Douglas Roy Japinga

It is with great sadness that the family of Doug Japinga announces his passing from complications of Alzheimer’s on August 21, 2024 in Holland, Michigan. Doug was a lifelong Michigander who was born on August 13, 1939 at Holland Hospital.

Doug grew up in western Michigan and attended Hope College in Holland, MI. At Hope, he loved the social life, perhaps a bit too much. He was a member of the Fraternal Society, Omicron Kappa Epsilon, a group of guys that enjoyed having fun. The college bar, Skiles, was a hangout for many of Hope’s students in the late 1950s. As Doug recounted the story, when the bar got too full, the bartender would yell out that the dean of students called and was on his way over. Doug said that the bar would empty out immediately. When he earned his master’s degree from Central Michigan University, Doug insisted he had buckled down and worked hard there.

After college, Doug married his high school sweetheart, Mary Brower. When asked why he married Mary, Doug replied that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. When teased about that being a somewhat shallow comment, he became serious and said Mary had a deep kindness for people that really stood out to him. Doug and Mary were married for 58 years. The couple moved to St. Johns, Michigan, and raised two children. In St. Johns, Doug taught a variety of English classes at the high school. He had the opportunity to work with a great faculty, many of whom remained lifelong friends. He enjoyed teaching teenagers and was frequently amused by their sense of humor and observations. As he aged, Doug developed a small bald spot. One of his students helpfully suggested Rogaine might be the answer to his prayers.

Doug’s huge passion was coaching. He followed in the footsteps of his father, Harold Japinga, who was a lifelong coach and sports enthusiast. Throughout his career, Doug was the head coach for the basketball and baseball teams, as well as an assistant football coach. He spent Sunday afternoons outlining the week’s practices on note cards. During the week, he also met with his assistant coaches to go over hours worth of film of his team’s games and their opponents', looking for ways to improve and beat the competition. His goal was to build the most professional and successful teams possible. When Doug left coaching, Lynn Henning wrote in the Lansing State Journal:

"There is something to be said for a coach who believes in a code of ethics for his ballplayers, who strives to set an example for them, and ensure they behave themselves as gentlemen and/or ladies."

"I played for a coach like that...Doug Japinga...He made sure our baseball shoes were always polished, that we didn’t mouth off to umpires, that we treated other people with courtesy and respect..."

If Doug accomplished that with his players, he would have felt he had done his job. After leaving coaching, Doug and Mary started a business, Sports Imprint, and soon after opened a store, the Sports Section. Doug loved the challenge of running a business and could discuss merchandise all day long, much to the horror of his girls.

Doug and Mary eventually retired to Kewadin, Michigan. While there, they reunited with friends from St. Johns and made new friends in the area. Frank and JoAnn Rosengren were especially good friends who they met when Doug first started teaching and coaching in St. Johns. Unable to shake the scouting habit known to any coach, Doug and Frank enjoyed many evenings going to local football games in the Traverse City area.

Doug is survived by his daughters Dawn (Japinga) Wilson and Kim Japinga (Carl Hartmann); grandchildren Sarah Wilson (Eric VanHolstyn) and Scott Wilson (Jessica Myers); great-grandson, Levi Wilson; sister and brother-in-law Terre (Japinga) and Dave Balkema; and Mary’s brother, Howard Brower. Doug’s wife, Mary (Brower) and his son-in-law, Steve Wilson preceded him in death.