André “Andy” Constant Van Der Heyden, age 86 passed away Feb. 12, 2024, in St. George Utah. He was born on April 8, 1937, in St. Gillis Waas, Belgium, to Arthur and Maria Van Der Heyden. He married Alvena “Yvonne” Yaeger on June 29, 1957, in St. Charles, Illinois.
Andy immigrated to the United States when he was 12 years old and settled in St. Charles, Illinois, with his family. He attended barber school in Chicago and spent several years cutting hair — he was especially good at cutting flat tops. Andy enlisted in the U.S. Army on Jan. 11, 1956, but during training, he injured his right arm and was medically discharged. He worked for a time in production for General Motors and then later at General Mills.
Andy and Yvonne had six children: Judy (Tony) Frank of Washington, Utah; Kathy (Jon) Leavitt of Star, Idaho; Danny (deceased Aug.18, 2006); Steven (Shauna) Van Der Heyden of Washington Utah; Andrea (David) Redenbaugh of Cumming, Iowa, and Lisa (Steve) Beckham of Franklin, Tennessee. They have 16 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.
With their children’s help, Andy and Yvonne owned and operated a Dairy Queen in St. Charles, Illinois, for several years but decided to head out to California to strike gold. They owned and operated “That Yogurt Place” for several years while living in Newhall and Saugus but decided to try their luck in the restaurant business.
They moved to Sierra Madre, California, and started a restaurant called “The Lunch Box.” After many successful years, Andy and Yvonne got the itch, sold the restaurant and moved back East to Mount Morris, Illinois, and owned and operated “Dad’s Dog House.” When retirement age came upon them, Andy and Yvonne sold that business and set out for Utah to live by family members. They lived for a time in Harrisburg, (Leeds) Utah, and then moved to Hurricane, Utah, to settle down.
Andy and Yvonne were introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints several years prior to his passing and they were sealed together for time and all eternity in the St. George, Utah Temple on July 12, 2016.
A family graveside service will be held Saturday, Feb. 17, at the Washington City Cemetery under the direction of McMillan Mortuary. To share condolences, click here to access the McMillan Mortuary website.