Jozef Jan van der Veken

Jozef Jan van der Veken, 87, of Brooksville, Florida passed away on December 8, 2016. Jozef is survived by his five living children and their spouses, 17 grandchildren and their spouses, one great grandchild, and another great grandchild due in just a few months. Jozef was predeceased by his father Johannes Jozefus Hubertus Henriques van der Veken, his mother Laura Maria van der Veken (nee Erens), his only sibling Laurent H. van der Veken and his son Laurent J. van der Veken. Jozef was extremely proud of his family including son Jozef van der Veken and wife Genevieve; their children Adam, Luke, Jozef, Mark, and Sara, son Laurent van der Veken, daughter Maria Tompkins and her husband Stephen; their children, Daniel, Stephanie, and Sonia, daughter Laura Eurice and her husband Edward; their children Leslie, Michelle, and Kevin, son Jan van der Veken and his children Timothy, Charles, (CJ) Eleanor, Hanna, and Jan and daughter Otilia, Christine and son Jaime and most importantly his wife and best friend for 64 plus years, Otilia M. van der Veken. Born in Willemstad, Curacao, Jozef’s family moved to the Netherlands when he was seven years old; a year and a half later the family moved again, settling in New York. He and his family lived on a farm and raised large and small animals. He loved gardening and building things, a trait he passed onto his children. As a youngster Jozef was an avid reader and excelled in school achieving valedictorian of his graduation class. He also enjoyed track in high school and fencing in college. While attending Colorado State University and completing his Bachelor’s degree, Jozef met his future wife, Otilia whom he married a year later. Jozef and Otilia purchased property in Monkton, Maryland where they raised their six children on a small farm that at one time or another included almost every type of farm animal. The family had a large garden and grew most of their vegetables every year. He also raised, trained, showed, and boarded German Shepard dogs, donating a male to the Maryland State Police Canine unit. Jozef’s job took him to New Jersey where he and his wife moved in the late 1970’s. He and Otilia remained in New Jersey until he retired from his engineering career. His love of gardening and plants continued during those approximate 30 years in New Jersey. After they retired, they moved to sunny Florida in 2009 to enjoy their golden years and to be near immediate and extended family members. He enjoyed nature and spent significant time with his children and grandchildren at the family cabin in upstate New York. He traveled to many scenic areas throughout the United States. He could identify every tree and shrub in the Atlantic region and shared that knowledge with his family. He was just as happy sitting outside watching hummingbirds and other creatures of nature as he was when he travelled. As he grew older, he watched many nature shows on the television, often falling asleep, but not letting us change the channel if we tried to sneak the remote. Jozef was passionate about his faith. Prior to his retirement he was an usher and Eucharistic minister at his church, St. James The Less, in Jamesburg, NJ and provided communion to the elderly in their residences and at a nursing home in his community. With his wife Otilia, Jozef visited many holy sites including, the first Roman Catholic church in America, located in St. Augustine, FL, Padre Pio’s Sanctuary in Barto, PA, St. Joseph’s Basilica in Quebec, Canada, Our Lady of the Sea in Maastricht Netherlands, Our Lady of Fatima Shrine in Weeki Wachee, FL, and many other shrines, cathedrals and various religious locations. One of his most memorable moments was when he, his wife, and son Laurent, attended mass with Pope John Paul II in 1995 at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland. When it came to his career, Jozef was known as an expert in his field and was so respected by his peers, a conference room was named in his honor when he retired. He traveled all over the United States to provide engineering expertise and consulting in the petroleum industry. During the 1960’s while working for Shell Oil Company in Baltimore, Maryland, Jozef resolved a twenty-year problematic environmental drainage issue; that to this date has never failed. Jozef was instrumental in the design and introduction of canopies used at gasoline stations. He introduced computerized gasoline dispensing systems to the U.S. market from Europe in 1977, while with Amerada Hess Corporation. An industry first, Jozef designed the method of surfacing concrete known as “reflectorized coating.” He was a member of the Steel Structures Painting Council and was invited to be part of Who’s Who numerous times because of his knowledge and accomplishments. His successful career was largely due to job dedication, innovativeness, ability to influence strong loyalty, requiring outstanding performance from subordinates, and his effectiveness in working independently or as part of a team. Most knew him as “Joe”, a character who always had a way of making people laugh with wittiness, humor, and jokes to bring joy to his family and comrades; or to make any difficult situation seem easy to conquer. He is and will be loved and missed by all the lives he touched as he went out of his way to help and mentor many people throughout his life asking nothing in return. Friends may visit with Jozef and his family at the Turner Funeral Home 14360 Spring Hill Drive, Spring Hill, FL 34609 on Tuesday, December 13, from 6pm until 8pm. A Catholic Prayer service will begin at 7pm. Jozef will be laid to rest in Hydes, MD at a later date. Since Jozef enjoyed gardening, flowers and live plants would be appreciated.