Thomas Edward Kerkhoven
Date de décès : 25 décembre 2011
Dear Friends and Neighbours,
If you are reading this message, it means my life in this world has reached its end. But what an adventure it has been! A life that began in Indonesia and followed a path from there to Holland, Canada, Curacao, and ultimately to my Cape Breton home. A life lived as a field hockey player, a seaman, a husband, a father, a farmer, a diver, a jazz lover, a gardener, a reader, a thinker, and always a student of life. Great loves found, great loves lost, and then, somehow, the courage to love again.
It has been a real joy to live the last few years of my life in Cape Breton. I shall continue in spirit to roar with the Lions, philosophize with the Free Wheelers, chase the elusive bullseye with the Middle River Seniors, and float with the Barnacles. It was always a pleasure to see the angels in the post office, and chat with the friendly faces of this community. I extend a special goodbye to my dear cohorts, Norman McGinnis and Duncan McEchern, with whom I shared so many laughs.
I am struck at the end of my life by how fortunate I have been. At times when I reached my darkest hours, something always arose from the darkness that made my life better than it was before. Even these last few months fighting with cancer have been, surprisingly, among the best periods of my life. I was surrounded by the love of my dear wife Angie, my three beloved daughters Janiece, Nicoline, and Carmen, my sons-in-law Tom, Doug and Waring, my grandchildren Jack, Cora, and Benjamin, and my dearest cousin Rudolf Suermondt from Holland. I feel I am floating away on a sea of love.
My final request ... Have one hell of a wake! I invite you, my family, friends and neighbours to share a laugh or a story this summer at Partridge Landing, Big Harbour. My ashes will be scattered in the rock garden I created there. I shall be with you in spirit.
Tom passed away at home at 2 a.m. on Christmas morning. He was in his bed by the fireplace, as he wished, with his wife and daughters nearby. We, his family, thank the community for the kindness they have extended to my father and Angie over the years. We also thank the doctors and nurses for the excellent, compassionate care he received in the last stage of his life. It was a crossing over blessed with dignity, humour, and love.
Please mark you calendars for the Party in Celebration of Tom’s Life at Partridge Landing, 500 Big Harbour Rd., on July 28, 2012, at noon. RSVP to Carmen@partridge.vi.
