Five Brothers and a War

Postscript: Gijsbertus “Bertus” van Pelt

The house was also different. Leendert had been gone for almost 2 ½ years. Piet, Henny and their daughter Marijke had taken over one-third of the house. Jan and Immie had gotten married and had their first daughter, Ankie. They too were living in the house, meaning that Marie and four of her five sons, two daughters-in-law and two young grandchildren were packed in. Kees and Flora were engaged. And Bertus was unemployed, with no particular prospects for improvement. One day when Bertus was in the backyard, the neighbor, Daan Kok, saw him over the fence and asked if he had found employment yet. Upon hearing the answer, he offered to find him a job with the government’s Import & Export Department. And so began his career after the army. Soon after that, on one of his commutes to work, he met his future wife, Jeannette Lammerse, who worked in Den Haag’s Housing Authority. Before long, Bertus became bored with his job. In a casual conversation with Rita and Henny’s half-brother, the prospect of getting a job with the family’s flower business, located in Sassenheim, about 26 km north of the Margrietstraat, arose. The idea was that after training, Bertus could move to the United States to handle American sales. Bertus accepted the job and rented a small flat near his work. The job was usually horrible, but it did offer the promise of a far better future. In 1951, he was transferred to America. Months later, Jeannette would join him, as a nanny for the child of cousin Cora van Helden and her husband, Paul. In May, 1953, Bertus and Jeannette returned to Holland to be married. They planned to move to Canada after the wedding. The wedding took place July 31 st . The move to Canada was (unwisely) planned that October, as the country was slipping into winter mode—with few new job opportunities.

van Pelt

Piet, Marie and Immie at Bertus and Jeannette’s wedding. Cousins Marijke (Piet’s eldest) and Ankie (Jan’s eldest) at the wedding.

Five Brothers and a War

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