Obituary of Gerrit Jan VAN DOORN

VAN DOORN, Gerrit Jan December 28th, 1920 – July 11th, 2015 Old soldiers never die – they just fade away On July 11th, our family said goodbye to a beloved husband, father, grand-father, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather who was 94. Gerrit was born and raised in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where he lived with his parents and six siblings until 1939, the beginning of WWII. He joined the Dutch army and became a member of the Princess Irene Brigade. He served the Netherlands overseas for eight long years, ending his military career in Indonesia with the Intelligence Unit. Upon his return in 1946, he married his life partner, Jurrina. Their children, Irene and Frank, were both born in The Hague. The family of 4 immigrated to Calgary in 1958 and, shortly after their arrival, Gerrit took a job at the CPR where he worked until his retirement at age 65. In 1985, Gerrit and Jurrina decided to move to Victoria, BC. After a year, their retirement home became Qualicum Beach for 23 years and in 2008 they decided to move to Strathmore to be closer to their family. Gerrit always loved fly-fishing which he did with family and friends as often as possible, both in Holland and Canada. His expertise at gardening was phenomenal and his gardens, whether in Alberta or BC were show-pieces. He always dressed like a gentleman and was liked and loved by all who met him. Besides his life’s love, Jurrina, and their two children, Gerrit is survived by two brothers in the Netherlands, a sister-in-law in Calgary and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews world-wide, grand-children, great-grand-children, as well as several great-great-grandchildren. Gerrit was an Ordinary member at the Strathmore Royal Canadian Legion as a WWII Veteran. He will be missed by all who knew him. Rest in Peace, Opa. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Strathmore Legion Veteran Activities Fund. No service will be held, at Gerrit’s request. However, there will be a Celebration of Life, open to all friends, at the Strathmore Legion on Saturday, August 15, 2015 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. To send condolences, please visit Gerrit’s obituary at www.wheatlandfuneralhome.ca Send Condolences