Heritage
Eugene Berends ’50
Feb. 26, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
Margery Taylor Bernbaum ’65
May 22, 2020, Rockville, Md.
Barbara Gesink Boeve ’54
Apr. 16, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Clarence Bolt ’50
Apr. 24, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Franklin Bolt ex’48
Jan. 28, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Robert Bolt ’52
Mar. 23, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Francis Bolthuis ’53
May 22, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
David Bos ’60
June 29, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
Jeanne Hammond Bosman ex’42
June 25, 2020, Byron Center, Mich.
Norma Sikkema Bouwkamp ex’62
Feb. 13, 2020, Zeeland, Mich.
David Brink ex’61
July 7, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Marijane Scheffers Buining ex’51
May 15, 2019, Sun City, Ariz.
Rodger Buining ’52
Nov. 26, 2019, Sun City, Ariz.
Annette Minnema Cooke ’50
May 15, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Adeline Van Rhee De Graaf ’49
Apr. 4, 2020, Bloomington, Ill.
John De Haan ’57
May 7, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Howard De Jong ’56
July 4, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
Trenton De Jong ’61
Dec. 26, 2019, Caledonia, Mich.
Herbert De Jonge ’56
Feb. 14, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Karl De Jonge ’59
Jan. 13, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Marian Cooper De Vries ’58
May 31, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Harmon Diemer ’59
June 15, 2020, Caledonia, Mich.
Sandra Hollebeek Dooyema ’68
Oct. 26, 2019, Encinitas, Calif
Bernard Ebbers ex’64
Feb. 2, 2020, Ridgeland, Miss.
Leona Bulthuis Euwema ex’49
May 17, 2019, Elmhurst, Ill.
Garald Gemmen, Sr. ex’59
June 22, 2019, Allendale, Mich.
Georg Gerritsen ’59
May 15, 2020, Port Huron, Mich.
Robert Gillies ’55
Sept. 17, 2019, Ada, Mich.
Marilyn Pranger Gossman ’60
Apr. 2, 2020, St. John, Ind.
Beatrice Koetsier Gregory ex’48
Jan. 22, 2020, Jenison, Mich.
Kay De Graaf Haan ’49
Feb. 7, 2020, Zeeland, Mich.
Lewis Haeck ex’63
Jan. 26, 2020, Port Charlotte, Fla.
Karen Block Hertel ’55
Oct. 2, 2019, Byron Center, Mich.
Ahleen Dekker Heynen ’40
July 7, 2020, Anchorage, Alaska
Rachel Van Someren Hofman ’66
Nov. 20, 2109, Milwaukee, Wis.
Jean Waalkes Homan ’40
Feb. 20, 2020, Jenison, Mich.
David Jansma ’67
Nov. 19, 2019, Santa Fe, N.M.
Robert Jipping ’59
Feb. 10, 2020, Lansing, Ill.
Judith Schut Johnson ’67
Apr. 26, 2019, North Port, Fla.
Rosemary Buist Jongsma ex’55
Apr. 16, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
Gerald Koop ex’58
May 15, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Robert Kuiken ’69
June 2, 2020, Dallas, Texas
Harriet Vandenberg Kuipers ex’46
Mar. 1, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Marvin Kuipers ’66
Sept. 24, 2109, South Hadley, Mass.
John Lameyer ex’67
Mar. 13, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
John Last ’60
Apr. 18, 2020, Newfoundland, N.J.
Charlotte Lendick ex’47
Jan. 6, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Weldon Luckey ’60
Dec. 15, 2019, Grand Haven, Mich.
Linda Halma McCoy ex’68
Nov. 23, 2019, Gaithersburg, Md.
Karen Ploegstra Meyer ’63
May 13, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Martha Huissen Minnema ’45
Mar. 30, 2020, Visalia, Calif.
Robert Muller ex’63
May 8, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Hudson Nyenhuis ’49
Apr. 30, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Eugene Otten ex’54
Sept. 22, 2019, Sheboygan, Wis.
Robert Overbeck ex’48
Feb. 22, 2020, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Douglas Paauw, Sr. ’46
Feb. 17, 2020, Bellevue, Wash.
Boyd Pastoor ex’58
June 2, 2020, Satellite Beach, Fla.
Mary Bylsma Patrick ’65
May 6, 2020, Rockford, Mich.
Agatha Jellema Peterson ’48
Apr. 8, 2020, Montague, Mich.
Dena Stout Prins ’55
Mar. 21, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Wayne Rietberg ’61
Nov. 22, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Betty Rycenga Rodrigues ’52
July 28, 2019, Grand Haven, Mich.
Ellen Kolk Schroder ’56
Mar. 11, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Katherine Kooistra Sechrist ex’42
Apr. 17, 2020, Ridgewood, N.J.
Arlo Siegersma ’59
Mar. 12, 2020, Nampa, Idaho
Donald Sikkema ’53
Feb. 25, 2020, Grand Haven, Mich.
Mary Smitter ex’56
Jan. 31, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Johanna Goodyk Spykerman ex’49
Apr. 5, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Herbert Start ’55
Nov. 13, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Russell Sterenberg ’67
Mar. 28, 2020, Hillsboro, Ore.
Martha Blystra Terpstra ex’50
Dec. 19, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Paul Tuls ’68
May 6, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Gise Van Baren ’53
Aug. 31, 2019, Hudsonville, Mich.
Edward Vandenberg, Jr. ex’43
Jan. 18, 2020, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Marlin “Mike” Vanden Bosch ’57
Apr. 7, 2020, Sioux Center, Mo.
Nancy Vanderploeg Vanden Heuvel ’60
Apr. 3, 2020, Holland, Mich.
William Van de Riet ’66
Sept. 23, 2019, Fort Myers, Fla.
Pearl Vannette Vanderlaan ex’50
Nov. 8, 2019, Muskegon, Mich.
Allan Vander Lugt ’59
July 21, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Jack Vander Meulen ex’63
Feb. 12, 2020, Wyoming, Mich.
Shirley Bult Vander Wall ex’51
Nov. 18, 2019, Citrus Heights, Calif.
Geurt Van Hal ’54
Feb. 23, 2020, Homer Glen, Ill.
Angelyn Van Appledorn Van Hamersveld ex’48
Nov. 22, 2019, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Herman Van Hamersveld, Jr. ex’48
June 8, 2019, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Eleanor Brunink Van Houten ex’45
Jan. 15, 2020, Cadillac, Mich.
Betty Sikkema Van Kalker ’60
May 7, 2020, Lake Worth, Fla.
Ralph Van Kampen ’48
Mar. 17, 2019, DeKalb, Ill.
Warren Van Tongeren ’60
Apr. 17, 2020, Jenison, Mich.
Bernard Veenstra ’50
Mar. 12, 2020, Grand Haven, Mich.
Frances Dykema Vryhof ex’48
April 24, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Bonnie Vande Pol Wiersma ex’62
Feb. 19, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
Alice Wisse ex’48
Oct. 27, 2019, Orland Park, Ill.
Rodger Woltjer ’69
Nov. 8, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Sierd Woudstra ’55
Mar. 22, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Joyce Schrotenboer Wyma ex’51
Apr. 1, 2020, Holland, Mich.
Roger Wyngarden ex’53
Feb. 27, 2020, Grant, Mich.
Jane Hofstra Zwiers ’67
May 4, 2019, Holland, Mich.
1970's
Arlyn Boorsma ’77
Feb. 11, 2020, Wyoming, Mich.
Chris De Korver ex’78
July 4, 2020, Comstock Park, Mich.
Robert DeKraker ex’75
Feb. 19, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Susan Smies Feringa ’77
April 24, 2020, Sheboygan, Wis.
Denise Slager Kraker ex’76
Feb. 16, 2020, West Olive, Mich.
Kenneth Mange ’77
Apr. 29, 2020, Petaluma, Calif.
Jane Kooi Markoski ’75
Dec. 28, 2019, Wilmette, Ill.
Gregg Muilenburg ’71
May 8, 2020, Phoenix, Ariz.
Harlene Padding ’74
Jan. 10, 2020, Walker, Iowa
Garry Quakkelaar ex’77
May 24, 2019, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Paul Recker ’72
Mar. 17, 2020, Rockford, Mich.
William Renkema ’74
Oct. 28, 2019, Lake Odessa, Mich.
Kenneth Schemper ’73
Apr. 24, 2020, Grandville, Mich.
Douglas Schuurman ’77
Feb. 15, 2020, Northfield, Minn.
Gayla Lankheet Vander Molen ex’74
Mar. 11, 2020, Grandville, Mich.
Ronald Vander Molen ex’78
Sept. 24, 2019, Plainwell, Mich.
Larry Wever ex’77
May 19, 2020, Ripon, Calif.
Douglas Wieringa ex’75
Mar. 1, 2020, Hudsonville, Mich.
1980's
John Boonstra ’80
Nov. 29, 2019, Cornelia, Ga.
Catherine Bouwsma ’86
Feb. 25, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Anne Davis Clifford ’80
Dec. 31, 2019, Ellicott City, Md.
Karen De Vries De Haan ex’83
Jan. 26, 2020, Rockford, Mich.
Marilyn Kroondyk Greenway ex’82
Feb. 16, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Janet Daane Overzet ex’81
Richardson, Texas, Dec. 16, 2019
Susan Tameling ’84
Apr. 5. 2020, Indianapolis, Ind.
Rebecca Knoppers Ver Hoef ’83
Mar. 15, 2020, Alto, Mich.
1990's
Thalia “Tolly” Bairas Stiffler ’96
Mar. 29, 2020, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Marlene Hinkley Curtis ’95
Jan. 11, 2020, Ravenna, Mich.
Ann Stoub ’96
Apr. 23, 2020, St. Joseph, Mich.
2000's
Jordan Kok ’08
Jan. 12, 2020, Seattle, Wash.
Andrew Vlietstra ’07
June 11, 2020, Zeeland, Mich.
2010's
Patrick Hekman ’12
Feb. 28, 2020, Alto, Mich.
Robert Bolt, 1930–2020
Making the past come alive was the goal for Robert Bolt, who served as a professor in the Calvin history department for 30 years.
“History is interesting because you’re talking about people all of the time,” Bolt said in a 1995 interview with Spark. “Who would want to go to Fredericksburg, Virginia, and stand on a ridge staring at a stone wall if it wasn’t for the history there, as Ambrose Burnside tried six times to go up and take those heights during the Civil War?”
Bolt, who spent three decades at his alma mater, died March 23. He was 89.
He was known for bringing vibrance to the personalities of history. His research interests included both the religions of great American leaders like Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, and Woodrow Wilson, and their humor. Beyond history, all in the department knew of Bolt’s affection for the Detroit Tigers.
“Bob and I loved baseball, and he even came to forgive me for being a Red Sox fan,” said Ron Wells, a former colleague.
“He and I were ardent Detroit Tigers fans who had to uphold the team’s honor against the Red Sox and Yankee interlopers who befouled our discussions in the department lounge come spring training season,” added Jim Bratt, another former colleague.
Upon his retirement from teaching, Bolt joined the staff at Heritage Hall, where he would spend an additional 22 years working to collect and preserve records for the Christian Reformed Church.
“Perhaps the greatest tribute I can give: In all the years we were colleagues in history and continuing in his post-retirement work in Heritage Hall is that I never heard Bob say a negative word about or to anyone,” said former colleague Bert de Vries. “Robert Bolt was truly a man of peace.”
Bolt is survived by his children, Jim (Elizabeth) Bolt, Bob (Carol) Bolt, Lynn (Larry) Rosendale, Tim Bolt, Kristin (Scott) VanderHoning; 10 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Carolyn.
Elsa Cortina, 1926–2020
In the early days of the Calvin Spanish department, finding qualified teachers was a challenge; finding native speakers of the language was a coup that few universities achieved. When Elsa Cortina providentially showed up at Calvin in 1965, far from her home in Camaguey, Cuba, it was clearly a perfect match.
Cortina would spend more than 30 years serving the department. Starting as a part-time instructor, she would later chair the department from which she retired in 1990. Cortina, 94, died May 2 in Miami, Florida.
As a young married couple, Cortina and her husband, Carlos, were forced to flee Cuba as refugees to America. Eventually, they moved to Grand Rapids so Carlos could attend Calvin Theological Seminary.
While in Grand Rapids, Elsa began washing dishes at a local hospital, but her teaching abilities soon earned her a position at a local high school and eventually Calvin.
“She was quickly noted as an excellent teacher,” said Marilyn Bierling, a former student and colleague of Cortina’s. “I remember being greatly inspired by her and learning a huge amount. It was especially helpful that she was a native speaker of Spanish, who could also teach us about her culture.”
It was Cortina who initiated Calvin’s first semester abroad program in 1983, leading the way for many more to follow.
Cortina remained deeply committed to Calvin following her retirement. For many years she continued to teach in the semester abroad program. Later, she was the focus of the “Elsa Cortina Project,” which was developed by Calvin professors Marcie Pyper and Cynthia Slagter as a teaching aid for Spanish students.
“She was a godly woman, highly esteemed and dearly loved by her colleagues and students at Calvin,” said Pyper. “I owe so much of my life direction to her faithful influence in my life.”
Cortina is survived by her daughter, Elsa Kramer; three grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Carlos.
