Maynard Hofstra

Maynard Hofstra was a man who was always at home in his surroundings, at home in his own skin, thanks to the strong principles and convictions he carried with him where ever he went, touching whoever he met. Maynard was a good Christian man of strong Dutch stock; a man of many skills and many loves. But what Maynard was more than anything, was an example — an example of how to live a good life, and how to be a good man.

Maynard was born in the little town of Friesland, the Netherlands, on July 9, 1928 to Andrew and Tena (Wybenga) Hofstra. The oldest of five children, Maynard grew up in the town of Beegum with his family, where he dutifully went to school and the Christian Reformed Church, which he was a member of his entire life. But in the dark days before World War II cast its long shadow across Europe and the rest of the globe, Maynard and his family struggled to make ends meet, like so many during that time. When war eventually broke out, the Hofstra family picked up and moved to the Lindberg province, to the town of Sittard, where Maynard completed his schooling and entered trade school to learn the Tool and Die trade.

Maynard learned his first life’s lessons in those days, when he saw his father move to a different town to find better work to support the family, and to avoid going to Germany to work helping the Nazi war effort. Maynard always remembered vividly the German invasion of his homeland in the summer of 1940, when he was just 12. First came the planes, then the soldiers on foot, asking if they were in England yet and taking whatever they saw fit. Some even asked Maynard’s father for his bike, but it was safely hidden away. It was here that Maynard learned the value in earning what you have, something he firmly believed in.

After he finished his schooling, Maynard went out to find work to help support his family, taking a job at a mine and fertilizer plant. Work at the plant was difficult, but Maynard dutifully worked to help the family, and the work was much more favorable to that of the coal mines. It was a very difficult time for all his countrymen, and a time when families — and entire communities — worked hard to preserve their way of life.

The going was not easy in the Netherlands, even after the war ended, and the Hofstras wanted something better. In 1950, Maynard’s father found sponsors in the United States to help move him and his family there, a debt the entire Hofstra family worked to repay on their arrival. After a long and difficult journey through Canada to get there, the family settled in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Maynard’s mother had two brothers and there were other good Dutch folk, helping a transition to a new country where they didn’t know the language.

Maynard found work at a local tool and die company in Grand Rapids, where he put his schooling to good use and it was a job he enjoyed. But with his new homeland entering into the Korean Conflict, Maynard was called upon to serve his adopted home, as he was drafted into the U.S. Army.

During his training at Fort Custer near Battle Creek, Maynard by chance returned home and went to church at the Eastern Avenue Christian Reformed Church. It was then and there that he met a young girl named Ann Flikkema, like him a Dutch immigrant. The two fell in love almost instantly, and in true Dutch tradition, held a huge party to celebrate their engagement prior to Maynard shipping out.

Maynard served his country as part of the Military Police on an island in the South Pacific, and counting down the days until he and Ann could be reunited, Maynard was discharged in 1953. Ann and Maynard wasted little time, getting married in August of 1953, beginning a lifetime bond of love and companionship.

After the great turmoil and tumult that marked Maynard’s first 25 years, it was clear his life had changed for the better, and clearer skies were ahead. The young couple found a nice apartment on E. Fulton Street in Grand Rapids, where they still could attend the Eastern Avenue CRC, which now had sentimental as well as spiritual value.

Maynard and Ann had many blessings come their way, including six wonderful children; Andrew, Ellen, Mitchell, Kenneth, Marianne, And Kristine. As the happy family grew, Maynard moved his family to a house near the old Grand Rapids airport, and then to the north end. First to a home on Eastern, and finally to a new home on Highbluff N.E., where he lived the rest of his life. It was there that Maynard watched his children grow, watched his 10 grandchildren play. More than anywhere before, this was Maynard’s home.

And he had certainly earned it. Maynard moved from his job at Leese Tool and Die to the Knapp and Vogt Manufacturing, a job he truly loved at a company he stayed with until his retirement. It wasn’t easy work, but it was rewarding to him, and Maynard appreciated working with his hands, and earning his living for his family.

After moving to the northside home, the family attended and joined the Riverside Christian Reformed Church. There Maynard became more involved than ever, serving as a deacon, elder, cadet counselor, and mission committee member, in addition to being as always, a devout servant of the Lord.

Maynard also put his considerable woodworking talent to use for the church, which greatly appreciated his beautiful pieces. He made several handsome pieces of furniture and other items for the church, which are still in use and serve as a tribute to Maynard’s faithfulness and an example of what can be done for your church.

Maynard eventually retired from his company, but that didn’t mean he sat still. He and Ann began traveling, going back to their homeland in the Netherlands four times to visit relatives and friends. But they always enjoyed coming home to Michigan just as much. They enjoyed the European lifestyle, but their hearts remained here. This was home now. They also traveled around the U.S., and he and Ann always enjoyed their days at the beach on Lake Michigan, as well. But what Maynard really enjoyed most were his hobbies around the house. He loved to keep himself busy doing projects for his church, playing his weekly round of golf with family and friends, spending time with his grandchildren, or his latest woodworking project.

In recent years, after his children and grandchildren had gotten their share of fun from the family’s backyard pool, Maynard eventually filled it in, and contemplated what to put in its place. He was a skilled craftsman, and decided to build a large wooden gazebo. It was a difficult task, one that required tremendous effort, but when it was finished, Maynard took great pride in the accomplishment.

Maynard always loved that feeling of accomplishment, no matter how large or small the task. Oh, he had a great, dry wit and loved very much to tell his many stories, but Maynard was always more of a doer than a talker. He had seen much in his lifetime, seen both the good and bad in mankind, and learned so many important lessons along the way. It’s Maynard’s lessons his family and friends remember most today, the great example he set for others. Like that great, wooden gazebo, it took so much hard work and faith to make Maynard who he was. But like his gazebo, Maynard was a monument of a man. He was a monument to a good life.

Maynard Hofstra, aged 76 of Grand Rapids passed away Tuesday May 10, 2005. Surviving are his wife, of 51 years, Ann Hofstra, his children: Andrew and Roxanne Hofstra, Ellen Phaff, Mitchell Hofstra, Kenneth and Denise Hofstra, Marianne and Ed Grusnis, Kristine Hofstra and Elizabeth Wiley, his 10 grand children, 1 great grandchild, his brothers and sisters-in-law Wilbur and Joan Hofstra, Harry and Shirlee Hofstra, his sisters and brothers-in-law Tina and Hank Dietering, Lucy and Chris Van Lonkhuizen, his brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law Peter and Grace Flikkema, Grace Wildeboer and Eike Van’t Hof, Edie Flikkema, Gita Flikkema, Andy and Frances Pyper and nieces and nephews. Funeral and committal services will be held Friday at 1:30 P.M. at Riverside Christian Reformed Church, 602 Comstock Blvd, N.E. with Rev. Charles Geschiere officiating. Interment will be in Fairplains Cemetery. Mr. Hofstra reposes at the Heritage Life Story Funeral Home, Van Strien – Creston Chapel, 1833 Plainfield N.E. where relatives and friends may meet his family Thursday from 2-4 and 7-9 P.M. For those who wish, memorial contributions to Riverside Christian Reformed Church or Hospice of Holland Home would be appreciated. Please go to www.lifestorynet.com where you can share a memory or sign the on line register book.