April 09, 1929 - February 24, 2021
Magdalena ‘Maggie’ (Potgieter) Kruger passed away on February 24, 2021 at the age of 91 in Auburn, Kansas. She was born on April 9, 1929, in East London, South Africa.
Maggie was a direct descendant of Harmen Jansz Potgieter who was one of the very first immigrants from Europe to South Africa. He was a resident of Nordhorn, Grafschaft Bentheim, Germany and arrived in South Africa in 1670. His wife, Isabella Fredericks, was from Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Maggie was the second of five children born to Petrus Hendrik Potgieter and Anna Sophia Stevens. Her older brother Peter lives in Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa and her youngest brother Eric still lives in East London, Easter Cape, South Africa. Her deceased brother, Alan, was living in Bloemfontein, South Africa, at the time of his death. A fourth sibling, Anna, died shortly after birth.
When Maggie was a young girl, her parents joined the Seventh-day Adventist church and she remained a faithful member and dedicated Christian until her death. She attended Girls High School (Clarendon High School) in East London and after leaving school, she began working as a seamstress. This became a life-long passion and many of the wealthy people of East London were her customers. She ran her business from home enabling her to be with the five children she raised while her husband, George, was gone most of the week working as a commercial representative.
