Van de Ven, Maria “Mary”
Johanna, 96, of Antigonish passed away on November 22
at St. Martha’s Regional Hospital, Antigonish, surrounded by
her family.
Born in Dinther, Holland, she was the daughter of the late
Marinus and Petronella Verkuylen.
We were truly blessed to have Mom (Oma) for 96 wonderful
years.
Mary immigrated from Holland with Adrian in 1951, fulfilling
their dream of owning a farm. To Mom, family was everything
and she held a special place in her heart for each one of her
grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her strong faith in
God guided her through the joys and trials of life; every evening she
could be found praying the rosary.
After 27 years of farming, Mary and Adrian moved to
Antigonish. She became a member of the CWL and Club 60, and
worked for food services at StFX University.
Everyone who met Mom loved her and will always remember her
kind heart, beautiful smile, and gentle ways.
She was so grateful for everything that was done for her and
was always ready to help anyone in need. She did this with
great pleasure and joy.
She is survived by children: Ardina “Dena”
MacDonald, Fox Brook; Petronella “Patsy” (Chris) MacDonald,
Hopewell; Marinus “Rinus” (Lynn) van de Ven, Judique;
Adriana “Janie” (Garry) van den Heuvel, Brook Village;
Paulina (Francis) Landry, Pomquet; Herman (Debbie) van de Ven,
Lakeview, NS; 18 grandchildren and 18 great
grandchildren.
She was predeceased by her husband, Adrian; sisters, Sjaan
van Beekveld and Francisca Maria Richters; and brothers, Leo, Antoon,
and Gerard Verkuylen.
Visitation will be in C.L Curry Funeral Home, 135 College
Street, Antigonish, from 2 to 4 pm on Sunday, November 28.
Funeral will be held on Monday at 11:00 am in St. Ninian Cathedral
with Reverend Danny MacLennan presiding. Burial in the
parish cemetery.
Donations in memory may be made to the Antigonish Town
& County Palliative Care Society or St. Martha’s
Regional Hospital Foundation.
The family would like to thank her wonderful neighbours who
were always so good to her; the doctors, nurses, and staff
at St. Martha’s for the care they gave mom, and a special
heartfelt thank you to the palliative care team for going above and
beyond with the love, dedication, and care they gave to
Mom.
Covid 19 protocols, mandatory masks,proof of vaccination and
photo ID required for both the visitation and Funeral Mass
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Maria Johanna Mary van de Ven 1925 2021..
Death notice for the town of: Antigonish, Province: Nova Scotia