Ralph and Betty

I could start the tale by saying “here’s my story sad but true, about a girl that I once knew”. But that would be ridiculous. Ridiculous because the girl I knew is my wife and has been for 39 years and counting. Before I get into a little history about us I should like to preface my remarks by saying that all that has happened in our lives, whether it was having children, or business (s) or political involvement or even the homes in which we lived, the illness we have endured and the health we have enjoyed, all was carefully planned by Our Father in heaven who in His mercy has allowed us to live at the foot of the cross of Jesus. Without His Spirit we would not be able to appreciate our past and His goodness. So that said we boast only in His great majesty and not of ourselves.

Betty was born in Lethbridge AB and I was born in Zwolle, The Netherlands. We were married on Sept. 11, 1971. It took 2 pastors to get that job done; Oom Arend Roukema and Rev. Vandooren. Oom Arend, affectionately known now as Uncle Arnie, was at that time a pastor in Grand Rapids and wasn’t able to perform the actual marriage as prescribed by the province so Rev Vandooren did that part and Uncle Arnie preached the gospel. Kind of a tag team as it were.

We moved to London ON where we lived for about 9 months. I worked in Mt.Bridges for Hollandia Bakeries and Betty worked at the Bank of Montreal. Neither one of us was particularly happy in London and decided to come back to the Burlington/Waterdown area. We purchased our first home, a townhouse on Meadowbrook Rd in Burlington. We loved it. We had just moved in when Janice was born on Dec. 10, 1972. It didn’t change our love for the place but we did come to the conclusion that this townhouse wasn’t going to be big enough for all the children we were going to have. Just to prove a point Peter was on the way and he was born on April 2, 1974. Joy oh joy, a townhouse came on the market two doors down from us and it was a lot larger. Perfect. We could have more children and they could all fit and still have room to spare. Not that we were planning kids, they just showed up.

Before I get to far ahead of myself I should like to back up a little to tell you that with the birth of the children Betty became a full time mom and I went to work for W&H Voortman now known simply as Voortman Cookies. I loved my job and did it well, at least by definition of Opa. He said to me once if you’re putting bread on the table for your wife and children you’re doing a good job. Speaking of Opa, he always wanted me to start my own bakery. I worked for Voortmans for about a year when we started our own bakery. I bought some old but okay equipment from a bakery that had closed in Creemore and trucked it down to Eastway Plaza in Burlington. There we set up shop. We had good times and bad. Added a delicatessen but that didn’t do us much good. After a few years we had the opportunity to move to a different location on the plaza. Wow that made all the difference. Ever hear about location, location, location? It’s true. For a number of years we did very well and were very busy.

Back at the home front things were growing as well. Jack needed a home when he showed up on Oct 15, 1975. Now things were starting to look tight even in our new townhouse. So as we were pondering this children thing, and how many more there would be coming, we get news that Lib was on the way. I’ll never forget the day Betty told me. I can recall saying, “You’re kidding right?” No joking with my Queen about that stuff. Anyway off to work I go, and I knew why I was going too!

One day shortly after digesting this news of one more kid in the townhouse, the land lord from the plaza where we had the bakery came in. We chat about the family and he tells me about this farm up on Hwy 5, a place with 40 acres, a good barn and a house. Partnered with a church brother, we ended up owning the buildings and 10 acres. Along came Lib and we all lived happily ever after. We have been here for over 33 years and the rest is history.

Well not quite, at 28 years old I was diagnosed with cancer; testicular cancer to be precise. I wouldn’t tell you that, except that it put an end to all those children we were going to have. It also had a profound impact on the way we thought about things. We became very aware of how the Lord was involved in our lives in ways we didn’t expect. We look back on those days with thankfulness, for His love was on full display.

Now, back to the bakery business; the retail bake shop was going well, but we started making a high fiber cookie that caught the eye of a chap who decided he could sell that cookie to different stores. We sold the retail bakery and opened a cookie bakery on Harvester Rd. We bought the equipment in Holland and made cookies, thousands of cookies! It was during that time, with time on my hands, that we tried politics.

It was 1988 and we decided to run for city and regional council, ward 3. We started preparing for this early in ‘88 and were successful in obtaining that seat in the Nov. election of that year. Notice I use the word ‘we’. Just so you know it takes a lot of hard work and a willing wife to help make that happen. We stayed in politics for nine rewarding years.

About five years after starting the cookie bakery we sold it and had become involved with Manchester Products which was being managed by Anko. I won’t go into all the details of how we became partners but I will say that Anko and I have been together at MP for about 26 years. You hear a lot of stories about partnerships and how they don’t work, this partnership works and has worked for a long time and going strong. We have a sales manager who says he works for two guys, the one charges ridiculously high prices and the other won’t give any discounts. Anyway the business has grown nicely and we presently work out of a 70,000 sq ft building that can house up to 6,500 pallets. It’s a big warehouse. We reflect on the Lord’s goodness many times. The other thing that Anko and I say to one another is often is “what would Dad think about this?”

So, back to the family, Janice married Mark in 1998 and they have four children and are expecting another in October. Peter moved out to Vancouver and married Martina in 1999. They have three children. Jack married Lee Anne in 2003 and they have two children and are expecting a new arrival in December. Elisabeth married Harry in 2001 and they have four children. Remember how we wanted all those children? Grand kids are even better!

In 2000 we had another shocker. I started having chest pains and had angioplasty to remedy the problem. Six weeks later we were told the stents didn’t work. The day before Lib’s wedding we were told I would need a double bi-pass. Aug 28 of 2000 was a very emotional day for us. So here we were, our youngest daughter marrying the love of her life, and Betty and I trying our best to be happy for her. At the end of November, I had the bi-pass. Today, ten years later, we thank and praise our Father for the gift of life that He grants us every day. Having heart challenges isn’t only my concern. Betty was told two years ago she suffers from a heart disease called HCM. I won’t try to explain what it is but it is presently under control with medication. Once again we had a reminder that God and He alone is in control of every heart beat. Did I say every heart beat?

Lastly, we need to say that having lived on the “farm” for more then 33 years Betty and I are saying good bye to the home where we raised our kids. Lots of memories here and who knows maybe one day I’ll write a book about life at our place. We are moving to Waterdown, to a home in a subdivision with neighbors. We’ve already met most of them and they seem very friendly. Having open space behind us will certainly help. Anyone who has ever been here will understand why we are sorry to leave. It’s a nice spot for sure. But the main reason we’re sorry to leave is that the grand kids only know that when they’re at Opa and Oma’s house they have space to run and play. That’s about to change, but even that we and they will over come. So there you have it, a short story about us. As we look back on our lives we see the guiding hand of our Father in heaven at every turn, and as we go forward I will quote Joshua. “But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15b).

Lidy and Peter

Peter and I were married September 10th, 1976. We were blessed with 8 children. We began our married life in B.C., and in 2001 moved to the promised land, Thorsby, Alberta.

Farming was a way of life in our family and still is today for most of our children. Though we have moved a few miles from the farm site, Peter continues to work on the family farm. I continue to stay at home, enjoying my roles as housewife, Grandma, gopher for the farm, and Grandma-babysitter. We have been working hard with a succession planner. In 3 years time Peter hopes to step back from the farm, continuing to help the boys out at his leisure.

Mandy is married to Richard Molenaar, they have been blessed with 3 sons: Peter, 5, Evan, 3, and Michael, 1 1/2. They are also expecting another baby mid February 2011, D.V. They farm near Grande Prairie on a grain and hog operation.

Trudy lives in her home in the village of Thorsby with her dog, Bella. She continues to work on the family farm.

Jerry is married to Jessica. They have been blessed with 2 girls, Esther, almost 3, and Kara, almost 1. Jerry works on the family farm, and Jessica is working towards a degree in education.

Shelley is married to Karl Tams. They have been blessed with a son, Brodie, 7 weeks old. They have been living in Victoria where Karl has been serving in the Navy. As Karl has asked for a transfer into the Army, he will be, D.V., moving to Gagetown, New Brunswick in August to start further training. Unfortunately Shelley and Brodie will have to stay behind in Victoria during Karl's first course, and they hope to join him later in the fall.

Matthew is married to Sandra. They are expecting their first child mid September, D.V. Matthew works on the family farm.

Jennifer is married to Jan Otten. They have been blessed with a son, Jack, 7 months old. They farm close to Neerlandia, on a dairy operation.

Scott is married to Shari. They have been blessed with one son, Jayden, 5 1/2 months old. Scott is a Private serving with the PPCLI in Edmonton, but hopes to return to work on the family farm in February 2011.

Cameron lives with us at home - looking after the old folks. Cam works on the family farm.

We believe we have been blessed wonderfully with our children and grandchildren. The Lord has also blessed us on our farms. May He continue to bless us. We pray that their will always be peace on our family farm and that the Lord will continue to guide and protect us all.

God has always been faithful. Praise God!

Peter and Lidy DeWit

Hank and Marike

Dearly Beloved,
As requested, we, too, will add a short account of the weal and woe (mostly weal) of our nuclear family.

As we write these lines, it is a rainy Saturday afternoon, the 24th of July. In 2 days we hope to celebrate our 41st wedding anniversary. Many years, many blessings, many memories!

We got married in 1969, the same year Hank graduated from medical school. The first 2 years we lived in the Interns & Residents quarters of St. Joseph's Hospital in Hamilton, after which we settled in the Freelton/Carlisle area of Southern Ontario. While we've moved a few times (1 year in the little house next to the feedmill in Freelton, 3 years in Carlisle across from the Palomino Ranch, 9 years on Conc. XI in Freelton, and since then on Centre Rd @ Flamborough Centre), we're still in this same general location.

During these 41 years, the Lord has blessed us exceedingly. We have 8 wonderful, healthy children, 7 solid in-laws, and 26 grandchildren; again, blessings beyond compare! Peter and Diana and their 4 children live in Hamilton, Toni and Anthony in Gormley with their 5, Nick and Jocelyn near Freelton with their 5 (soon to be 6 D.V.), Hilary and Jelle in Paris with their 3 boys, Harry and Jolene in Beamsville with their 2 daughters, Lisha and James in rural Flamborough with their 5 children, Klarie and Bruce in Beamsville with their 2, while Rebecca is at home at this time. We won't go into details about what they all do for a living, they can either write their own accounts for the blog, or you'll have to ask them at the reunion.

We are still contentedly Canadian Reformed. We still worship with other sinners, and weekly hear the good news proclaimed to us, the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ alone. We have stopped looking for the perfect church, one without music wars, Holy Communion wars, as we've become convinced we won't find one. We don't mind singing the psalms to the tunes our forebears also sang for 4 centuries, and weekly enjoy doing so.

After she taught school for 3 years, Peter arrived, and Marike has been a stay-at-home mom ever since, managing the home affairs during the turbulent years of 8 kids in the house, with boyfriends, girlfriends, joys and tears, etc. Things are quieter now, and she has time to attend Bible study, CAS educational sessions, garden, and paint, especially paint. We have a house full of paintings, and all of you are welcome to visit her blog to see all her masterpieces. Or come by, see them in person, and purchase one or more. In fact, she'll likely give them away free, just to make room for new ones.

Hank remains active in the practice of medicine, now as senior partner at the Carlisle Medical Centre. Even after 39 years, he goes to the office every morning with a spring in his step, still enjoying the challenges of family medicine. We live on a small farm, where we have chickens and sheep, so that keeps him busy too, as well as his vegetable garden, big enough to feed an orphanage. The annual sheep shearing is an event enjoyed by the children of many nieces and nephews, as are the little lambs, once they start arriving in the winter.

We are grateful to be able to serve our Lord and our fellow man in other ways. For the past 11 years we have been foster parents with the Hamilton Children's Aid Society. Over the years we've cared for many children, for shorter or longer periods. As long as the joy of having them, outweighs the pain of seeing them go, we will continue to do this, health permitting D.V. We currently have a little 9 month old, Danika, whom we've had since her birth. Just a joy to have around.

For the past 8 years Hank has been going on short-term medical mission trips, usually to South America, but also to the Caribbean (twice to Haiti in the past year). Marike has come along as a General Helper on a number of occasions. While we know that the impact of what we do there is limited, these trips provide wonderful occasions to reflect on how good our God is, and how marvelously blessed we are.

There are also times when our hearts ache. We miss Opa and Oma dearly. How they would have loved to be at the reunion!

A number of us have health concerns. Albert's decline and current condition grieves us, and seeing the pain this causes Liz and her children, makes us so sad.

May they, and we all, find comfort in the Lord's promises of forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the dead, and life everlasting. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts not our thoughts, so let us be still, and accept, and continue to pray for each other.

Look forward to seeing you all in August.

Trudy and Case

It was April 23, 1977 when Trudy left the Scholtens brood to cleave to one Case deJonge and become his wife. After their wedding, which was marked by torrential downpours and a sermon themed on “divorce,” things went uphill.

Their first house was a cute little stucco bungalow in downtown Dundas, where they spent the first 6 years of their marriage. Case was driving truck at this time, while Trudy worked at the Royal Bank until Derek was born. They enjoyed some great years there, which included Case’s first and last dog, some great neighbours, and four children: Derek (1978), Nicole (1979), Ryan (1982), and Karen (1984). With the arrival of their fourth child, there was no space left in the little three bedroom classic, so they upsized down the same street, Hwy 99, in Copetown.

Case’s work career was spread over truck driving for others, driving as an owner-operator, landscaping and finally finding employment with Terratec Environmental as an operations supervisor. Case never enjoyed the entrepreneurial, businessman prowess of his Scholtens brother-in-laws, but his work at Terratec fit his skills perfectly and he has been there since.

Trudy’s first calling was to be a wife and a mother. This calling got busier with the arrival of two more children: Nathan (1986) and Kevin (1990). To help pay the bills Trudy babysat, cleaned houses, served as the caretaker for the church, and drove the big yellow school bus that filled her driveway for many years. Trudy now works at an old age home as a personal support worker.

The house in Copetown served the family well through the good years and the lean ones. Particularly lean were the winters while Case was landscaping, but the Lord always provided and his faithfulness was evident. As the children got bigger, however, the one bathroom, the water shortage, and a nice looking house down the road all converged into another move and another house, again on the same road.

The deJonge clan headed West once again—about two kilometers west to a split-level home on the hill, which Case and Trudy still call home today. Yet, by the by, this house emptied: Derek married Helena, moved to Guelph and then to Orangeville, working as a technician and serviceman; Nicole bought a house in Hamilton and found a career in nursing; Ryan married Ruth, moved to Brampton, then to Langley, serving the Canadian Reformed Church there as minister; Karen travelled the globe with her husband Randy until they finally settled in Haiti as directors of Adoration Christian School; Nate married Tanya, moved to St. George and is working to become a CA; leaving Kevin, who is dating Michelle, the only child at home, and this only until he completes his university education and hopes to become a teacher.

The Lord has been good to Case and Trudy. They have enjoyed 33 years of marriage, growing closer in love every day. Though Case’s job often demanded long hours away, especially during the summer, Trudy learned that he was always only a phone call away-- and she would often get an ‘update’ from him: 3, 4, 5 times a day. They have enjoyed raising 6 children, all of them serving the Lord. They currently enjoy 8 grandchildren, two of whom are yet to be born: Lydia, Robin, and Megan; Matthew and Unborn #1; Maia and Unborn #2; and Alyssa. They have enjoyed serving in the same church, Ancaster, since its institution in 1984. They have enjoyed health and strength. They have enjoyed the yearly pilgrimage to Arrowhead park to camp with the Scholtens, and they expect to enjoy seeing you all again this summer as you gather once again for a grand “Scholtens Reunion”.

Rebecca

Hello all.

For the most part I just let the plans of the reunion pass me by and assume that my mother will keep me up to date. Sadly I suppose this is a sure sign that I am a) the youngest, and b) still too comfortable letting my mom do things for me, including my laundry.

And yet I thought perhaps, just this once, I would participate. And so, here is an update:

Assuming, once again, that my parents will cover the whole family in another blog, I'll spare you the gory details. The bare minimum is that I am 22 years old, as of this past February. I am the youngest (sigh) of the Henk Scholtens branch, a position I'm not likely going to be allowed to forget....ever.

This past May I graduated from Redeemer University College with a BA in History and a minor in English literature. Coming this October I hope to start a job teaching English in Korea for a year to once again delay the inevitable: decided what to do with my life. After putting it off this long, four years of university is a great diversion from reality, I couldn't help but give it one more year. Maybe the culture shock will help....I guess time will tell.

For now I rest in the hand of our gracious saviour to lead me down his paths and trust in his guidance.

Until August,

Rebecca

Albert and Liz

Let me as oldest member of this large family give you my input. I was hoping for the next generation to do this job, but so far they have not. They should. They all know how to type and their mother tongue is English, a real advantage.
Albert and I married in August 1966. Therefore we have been married longer than most of you have lived. During our marriage the Lord richly blessed us with 5 children, who can all tell you about themselves and their children. For the Lord has blessed them beyond measure too.
The years passed Opa and Oma’s lives have been joyous years in which we could enjoy early retirement. They have also been marked by health concerns regarding Albert. He had 3 stents put in exactly one year after Oma’s death. He had heart surgery and a decline in mental abilities.
Throughout this the Lord continued to bless us with more grandchildren and generally a good time together. When Albert knew that Hank and Michelle were expecting a baby, he prayed for that little one before and after every meal and before he went to sleep. Yet, he does not know her now (she just turned one) and she will never know him and that is our family’s grief.
During Albert's decline at home, the Lord made a Christian day program available at the Salvation Army. When the time came that he needed more care the Lord again provided a place for him. He is very happy at Shalom Manor and generally takes part in most activities.
Personally I am blessed with good health and generally have a joy in life. (Except on hot days)
I would like to end with the one thing I have learned in life and that is to always count your blessings and to think the Lord’s thoughts after Him. When you do that you will see a beautiful pattern develop in your life and see the Lord’s hand in everything.
May we have a wonderful time together.
Liz

Jerry and Nellie

So, I’ve been told to write a thingamabob about our family. Fine, I’ll do it.
I will follow the pattern set by Jack.
Jerry and Nellie have been married for 35 years and have four children. The oldest, Pam is married to Rob Stel of Environics fame. They live in Burnlington, and have three wonderful girls, Jocelyn, in grade three, Annika in kindergarten, and Lydia who is wanting to go to school.
Next is Greg, our eligible bachelor. Greg lives right here in Langley and is a math teacher at North Surrey Secondary. He loves outdoor activities of almost every kind.
Jolene is married to Marty Vreugdenhil and they live in Sumas, Washington. They live on a dairy farm and have three children. Brooke is going to grade two, and Megan is heading into kindergarten this September. Young Casey is a year and a half.
Our youngest, Alan, is married to Tanya, and they live in Aldergrove. They have two boys; two and a half year old Joshua, and 6 month old Owen. Al is a freelance siding applicator.

Nellie and I began our life together here in Langley. Then in 1986, in order to start my teaching career, we moved to Chatham, Ontario. Chatham, we discovered is a wonderful town with many wonderful people. They are an odd combination, being extremely stubborn and yet incredibly hospitable. After 6 great years we moved back to the Fraser Valley to work at Credo Christian Elementary School. During those years Nellie tried as best she could to be a stay at home mom. However, she did need to find other work in order to help keep the household afloat. Different from today, not everyone in those days received bailouts! Nellie babysat, cleaned various houses, and still does this today.
Today life is quieter around our house. We have no children running underfoot. At times we miss this, at other times we quite enjoy it. In order to fill our time we make sure we volunteer at various places, as the Spirit opens doors for us. Besides the work and volunteering that keeps us busy we love to play around in our garden, Jerry in the veggie garden and Nellie in the flower garden.
We are constantly reminded of God’s goodness to us all. Though our house is not as large as other’s (apparently Jack’s is too large!) we love it right where we are. We are convinced that we are right where God wants us, and we keep looking to Him as we move ahead.
We are looking forward to a reunion of vegging and relaxation, and are a little worried with all the activities planned. We will probably tire out well before the festivities are ended, so if you are looking for us about halfway through the fun, don’t bother, we’re probably fast asleep. May God bless us all!