Lawrence van der Giessen [Parents] was born on 27 Feb 1918 in Coffee Creek, Fergus County, Montana, USA. He died ¹ on 27 Apr 2006 in Whatcom County, Washington, USA. He was buried ¹ in Monumenta Cemetery, Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. Lawrence married ¹ Alice VanZwol on 18 Mar 1941.

Other marriages:

Telling, Winifred

Lawrence VanderGiessen, age 88 of Lynden, went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Thursday, April 27.

Lawrence was the son of James and Anna (Zwaanstra) VanderGiessen and was born in Coffee Creek, Montana on February 27, 1918 and moved with his family to Lynden in 1920. He attended Lynden Christian Grade School and Lynden High School.

He was married to Alice VanZwol on March 18, 1941. Lawrence began a spraying service and then joined his father at VanderGiessen Nursery which also included a floral shop and later landscaping; he retired in 1979. Following the death of his wife Alice in 1969, Lawrence was married to Winifred Telling in 1973.

He was a charter member of Bethel Christian Reformed Church where he also served as Sunday School Superintendent and an Elder.

Mr. VanderGiessen is survived by his wife Winifred; children Marcia & Marion Schouten, Lorna & Les Molenaar, Gary & Linda VanderGiessen and Louis & Alice VanderGiessen all of Lynden and Larry & Iva VanderGiessen of Moses Lake; fifteen grandchildren; twenty-eight grandchildren; brother John & Marie VanderGiessen and sister Ada & John Vos of Lynden; brother-in-law Len & Darlene VanRy of Lynden; sister-in-law Hetty VanderGiessen of Seattle and numerous other relatives.

Besides his parents and wife Alice, Lawrence was preceded by brothers Don and Hank VanderGiessen and sisters Grace VanRy and Kay Nielsen.

Visitation hours will be from 1 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 3, at Gillies Funeral Home in Lynden.
Graveside services will be conducted on Thursday, May 4, at 10:15 a.m. in Monumenta Cemetery followed by funeral services at 11:00 a.m. in Bethel Christian Reformed Church, 1105 Liberty Street, Lynden, with Rev. John VanSchepen officiating.

Memorials in Lawrence's memory may be made to The Bible League, 16801 Van Dam Rd., South Holland, IL. 60473 or to The Back To God Hour, 6555 West College Dr., Palos Heights, IL. 60463.

-Obituary from Gillies Funeral Home.

Burial:
Monumenta Cemetery
Lynden
Whatcom County
Washington, USA

Lawrence van der Giessen [Parents] was born on 27 Feb 1918 in Coffee Creek, Fergus County, Montana, USA. He died ¹ on 27 Apr 2006 in Whatcom County, Washington, USA. He was buried ¹ in Monumenta Cemetery, Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. Lawrence married ² Winifred Telling on 7 Dec 1973 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA.

Other marriages:

VanZwol, Alice

Lawrence VanderGiessen, age 88 of Lynden, went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Thursday, April 27.

Lawrence was the son of James and Anna (Zwaanstra) VanderGiessen and was born in Coffee Creek, Montana on February 27, 1918 and moved with his family to Lynden in 1920. He attended Lynden Christian Grade School and Lynden High School.

He was married to Alice VanZwol on March 18, 1941. Lawrence began a spraying service and then joined his father at VanderGiessen Nursery which also included a floral shop and later landscaping; he retired in 1979. Following the death of his wife Alice in 1969, Lawrence was married to Winifred Telling in 1973.

He was a charter member of Bethel Christian Reformed Church where he also served as Sunday School Superintendent and an Elder.

Mr. VanderGiessen is survived by his wife Winifred; children Marcia & Marion Schouten, Lorna & Les Molenaar, Gary & Linda VanderGiessen and Louis & Alice VanderGiessen all of Lynden and Larry & Iva VanderGiessen of Moses Lake; fifteen grandchildren; twenty-eight grandchildren; brother John & Marie VanderGiessen and sister Ada & John Vos of Lynden; brother-in-law Len & Darlene VanRy of Lynden; sister-in-law Hetty VanderGiessen of Seattle and numerous other relatives.

Besides his parents and wife Alice, Lawrence was preceded by brothers Don and Hank VanderGiessen and sisters Grace VanRy and Kay Nielsen.

Visitation hours will be from 1 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 3, at Gillies Funeral Home in Lynden.
Graveside services will be conducted on Thursday, May 4, at 10:15 a.m. in Monumenta Cemetery followed by funeral services at 11:00 a.m. in Bethel Christian Reformed Church, 1105 Liberty Street, Lynden, with Rev. John VanSchepen officiating.

Memorials in Lawrence's memory may be made to The Bible League, 16801 Van Dam Rd., South Holland, IL. 60473 or to The Back To God Hour, 6555 West College Dr., Palos Heights, IL. 60463.

-Obituary from Gillies Funeral Home.

Burial:
Monumenta Cemetery
Lynden
Whatcom County
Washington, USA

James van der Giessen was born ¹ in 1889 in Rosenburg, The Netherlands. He died ^{2, 3} on 26 Jun 1950 in Bellingham, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. James married ⁴ Anna Zwaanstra on 19 Nov 1915 in Fergus, Montana.

James immigrated in 1905.

Anna Zwaanstra [Parents] was born ^{1, 2} on 29 Sep 1895 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. She died ¹ on 30 Apr 1978 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. Anna married ³ James van der Giessen on 19 Nov 1915 in Fergus, Montana.

Lives next to Lewis Zwaanstra in 1920 MT census data.

John Vos was born ¹ on 11 Feb 1921 in Sultan, Washington, USA. He died ¹ on 17 Nov 2009 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. John married ¹ Ada Van der Giessen on 8 Aug 1947 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA.

John Vos, of Lynden , passed away suddenly on Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at the age of 88. John was born to John and Jennie (De Leeuw) Vos in Sultan, Washington on February 11, 1921. He attended Sultan school, served in the U.S. Army during WWII and on August 8, 1947 married Ada Vander Giessen in Lynden  . Together, with Ada's brother, Lawrence, they owned and operated Vander Giessen Nursery in Lynden for many years. In 2003 John suffered a severe brain injury as a result of a fall. He made a remarkable recovery and considered the following years a gift from the Lord. In retirement, John enjoyed woodworking. In most recent years, he learned how to use a rotary cutter and made it his mission to cut fabric squares for local quilting groups. John delighted in his family and times together were treasured. He was a charter member of Bethel Christian Reformed Church where he served as deacon and elder. John's family appreciates and is thankful for the compassionate care of the Lynden Manor staff. Preceded in death by his parents; brothers Herm, Jake and Pete; John is survived by his loving wife Ada of 62 years; sons Jim (Melanie) Vos of Bellingham and Alvin (Sherry) Vos of Lynden ; daughter Patty (Gary) Braaksma of Bellingham; grandchildren Jamie (Rachel) Vos, Tobey (Kelly) Vos, Ben (Danielle) Vos, David (Elaine) Vos, Michael Vos and Mark, Kristin, Joel and Alex Braaksma and great-grandchildren Ella and James Vos; brother Bill (Marlene) of Everett; sister Winnie (Hank) Miedema of Monroe and sister-in-law Edna Vos of Everson. Visitation hours are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 20, 3:00 to 7:00 pm at Gillies Funeral Home. Graveside services will be held Saturday, Nov. 21, 11:00 am at Monumenta Cemetery followed by a 12:00 pm memorial service at Bethel Christian Reformed Church, 1105 Liberty St. in Lynden  . Memorials in John's name are suggested to Lynden  Christian Schools, 417 Lyncs Dr., Lynden , WA 98264 or Bethel Christian Reformed Quilters at the above address. You are invited to share your memories and condolences in the online guest book at www.gilliesfuneralhome.com Arrangements are entrusted to the care of Gillies Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Lynden [Bellingham Herald, Date: November 19, 2009]

Ada Van der Giessen [Parents] was born ¹ on 12 Oct 1926 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. She died on 3 Feb 2018. She was buried ¹ in Monumenta Cemetery, Lynden, Whatcom County, WA, USA. Ada married ² John Vos on 8 Aug 1947 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA.

Ada Vos, of Lynden, passed away on Saturday, Feb. 3 at the age of 91, surrounded by her children.

Ada was born in Lynden to James and Anna (Zwaansta) Vander Giessen on October 12, 1926. With the exception of the last 14 years, she lived her entire life in the Grover St. home where she was born. Ada attended Lynden Christian School through the eighth grade and graduated from Lynden High School.

She married her beloved husband John on August 8, 1947 and they were blessed with 62 years of marriage. For many years Ada and John owned and operated Vander Giessen Nursery. Ada loved growing things, whether it was bedding plants in the greenhouse, the colorful flowers in her yard or her abundant vegetable garden.

Ada was a charter member of Bethel Christian Reformed Church where she participated in Bible studies and the quilting ministry. In her later years, Ada enjoyed socializing, visiting the nursery and spending time with family.

Ada’s family appreciates and is thankful for the compassionate care of the Lynden Manor staff where she resided for 12 years.

Ada is preceded in death by her husband, John; parents; brothers, John, Lawrence, Henry and Don; and sisters, Katherine and Grace.

She is survived by her children, Jim (Melanie) Vos, of Bellingham, Alvin (Sherry) Vos, of Lynden and Patty (Gary) Braaksma, of Bellingham; grandchildren, Jamie (Rachel) Vos, Tobey (Kelly) Vos, Ben (Danielle) Vos, David (Elaine) Vos, Michael (Emily) Vos, Mark Braaksma, Kristin (Jacob) Williams, Joel Braaksma, and Alex Braaksma; 10 great-grandchildren; sisters-in-law, Winifred Vander Giessen, of Lynden, and Hetty Vander Giessen, of Seattle; and special friend, Elsie Te Velde, of Lynden.

You are invited to join family and friends for visitation on Friday, February 9, from 5-7 PM at Gillies Funeral Home. Graveside will be on Saturday, February 10, 2018, at 10:15 AM at Monumenta Cemetery followed by an 11 AM Memorial service at Bethel Christian Reformed Church, 1105 Liberty St. in Lynden.

Memorials in Ada’s name are suggested to Bethel CRC Hymnal Fund at the above address.

Arrangements are entrusted to Gillies Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Lynden.

Donald van der Giessen [Parents] was born ¹ on 24 Aug 1930 in Lynden, Whatcom County, Washington, USA. He died ² on 14 May 1999 in King County, Washington, USA. Donald married Hetty Pruys about 1952.

Donald van der Giessen, a farm-supply salesman who achieved dubious fame for inventing red contact lenses for chickens, liked cracking jokes and hatching business ideas.

He co-developed the contacts in 1965. As he said in a 1990 interview after another man claimed to have thought up the idea, the lens made cannibalistic chickens see red combs and blood spots as black, a color at which they would not peck.

Mr. van der Giessen sold 1.25 million lens pairs before learning that as chickens grew, lenses dropped out. So did his dreams of a fortune.

"I sat there with him when I was little, and to catch those baby chickens and put those lenses in their eyes was quite a job," said his daughter, Nanette van Klaveren of Lynnwood.

Mr. van der Giessen died Friday (May 14) of chronic liver disease. He was 68.

Another of his inventions was the "Egg-o-Matic." Made of gritty belts, the machine was supposed to save packers from hand-rubbing stains off thousands of eggs.

That failed to take off as eggs broke during demonstrations at sales conventions.

Born in Lynden, Whatcom County, he graduated in 1949 from Lynden Christian High School. Hoping to be a minister, he attended Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich.

After deciding the ministry was not for him, he returned to Lynden to work in sales.

In 1953, he founded a veterinary-supply firm in Vancouver, B.C.

In the late 1950s he began working in Portland, where he managed an outlet of the Seattle-based Capps & Lowe farm-supply firm.

He also worked on his contact-lens idea. He visited poultry researchers at Midwest universities, and talked to ophthalmologists.

A product-announcement news conference was held in San Francisco. Fighting roosters demonstrated the lenses. The fowl acted docile with lenses on, ballistic with them off.

Life magazine published a photo, The Wall Street Journal ran a story, and Walter Cronkite talked about the lenses for 15 minutes on his radio news show.

Sales were brisk for a time. Mr. van der Giessen bought Capps & Lowe.

He sold the firm in the late 1960s to develop a spa and investment businesses.

He later worked with the laundry and dry-cleaning supply firm, Western Automation. He retired in 1984 for health reasons.

"He was a born salesman," said his daughter. "He was funny and lit up a room when he came in.

"My dad was not a camper, fisherman, nor could he fix things .

. . but he liked to invent things and help people. . . . There were no prerequisites to being his friend."

Also surviving are his wife of 46 years, Hetty van der Giessen of Seattle; sons Doug Vander Giessen, Seattle; David Vander Giessen, Shoreline, and Eric van der Giessen, Lake Forest Park; brothers John, Lawrence and Henry van der Giessen, all of Lynden; sisters Ada Vos, Lynden, and Kay Neilsen, Rosedale, Calif.; and 12 grandchildren.

Services were held. Donations may go to Shoreline Christian School, Bethany Adoption Services or the Church Expansion Fund, c/o First Christian Reformed Church, 14555 25th Ave. N.E., Shoreline, WA 98155.

Seattle Times, The (WA)
Date: May 20, 1999
Author: CAROLE BEERS
Edition: FINAL
Page: B6
Record Number: 2961823

Albert Mollema [Parents] was born ¹ on 10 Sep 1873 in Niehove gem. Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. Albert married ² Ettje Guikema on 14 May 1898 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands.

Ettje Guikema was born ¹ in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. Ettje married ² Albert Mollema on 14 May 1898 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands.

Jan Mollema [Parents] was born ¹ on 18 Aug 1875 in Niehove gem. Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. He died ² on 17 Nov 1940 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. Jan married ³ Jeltje Zijlstra on 6 Apr 1901 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands.

Jeltje Zijlstra was born in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands. Jeltje married ¹ Jan Mollema on 6 Apr 1901 in Oldehove, Groningen, The Netherlands.