William Janssen, born November 16, 1933, in The Hague, Netherlands.  

He was the fifth child of seven siblings.  At 20 years of age, Wim travelled to the University of British Columbia to study the Science of Forestry.  When I think about this move I am amazed at how daring this would be to move from a Holland to Canada, but these two countries have very close ties.

In his final year of studies, he was working art a forestry camp in Maple Ridge.  This is were he and Marilyn met.  Marrying in November 1957, the couple travelled to Pasadena California where Wim had received a Rockefellar Scholarship to study theology.

Wim spent 25 years serving the Presbyterian Church across Canada.  It was when he served in the Petawawa area that they adopted Linda.  It was a few years after this that they returned to British Columbia.  Wim finished his career in Social Services providing counselling in the Fort St. John area located in the north-eastern part of BC.

Shortly after Wim retired he passed away.  He was a beloved family man and well respected in the community.  With the church overflowing, they said goodbye to their father, husband and friend.  Linda has expressed how the loss of her dad left a void as she missed the first 17 years of her life with him due to her memory loss from the accident.

Here are some of the anecdotes from Linda about her dad:

“After I was finally able to go home from the hospital, I was still required to go back to the hospital in Vernon for check ups on my leg.  The best thing about these trips was dad would stop at Wendy’s on the way home and we would get a chocolate frosty.  With six siblings, this was something special for me to have just with my dad.”  

“My dad was a phenomenal minister.  As a preachers kid I have had to sit through other church services and I never heard another minister tie the whole service together like my dad did.  He was a gifted man.  I remember my dad in his office preparing the sermon he would preach on Sunday.  He was a gifted minister in the way he talked to everyone.”

“He had two modes of transportation that I remember.  One was a pedal bike and on the back was a stand that he always had stacks of books on it held together with several big black rubber tie down straps.  The other one was a “ motorcycle “ which to me was one of his greatest possessions.  I think it was barely a motorcycle in the way of cc’s but to him it was his ride.  The blue milk crate he had strapped on the back for all his things needed for the day when he went to work made it very special.”

“I seem to use the word “ blessed “ all the time when I am asked about this family that I was adopted into and that’s because I was.  My dad passed away December 31, 1999 which left a hole in my life, it was a hard thing for me to get over.  Luckily for my me, Brian came into my moms life and he is now my dad.  Two amazing men for me to look up to and try to follow in their footsteps.”

“Every year I would buy my dad a Letts of London pocket size yearly organizer.  Leather, gold on the pages and gold corner things.  It grew harder and harder to find them and I was ordering them from London because that’s how much he loved and treasured them.  I have a few of them from after he died.  He wrote down birthdays, people he prayed for daily, things going on the in church and with the family … . It tugs on my heart when I flip through them and see the things that he wrote down about the family.”

When I think back to when I first heard Wim speak on the phone his voice was kind and curious.  I found out his history of travelling to Canada, his love of the outdoors and family it wouldn’t surprise anyone that he opened his arms to adopt children in need of a loving family and home.  Wim’s educational journey and career make it clear that he had a  brilliant mind and he put his talent of listening and guiding others to a career that helped countless of people.

My favourite memory of Wim is me, so incredibly nervous, getting off the train in Salmon Arm to meet Linda.  I was searching for these faces I had only seen in photos, and then I saw Wim.  I have tears in my eyes right now as I try and explain what it felt like.  It was literally like seeing someone I’ve known for a very long time.  He opened his arms and hugged me like I was his own daughter.  Then, stepped back and was in shock at how much I looked like Linda.  Then he grabbed my hand and led me through the crowd of people to find Linda.

Although Wim was a short part of my life, I know that he was an amazing father to my sister Linda. If you feel blessed to have the family you have in life, cherish them and tell them that you love them!