Jayma Van Straten

After a courageous 3 year battle with brain cancer, Jayma Van Straten passed away Tuesday, July 26th at her home surrounded by her family. Jayma was born May 12th, 1966 in Bloomington, Minnesota to Cliff and Wannie Butterfield and settled in as the 5th of 6 children born to the Butterfield family. And what a family! She loved telling stories of her childhood and the fun they had as a family. I think there may have been a little mischief along the way as well. The stories keep coming.

Jayma was a 1984 graduate of St. Joseph Academy in Green Bay and attended the McConnell School of Travel in Minneapolis. She then settled into the role of a corporate travel agent for Sunshine Travel in De Pere and Fox World Travel in Green Bay. In May of 1986 she started dating a guy she knew from her high school days, Dan Van Straten. Jayma and Dan married September 21, 1991 at Resurrection Parish in Allouez and their adventure began. They were blessed with 3 children, Matt, Chris and Lauren. As the kids were growing she took a position as a playground supervisor and then health aide for the Unified School District of De Pere and Dickinson Elementary School where she cared for students for 19 years. Jayma could also be found at the ticket table for Redbird athletic events selling tickets and greeting fans. She was a big Redbirds fan cheering on her own kids and their teammates and loved her football Sundays cheering on the Packers.

On July 29th, 2019 Jayma was diagnosed with Glioblastoma, and we knew we were in for the fight of our lives. As a family we made the choice to Stay Positive and fight. And fight she did! Jayma did not let her cancer define her. She made sure she touched the lives of everyone she met with a warm smile and a hug. Her warmth, her smile and her laughter defined who she was. She believed in helping others and giving back. Jayma and Dan and their family started a back-to-school supply collection drive that has been going strong for 10 years now. Just this past May Jayma and her family created the Redbird Ribbon Walk to help individuals and families battling cancer with all proceeds benefiting the De Pere High School Sting Cancer Club. These events will now live on in her honor.

Jayma and Dan would have celebrated 31 years of marriage this September. She is survived by husband Dan, their daughter Lauren, son Matt and his fiancé Hannah Lilly, and son Chris and fiancé -to-be Mary Leonard and her dog Bentley and cat Murphy. Jayma always thought of Hannah and Mary as her very own daughters. They were there every step of the way during Jayma’s journey and we couldn’t be more proud to have them in our family. Jayma is survived by Dan’s family and also survived by her mother Wannie Butterfield, sister Shelly and Tom Bennie, brother Tom and Suzanne Butterfield, brother Chris and Diane Butterfield, brother Dennis Butterfield and Kathy Wolfe, and her nieces and nephews whom she adored along with her cousins and family in Montana.

Jayma is preceded in death by her dad Cliff, sister Peggy, mother-in-law Mary Jo Koty and her beloved “love bug”, her dog Boomer.

The Van Straten Family would like to thank the Vince Lombardi Cancer Center at Aurora BayCare Medical Center for their care, love and compassion given to Jayma and her family over these 3 years. You have all been angels and we consider you close friends. We would also like to thank Bellin Health, Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center, Mayo Clinic and University of Chicago Medicine for their input and consultation work with our medical team. And to Aurora Hospice, our love and thanks. Your care for Jayma brought us peace in her final days with us. You are true angels in our eyes. And to our friends and families, the Unified School District of De Pere and all those who walked with us during our cancer journey, we thank you and we love you.

In lieu of flowers we ask that you please consider making a donation to the Jayma Van Straten Memorial Back-to-School supply drive or the Jayma Van Straten Memorial Ribbon Walk benefiting the De Pere High School Cancer Club.