Monday, April 23, 2012
I NEED YOUR HELP - LOST UNCLE
I have a lost uncle. My father spoke of a young boy who came to his home when he was about five years old. All he could remember is that a lady came to the door with a young boy and handed this boy off to my grandfather Cornelias Van Wyngaarden and told him that it was his turn to have him. Evidently my grandfather had fathered a son and this boy's mother didn't want the responsibility of trying to take care of a young boy during the war. I'm sure she was very desperate and feared for the boy's life. My father recalls he stayed with his family for a short time and then one day he was gone. I have desperately tried to find more information and hopefully locate this boy. I was able to verify this information with one of my aunts who has passed away. I have one living aunt who also knows about this boy. The problem is my aunt refuses to talk to me about him and at 92 years old she will not tell me anything because she feels it makes her father look bad and will embarass the family. She said she will carry this secret to the grave. I am very saddened by this attitude because there could be another uncle and cousins somewhere that I would love to meet. Not just an uncle and cousins for me and my siblings but another brother that my aunt could have. In my mind, who really cares if there was a baby born out of wedlock, this was a long time ago and in terrible circumstances with World War II. I just want to know if I have an uncle still living. If anyone knows anything about this, PLEASE contact me and tell me what you know.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
INTRODUCING THE VAN WYNGAARDEN CHILDREN
Cornelias Johannes (Case) is the eldest of the five children and was born in Holland . Being the first born son he was name after his paternal grandfather Cornelis Johannes.
Five years later and living in a new country Mary Jayne was born. Mary was named after her maternal grandmother's mother Maria and also after her maternal grandmother Jayne.
Only thirteen months later Barbara was born and she was named after her paternal grandmother Barbara
A short seventeen months later John Ralph Paul was born and he was named after his mother's two older brothers that died in Holland and after his maternal grandfather Paulus.
And last but certainly not least, nine years later Rebecca (Becky) was born. There were many difficulties with Becky's birth and mom decided to name Becky a Bible name. When mom found out she was going to have a baby, she asked all of us kids what we were rather have...a baby sister or brother, or a pony. Of course I said I'll take that pony but now I'm glad we have Becky instead.
MOM AND DAD - COMING TO AMERICA
Our parents, Pieter Van Wijngaarden and Nellie (Van Emmerik), came to America in 1949 aboard a large ship with their young son, Casey, who was only two years old. Upon their arrival to America the spelling of their last name was changed to Van Wyngaarden (I'm not sure why but will do some research on it and let you know later). Think how brave you would have to be to leave your home to start a brand new life. Pieter, Nellie, and Casey followed Nellie's father and mother (Paulas Arie Van Emmerik and Jannegie Wilhelmina (Kuiters) who came to America a year earlier to pave the way for their daughter and family to follow. I can only imagine how hard it would have been to leave all their personal belongings behind not to mention family and friends to start this new life. When coming to America Pieter had to say good-bye to his parents a brother, two sisters and many other friends. I am sure many, many tears flowed as the ship left the dock. What passion and drive they must have possessed to make that huge decision without knowing what the future would bring. To take their family to a new world where they didn't speak the language, have jobs, or friends all for the dream and hope that they would have a better life than the one they left behind.
My parents along with my Grandparents were true pioneers of their day, my family traveled over the ocean to start their new life here in America. I will forever be thankful to them for making this huge sacrifice to allow us, their children, to grow up in a land of freedom and riches beyond their wildest dreams. Thank you Opa, Oma, Dad, and Mom for giving us a wonde
rful life!
MEET MY MOM AND DAD
PIETER VAN WYNGAARDEN
Dad was born April 6, 1923 in Dordrecht, Holland. According to Nellie, Pieter was a very good looking young man and he knew it. She said he had many girls that loved to be with him and he was a very good dancer. I always remember his as being a very hard worker and often working more than one job to make sure the bills were paid. One of the fun things about Dad was the fact that he was on a radio show which he did on Sundays for over 25 years playing his beloved Dutch music for all the Hollanders in Utah. Mom always had his program on at home and you could hear Dad and his Dutch music throughout the house. His sign off statement was, "Nel, put the potatoes on, I'll be home soon".
He loved his family and especially his children. Dad loved to be with his children and took us to dinner every Sunday to a buffet where he loved it when his grandson Ryan would get his ice cream and other desserts for him. Dad loved to go on vacations with is family and we spent several summers going to Balboa Beach near Newport Beach in California. We would all cram into the car and head out with no idea where we were going to stay but we never worried about it. I recall laying in the grass at the park in Fillmore, Utah before continuing on with our journey so dad could rest up a bit. I'm not sure we had air-conditioning in our car because we always traveled at night. It was our first time at Balboa Beach where our family enjoyed our first Slurpee from 7-11 when us girls meet a guy who wanted to impress us.
Dad was a great shopper and loved to buy clothes for mom. It was not unusual for him to come home after shopping spree to bring mom several dresses. He always loved for her to look nice.
Dad also loved cleaning the house and you could find him spending his Saturdays cleaning and rearranging the furniture.
Dad died suddenly of a heart attack on June 29, 1987.
NELLIE VAN EMMERIK
Mom was born on August 27, 1927 the only girl in her family so she was very loved. From the pictures of mom growing up you can see she was a very beautiful lady. She was also very determined and knew what she wanted out of life.
Mom had an awful turn of events when one day she couldn't feel the butterfly kisses on her cheek from her granddaughter Amber and noticed her cheeks were numb. Shortly after that she noticed what she described as a curtain that fell over her eyes causing her vision to go away. After examination and testing it was discovered that mom had a brain tu
mor. It wasn't cancerous but it was growing at a fast speed. After several operations to her brain and then radiation mom quickly went blind. There is one thing about mom and that was she never, ever felt sorry for herself because of her condition. She still tried to live her life as full as she could.Mom died peacefully at my home on December 12, 2003
Holding her little brother Paul.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
MEET MY GRANDPARENTS
In Holland the word Oma means Grandma and the word Opa means Grandpa. The way we distinguished which grandparent we were talking about we would say Oma and Opa for my mother's parents since they lived with us. Then Oma Holland and Opa Holland were used to talk about my father's parents.
OMA AND OPA
For as long as I can remember Oma and Opa lived either with our family or very near our house. Oma - Jannegie Wilhelmina (Kuiters) Van Emmerik was born on December 10, 1896 in Dordrecht, Holland. This was one amazing lady and I will forever be in awe of her life and accomplishments. While living in Holland she won the lottery and with the money purchased a small store where she made a good living for her family. At her store she had a reputation of having the best pickles in town. Oma had five children; Johannes Hendrikus, Roelof, Pieternella Elizabeth (my mom), and twin boys Pieter and Paulus Arie. Oma was the best grandmother a child could have!! She was very loving, very giving of her time and money, had a wonderful fun sense of humor, and was a very independent woman. I remember my grandmother working as a house cleaner for some very wealthy families who absolutely loved her. After coming to America she wanted to be a citizen of this great country and on August 15, 1963 she took the oath of becoming a citizen of the United States. She live a very full life and enjoyed going to Wendover to play the slots. Oma died Sepember 26, 1983 at the age of 86 in Sandy, Utah. I feel sad to say that I don't really know to many personal things about Opa. Opa - Paulus Arie Van Emmerik was born April 13, 1894 in Dordrecht, Holland and after coming to America he too became a citizen of the United States November 18, 1954. He was a quiet man that keep to himself and loved watching boxing. I remember taking walks with Opa to places like getting my haircut. Once he was taking me and John to get our hair cut at the barber college on about 500 South and 400 East and we crossed the street as the traffic was coming. Opa held his arms out straight and yelled out for the cars to take it easy in dutch as they honked and swerved past us. I don't remember being scared but I knew we weren't suppose to be crossing the street at that time. We also looked for bottles along the way and then turned them in at a small grocery store and gave us 2 cents for each one. Those were the days!!! Opa died June 4, 1966 at the age of 72 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Pictured left to right
back row: Pieter, wife Nellie, Joan, husband Paul, Piet, wife Sunny
middle row: Casey, Barbara, Paulus (Opa), wife Jannejie (Oma), John, Mary
OMA AND OPA HOLLAND
Oma Holland - Barbara (Voster) Van Wijngaarden was born August 20, 1892 in Dordrecht, Holland. She was a very sweet woman that was able to come to America to see her family a few times. She came once and I remember she and my mother sewing clothes for me and my sister. We use to receive wonderful packages from Holland many times filled with chocolates, candies and of course salted black licorice which was our families favorite treat. She would also put small trinkets in the packages for all the children. Oma Holland had four children; Abraham Corenlis, Bastiaantje Jeanne, Pieter (my father) and Barbara. Oma Holland died July 1, 1983 in Dordrecht, Holland. Opa Holland - Cornelis Johannes Van Wijngaarden was born January 5, 1891 in Dordrecht, Holland. He was a stocky man that smoked a cigar. Opa Holland died on July 11, 1972 in Dordrecht Holland.I wish I knew more about them and I can see now how important it is to ask family members about their lives before it is to late.
left to right
TOP ROW: Bastiaantje Jeanne, Arie, Barbara, Lane, Nellie, Pieter, Mart and Abraham Corenlis, SECOND ROW: Jon, Case, Robert
THIRD ROW: Joanne, Oma Holland (Barbara) Opa Holland (Cornelis) and John
SITTING: Mary, Barbara, Barbara
Yes, that makes four Barbara in this picture!!
OMA AND OPA
For as long as I can remember Oma and Opa lived either with our family or very near our house. Oma - Jannegie Wilhelmina (Kuiters) Van Emmerik was born on December 10, 1896 in Dordrecht, Holland. This was one amazing lady and I will forever be in awe of her life and accomplishments. While living in Holland she won the lottery and with the money purchased a small store where she made a good living for her family. At her store she had a reputation of having the best pickles in town. Oma had five children; Johannes Hendrikus, Roelof, Pieternella Elizabeth (my mom), and twin boys Pieter and Paulus Arie. Oma was the best grandmother a child could have!! She was very loving, very giving of her time and money, had a wonderful fun sense of humor, and was a very independent woman. I remember my grandmother working as a house cleaner for some very wealthy families who absolutely loved her. After coming to America she wanted to be a citizen of this great country and on August 15, 1963 she took the oath of becoming a citizen of the United States. She live a very full life and enjoyed going to Wendover to play the slots. Oma died Sepember 26, 1983 at the age of 86 in Sandy, Utah. I feel sad to say that I don't really know to many personal things about Opa. Opa - Paulus Arie Van Emmerik was born April 13, 1894 in Dordrecht, Holland and after coming to America he too became a citizen of the United States November 18, 1954. He was a quiet man that keep to himself and loved watching boxing. I remember taking walks with Opa to places like getting my haircut. Once he was taking me and John to get our hair cut at the barber college on about 500 South and 400 East and we crossed the street as the traffic was coming. Opa held his arms out straight and yelled out for the cars to take it easy in dutch as they honked and swerved past us. I don't remember being scared but I knew we weren't suppose to be crossing the street at that time. We also looked for bottles along the way and then turned them in at a small grocery store and gave us 2 cents for each one. Those were the days!!! Opa died June 4, 1966 at the age of 72 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Pictured left to right
back row: Pieter, wife Nellie, Joan, husband Paul, Piet, wife Sunny
middle row: Casey, Barbara, Paulus (Opa), wife Jannejie (Oma), John, Mary
OMA AND OPA HOLLAND
Oma Holland - Barbara (Voster) Van Wijngaarden was born August 20, 1892 in Dordrecht, Holland. She was a very sweet woman that was able to come to America to see her family a few times. She came once and I remember she and my mother sewing clothes for me and my sister. We use to receive wonderful packages from Holland many times filled with chocolates, candies and of course salted black licorice which was our families favorite treat. She would also put small trinkets in the packages for all the children. Oma Holland had four children; Abraham Corenlis, Bastiaantje Jeanne, Pieter (my father) and Barbara. Oma Holland died July 1, 1983 in Dordrecht, Holland. Opa Holland - Cornelis Johannes Van Wijngaarden was born January 5, 1891 in Dordrecht, Holland. He was a stocky man that smoked a cigar. Opa Holland died on July 11, 1972 in Dordrecht Holland.I wish I knew more about them and I can see now how important it is to ask family members about their lives before it is to late.
left to right
TOP ROW: Bastiaantje Jeanne, Arie, Barbara, Lane, Nellie, Pieter, Mart and Abraham Corenlis, SECOND ROW: Jon, Case, Robert
THIRD ROW: Joanne, Oma Holland (Barbara) Opa Holland (Cornelis) and John
SITTING: Mary, Barbara, Barbara
Yes, that makes four Barbara in this picture!!
MEET MY GREAT GRANDPARENTS
Ok, this is cool!! I actually have pictures of my great grandparents, whom I have never met, that lived in Holland. I'll start with my paternal great grandparents.
THE KUITERS
In the picture shown to the left are Roelof Kuiters and his wife Maria (Van Doorn) Kuiters with my grandmother Jannegie Wilhelmina. Roelof and Maria had eight children together, they are Roelof born July 19, 1885 he married Wilhelmina Vanrijn and died June 13, 1951. Johannes born September 19, 1886, he married Willemien Knierien and died July 2, 1951. Pieter born March 30, 888 and died August 27, 1888. Pieter born February 8, 1890 and died February 9, 1906. Hendrik born June 9, 1892, married Jaantje Van Der Meyden and died June 7, 1966. Wilhelm born March 5, 1894 and died September 23, 1896. Jannegie Wilhelmina (my grandmother) born December 10, 1896, married Paulus Arie Van Emmerik (my grandfather) and died 26 September 1983. Willemina born 1898 and died in 1899.
Maria (Van Doorn) Kuiters
I'm not sure what the occasion was to have this picture taken. The only two people I know in this picture are my grandmother, seated on the floor on the left side and her mother Maria seated on the first seat on the left on the second row.
THE VAN EMMERIKS
In this picture shown to the left are Johannes Hendrik Van Emmerik, his wife Pieternella Elizabeth (Legerstee) Van Emmerik and their family. I don't know names of the children shown except for my grandfather Paulus Arie sitting on the second row and is the third one in from the left. My grnadmother Jannegie is sitting on the second row and is the fifth on in from the left. I am pretty sure my grandfather is holding his first born son Johannes Hendrikus. Together Johannes and Pieternella had thirteen children. They are Heiltje born October 18, 1892, married Cornelis Sleeking, and died January 17, 1920. Paulus Arie (my grandfather) born April 13, 1894, married Jannegie Wilhelmina Kuiters, and died September 28, 1916. Johannes Hendrik born April 10, 1895, married Alberdina Sijpestijn. Aaltje born October 12, 1896, married Mathijs Brand. Marigje born December 11, 1897 and married Hendrik Ten Bloemendaal. Elisabeth born September 27, 1899 died August 22, 1900. Pieter Hendrik born November 11, 1900. Elisabeth born June 24, 1902, married Peter De Graag. Bastiaan born December 5, 1903 married Magdelene Mensen. Helena Hendrina born August 18, 1905, married Willem A. Nugteren. Pieternella Elisabeth born March 30, 1907, married Dirk Van Der Merwe. Hendrika born March 29, 1910, married Hendrik J. Van De Rest. Adrianus born April 19, 1913, married Evalina Van Gemert.
THE KUITERSIn the picture shown to the left are Roelof Kuiters and his wife Maria (Van Doorn) Kuiters with my grandmother Jannegie Wilhelmina. Roelof and Maria had eight children together, they are Roelof born July 19, 1885 he married Wilhelmina Vanrijn and died June 13, 1951. Johannes born September 19, 1886, he married Willemien Knierien and died July 2, 1951. Pieter born March 30, 888 and died August 27, 1888. Pieter born February 8, 1890 and died February 9, 1906. Hendrik born June 9, 1892, married Jaantje Van Der Meyden and died June 7, 1966. Wilhelm born March 5, 1894 and died September 23, 1896. Jannegie Wilhelmina (my grandmother) born December 10, 1896, married Paulus Arie Van Emmerik (my grandfather) and died 26 September 1983. Willemina born 1898 and died in 1899.
Maria (Van Doorn) Kuiters
I'm not sure what the occasion was to have this picture taken. The only two people I know in this picture are my grandmother, seated on the floor on the left side and her mother Maria seated on the first seat on the left on the second row.
I love looking at these pictures knowing that they are all over one hundred years old
THE VAN EMMERIKS
In this picture shown to the left are Johannes Hendrik Van Emmerik, his wife Pieternella Elizabeth (Legerstee) Van Emmerik and their family. I don't know names of the children shown except for my grandfather Paulus Arie sitting on the second row and is the third one in from the left. My grnadmother Jannegie is sitting on the second row and is the fifth on in from the left. I am pretty sure my grandfather is holding his first born son Johannes Hendrikus. Together Johannes and Pieternella had thirteen children. They are Heiltje born October 18, 1892, married Cornelis Sleeking, and died January 17, 1920. Paulus Arie (my grandfather) born April 13, 1894, married Jannegie Wilhelmina Kuiters, and died September 28, 1916. Johannes Hendrik born April 10, 1895, married Alberdina Sijpestijn. Aaltje born October 12, 1896, married Mathijs Brand. Marigje born December 11, 1897 and married Hendrik Ten Bloemendaal. Elisabeth born September 27, 1899 died August 22, 1900. Pieter Hendrik born November 11, 1900. Elisabeth born June 24, 1902, married Peter De Graag. Bastiaan born December 5, 1903 married Magdelene Mensen. Helena Hendrina born August 18, 1905, married Willem A. Nugteren. Pieternella Elisabeth born March 30, 1907, married Dirk Van Der Merwe. Hendrika born March 29, 1910, married Hendrik J. Van De Rest. Adrianus born April 19, 1913, married Evalina Van Gemert.
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