Jan Blekkenhorst

Jan (John) Blekkenhorst, age 86, was welcomed to his heavenly home on Thursday, July 10, 2016 at Pinewood Court.

His devotion to family and firm belief in God supported him throughout his entire life. Jan was born on July 7, 1930, to the late Willemina Aleida (Gerrits) and Hendrik Jan Blekkenhorst in Den Ham, Overijssel, in the Netherlands. Jan was blessed with a large and loving family. 

He married Geertje Kamphof on June 1, 1954 in Denham, Overijssel, 61 years ago.  In 1958 they, along with their first son, immigrated to Canada to pursue their dream of farming where they purchased a farm in Baird Ontario, now a part of Thunder Bay.

Jan and Geertje raised their five children with patience, discipline and Christian love. He was actively involved in First Christian Reformed Church. He served on various boards for both the church and for the Thunder Bay Christian School. His passion was for dairy farming and gardening.

The early days began with only one cow and supplementing income meant working construction for Kok Construction and growing and selling vegetables for the local community grocery stores.

The dairy farm operation continued to grow with the help of 5 sons. Over time, more cows were steadily added to the herd eventually growing to a 70 plus cow operation that is still operated by his youngest son Jed to this day.

Through all the hard work, Jan still managed to find time to plant and care for large flower gardens all over the farmyard.

Even in retirement, the flower gardens remained his pride and joy. Jan also enjoyed fishing and obedience training for German shepherd dogs.

Jan is survived by his five sons Henry (Sue Ellen), Berend (Peggy), Art (Cathy), Leo (Angela) and Jed (Tracy), his eighteen grand children Gillian (Misha Snyder), Jonathan, Christina (Eayon Reid), Brian, Sheleen (Mark) Veurink,  Erik, Jason, Ali, Sabrina, Andrea, Laura (Trevor) Vares, Daniel (Erica), Leah (David) Thomas, Lyndsay, Sarah, Natalie, Alex and Greg, as well as four great grand children Emelia, Audrey, Kyler and Payton. Also surviving is brother Gerrit, (Hennie), sister Jantje and many nieces and nephews in Holland.  He was preceded in death by his loving wife Geertje on May 5 of this year, his parents and siblings in Holland.

Visitation for family and friends will be on Wednesday, July 13, from 6 to 8 pm at Hope Christian Reformed Church at 1315 Crawford Avenue. Memorial Service will be held Thursday, July 14 at 1 pm at Hope Christian Reformed Church.

Family interment will be at the Stanley Hill Cemetery preceding the service. Thank you to all the caring staff at Pinewood Court over the years. Donations can be made in Jan’s honour to the Alzheimer’s Society or to a charity of your choice, as he supported many different causes.

Jan Blekkenhorst will be remembered in the Blake Funeral Chapel Memorial Grove.  Annual dedication service Sunday, June 11, 2017.