My deepest condolences to Ria's family.  May the God of all comfort,  comfort you as you grieve the loss of your Daughter, Sister, Mother, Mother in law, Oma...  Aunt, cousin etc.   Though we know she is rejoicing in Heaven, the pain of loss is very real and raw.   Though she "has arrived" we remain...  
I will miss Ria's friendship, zany sense of humor, great capacity for love, willingness to reach out to others,  ability to surrender her circumstances  regularly to God and our precious times visiting and praying together.  From our conversations, I know belonging to Christ was indeed her only comfort in life and death.   She did her utmost to live out her faith and amid the ups and downs always had her eyes on Jesus.  I thank God for her friendship and rejoice for her that she is safely home.  

Dear family of Ria... our sincere condolences with the loss of your beloved Mom, daughter, sister and aunt.  What a sudden and great loss.  We are praying for you all.
We fondly remember Ria and Tante Gerrie's visit to BC.  Ria really enjoyed her nature walk at the Blue Heron Reserve with us.  

Ria has gone to glory ! We will miss her warm personality and love. We are glad for the great time we shared with her and our whole family in Canada last summer and cherish the precious memories. May God comfort her mom and my aunt Gerrie, her sisters Theresa, Jo-Anne and Alice, her children Jake and Sharon, her grandchildren and my whole family. In thoughts and prayers we are with you. Lots of love!

I will miss Ria very much.  I am very happy that we were able to be with her last summer.  So many beautiful and wonderful moments that I will never forget, so loving.  I wish all the family that God will stay with you and receive strength from Him!

 Saturday morning I start working at 5:50 AM.  It was still evening in Canada and Ria knew that.  I set my alarm clock extra early so that we could still have contact with the two of us.  She was always so loving and her words gave me strength.  I will miss these moments even more.  I will never forget all those times that we made video calls together.

 Love,
 Judith

(This is the very last photo we ever took together)

Remembering a very kind lady with a ready laugh, who always had her children and grandchildren near to her heart, speaking of them fondly whenever we met. May God comfort all the family with the knowledge that Ria is now with Christ her Saviour, who wipes away every tear with His tender love. 

Dear Sharon and Natalie, please accept my most, heartfelt sympathies on the passing of your beloved mother and grandmother. I will keep both of you, in my thoughts and prayers, at this most difficult time.  Pauline at Peekaboo.

Our sincerest sympathy to the whole extended family of Ria.  May God surround you with his unfailing promises during this difficult time!!  You are in our thoughts and prayers as you say goodbye for awhile, what a beautiful reunion that awaits!


High school friend
Ria’s energy, humour and strength 
Got me through grade nine
Our shared locker
Housed the chicken boots she changed before going to class
Although we hadn’t seen each other for years
I hear her laughter
I feel her light lift me as I grieve
Though her road was not always easy
She was blessed with her love for family and God
I will miss my teenage friend 
I will miss the woman she became 
I will miss the powerful energy Ria brought to this earth
Sending my deepest sympathy to her family, the ones she loved  so dearly
God Bless

Lieve familie,(klein)kinderen van Ria, tante Gerrie, zussen en zwagers, 

Van harte gecondoleerd met het verlies van Ria.  Zó onverwacht....Ik zal Ria altijd blijven herinneren als een positieve , vrolijke vrouw, ondanks alle moeilijkheden die ze in haar leven gehad heeft en nog had. 
Ik wil jullie allen heel veel sterkte en Gods nabijheid en kracht toewensen!

Liefs, jullie nicht Nelleke


(deze foto is van de zomer in 2017, voor het huis van Alice genomen )

We will miss our dear cousin, her warm personality and involvement but we comfort us knowing she is safe in Jesus arms. We wish her children Jake & Krista and Sharon, her mother Aunt Gerrie, and her sisters Jo-Anne, Theresa and Alice, her grandchildren and other family members the blessings of God. Cherish the beautiful memories and hold on to each other!

Lots of love from the Netherlands.
Patrick & Marlissa, Lauren, Aron and Jenthe Sluimers

Our deepest condolences to you and your family. May God grant you and your family strength for the days ahead.
sincerely Jeff and Juanita DeJong

Our deepest condolences to you all. May our Heavenly Father grant you comfort and strength.  ❤

We are so saddened by the sudden passing of dear Aunt Ria.
We have wonderful memories of her that we now will cherish.  Over the years, we enjoyed her company at several family get togethers at mom and dads. (Theresa and Alan).  We shared some special heart to hearts about life and what was to come.  The kids always loved her goofiness and it was obvious she loved them.. and us.  Andrew has fond memories of growing up with Aunt Ria and his cousins.  One that stands out is the chicken farm with the awesome sledding hill.    It is hard to believe she is gone. 

1 Thessalonians 4: 13,14
“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.   For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.”

Thankful for this Promise.  Aunt Ria now experiences Glory and Joy forever!  She has met our Saviour and is reunited with Derrik, who she missed so much.

Till we meet again Aunt Ria.
Andrew and Amy

The grief I fell for my sister is all absorbing. My sister is fortunate to have three wonderful daughters to get her through this difficult time. Nothing I say will take away her pain but I will share it with her.
Love uncle Joe and aunt Sandra

To the Dekker family and Korporaal families Trudy and I are very sorry for the loss of Ria..
Our prayers and hope is that the Lord guide and lead you all by His grace and tender loving kindness!
That this will bring us all closer to Him who gives us trials so that we do draw closer to Him! 
And He will reward those who submit and honor Him even in adversities!!
With Love
Trudy and Jed Schuit


So I am one of the ‘Fabulous Four’ with Ria leading the pack!  She could regale you with funny stories and put her own special spin on it!  Sometimes it could be embarrassing but I loved her for it.  When you read this you will say ‘Yup, that was Ria.’  
As my oldest sister I looked up to her.  She was goofy.  She was funny.  She was loving.  In most of her pictures she needed to hold on to the person beside her.  Connection was so important to her.  Now we know, by her own words that we can have a deeper connection with her in Heaven.  I will miss her greatly.  
Your loving sister Jo-Anne

OBITUARY

Ria Dekker

6 July, 1954 – 30 April, 2020

Coutts Funeral Home & Cremation Centre

Show your support

Add a Memory

Share Obituary

Get Reminders

Services