Trudy Maria Rese

Trudy Rese ( nee Geertruida “Truus” Maria deTombe ) passed away at 91 years of age on June 30, 2018 in Victoria, B.C., where she spent the last 8 years of her life close by and cared for by her family. Surrounded by love, prayer and music, Trudy passed away gently and softly as she peacefully went home to those she loved who have passed before her. Born in 1926 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Trudy was the eldest of three children to Fredrik and Coletta deTombe. As children Trudy and her two brothers travelled many miles riding bicycles with their parents and experienced wonderful family vacations throughout the Dutch countryside. She treasured her childhood memories of family celebrations and loved to share heartwarming stories while looking at photographs of family and friends. Dancing and music were lifelong passions and she loved gardening, reading, and playing cards. However being a Mother to her three children, two daughters and one son, was her greatest joy of all. Trudy enjoyed a long career in the field of office administration and secretarial work starting in 1942 in the Netherlands working for the Dutch government at Binnenhof, The Hague. At only 14 years of age, with schools no longer open due to the war, Trudy was trained and started working as a stenographer and typist for the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Shipping. At 16 she was secretary to the Commissioner in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Public Health. After arriving in Canada in 1954 Trudy continued to develop her technical and office skills working for many companies in Toronto as an executive secretary, office manager and bookkeeper. While her skill in typing 140 words per minute was in itself exceptional, Trudy was also a speedy and accurate typesetter, correcting copy as she went along in both English and Dutch, for a variety of small newspapers including De Nederlandse Courant and The Surrey Herald. Trudy loved life and had an adventurous and independent spirit that led her to choose to emigrate to Canada in 1954 with her husband Ben Rese and their first daughter, where they proudly became Canadian citizens in 1964. A job offer for Ben took the family to Surrey, B.C. in 1967, then back to Toronto in 1972. Nine years later Trudy’s adventure in B.C. continued when she joined her three grown children and one grandchild living in Vancouver. Before finally settling in B.C. for good however Trudy went to California for two years where she worked as a volunteer assisting the Monsignor of St. Monica’s Church. She loved her time spent in the parish and had thoughts of eventually becoming a Catholic nun while attending Catholic school as a child in the Netherlands. Trudy was taught by nuns and raised with a deep faith that carried her through many challenging times, including World War II, and it was her ability to laugh and see the humour in life that kept her smiling during her long and memorable journey right up until her last days with her family. Her children have no words to express their enormous loss, however feel strongly that their Mom is still here at their sides with that same determined spirit, letting them know she will always be there to love and inspire them. A cremation burial and prayer service will be held at 1:00pm Saturday, September 22, 2018. Pine Hills Cemetery, Scarborough, Ontario where “Truus" will be at peace close to her parents. Pine Hills is located at 625 Birchmount Rd. Scarborough ON, M1K 1R1. Section 13, lot 3.