John Terpstra

The first decade of the 1900’s was an era of relative calm both domestically and abroad. The Spanish-American War had concluded and World War I was still on the horizon. At its’ close, the great works of President Theodore Roosevelt gave way to four years of Washington D.C. discomfort that would mark William Howard Taft’s presidency. Louis Bleriot became the first person to fly across the English Channel, claiming the prize of 1,000 pounds sterling offered by the daily mail. The odyssey took 37 minutes at an altitude of about 150 feet. Closer to home, Ty Cobb’s Detroit Tigers lost the World Series to the Pittsburgh Pirates in seven games.

On April 2, 1909, Nicholas and Dena (Sterken) Terpstra, both immigrants of the Netherlands welcomed their seventh child into the world, a son named John. Raised on the family farm outside of Grand Rapids on M-45, the Terpstra family was extremely close despite their size – they had thirteen children - and everyone watched out for each other. Farm life was never without a multitude of chores and daily work to be done. John enjoyed this work and as a result concluded his formal education at the 8th grade.

John liked all of his siblings immensely, that is to say he had a lot of fun with them. This enjoyment further developed him into the mischievous prankster and jokester he will always be remembered to be. Case in point, as a child he and a classmate waited for their teacher to enter an outhouse, only to tip it over door-side down. But he did have a serious side. As a teenager he played the violin, even forming a band with some of his friends. No one is quite sure how accomplished they were on account their most prominent instrument was a large drum. About that same time, John traveled with a friend to Milwaukee to attend a school for refrigeration repair. He had developed an appreciation for mechanics and was quite good at it. After the school was over, they decided to save some money on their return trip home. The two decided to stow away on the Clipper, the ferry from Milwaukee to Ludington. As great of a plan as it seemed, they were caught and had to pay for their trip anyway. This began his career in refrigeration.

One day on a service call at the Edison Home on Walker and 3Mile Road he met Neoma Mark, the family babysitter. They quickly developed a mutual interest in one another, spending time and attending church together. They were married on February 15, 1935. John and Neoma had six children, Royce, Shirley, Sharon, Jacquelyn, Kathryn and Nancy. After Neoma left, John raised the children on his own. They depended on each other a great deal and as a result became very close. John was a Mr. Mom ahead of his time. If there was one thing he was good at it was having fun. John’s passion was fishing – fly, ice, pier and boat. He taught all of the children to fish and often made the girls either bait the hook with worms or remove the fish from the hook. The kids remember the pre-fishing ritual of looking for night crawlers at a local golf course with flashlights. Royce was his fishing and bird hunting partner. They fished on the south branch of the Pere Marquette River near Baldwin. And no successful trip was without a fish fry. The girls became quite good at camping. The trips always included stopping along the way so Dad could cook breakfast on the Coleman stove. Once there, they always sang songs around the campfire. John was a wonderful baker as well. He made excellent apple pies, donuts and fat balls. The children also remember going to their dad’s store at Van’s Electric on Saturdays. Van’s would hire them to hand out leaflets around the neighborhood. John even made toboggan rides more fun by pulling the children down the street behind the station wagon. John continued to date without much success until he met Esther Antonides on a date, set up by his brother Oscar. He was drawn to her by her faith, religious beliefs and values. According to the children, “They fell in love right away”. “Oh those eyes” was the comment they remember their father saying. They married in August of 1959. Together they enjoyed camping, fishing and the outdoors. But mostly, they enjoyed each other. John and Esther spent all of their time together – wherever one was so was the other. They also spent time of harvest together, whether in the garden or picking apples and cherries. He and Esther enjoyed playing golf, bowling, fishing, yard work, and gardening. They also vacationed in Arizona, Florida, and Canada.

John touched many lives outside of his family. His faith was an extremely important facet of his life. He was a long time member of Walker United Reformed Church, where he was a Cadet leader and active in the Men’s Society. He had high standards for his faith and often held others to those same standards. He was verbally open about his faith and made sure he and his children attended church twice on Sunday. Meals included prayers and devotions. He was also a member of the local steamfitters and plumbers union.

John went to his Heavenly home on Tuesday January 13, 2004. His family includes his wife Esther, children Royce (Delores) Terpstra of Jenison, Shirley Holtrop, Sharon Zahm and Jacquelyn O’Mealy of Grand Rapids, Kathryn Hoogewind of Coopersville, Nancy (Del) Wiersma of Spring Lake; stepchildren Allen (Barb) Antonides and Evelyn (Rich) Ekkens of Grand Rapids, Gordon (Roberta) Antonides of Arizona, 39 grandchildren, 76 great-grandchildren, brothers Oscar Terpstra and Robert Terpstra, a sister Dorothy Holwerda and many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Relatives and friends may meet his family at the Heritage Life Story Funeral Home, 851 Leonard St. NW on Thursday from 7-9 PM and on Friday from 2-4 and 7-9 PM. The funeral service will be held at 11 AM on Saturday January 17, 2004 at the Walker United Reformed Church, 1919 Randall St. NW. Interment will be at Rosedale Memorial Park. To read John’s life story, share a memory, send flowers or make a memorial contribution to the Christian Rest Home or Walker United Reformed Church please visit his personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com. The family wishes to especially thank the staff at the Christian Rest Home for their kind and compassionate care shown to John.

John believed in the path of family, faith and devotion. He also liked to have fun. So the next time a practical joke is played on you, just think of John and it will all be “Okee Dokee”!