 11:00 A.M., both at White Chapel Funeral Home, 6600 NE Antioch Road, Gladstone, Missouri.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Shriner’s Hospitals for Children (in care of the Ararat Shrine Temple, 5100 Ararat Drive, Kansas City, Missouri, 64129).
