Anton Richard Petersdorff was born on 02 September, 1933 in Jakarta, Indonesia. He lived there with his Mother and Father, his older brother Hans and younger brother Phil. He and his brothers were happy little boys until the War to end all wars broke out, WWII.
His father was an officer in the Dutch Indonesian Army and was captured at the end of 1941, where he remained at P.O.W., in a Japanese P.O.W. camp until the end of the war. Anton grew up in a hurry and saw horrendous things that no young boy should witness.
His mother bartered for food most days while the boys were just trying to survive the best as they could. All the while not knowing if their father would ever return from his interment. Thank God that at the end of the war, he did return.
During the war they moved to Surabaya where Anton's grandparents lived. They remained in Surabaya until the end of the war and his father's release. At that time, they moved to the island of Sumatra, where the family built a wonderful life.
That was until Indonesia won their independence from the Dutch. They were given a choice to either remain in Indonesia and become Indonesian citizens (not a good choice) or go to the Netherlands. So, they had to leave everything behind except what they could carry and boarded an ocean liner bound for the Netherlands. While on board ship they saw a good part of the world. Anton always had a love for the country of his birth. Always regaling family and friends with stories of the adventures he and his brothers enjoyed, most of the shenanigans from those days would land them in very hot water today.
Anton arrived in the Rotterdam, Netherlands in August of 1955 and from there made their way to the village of Voorschoten. This is where Anton's grandparents and other family members decided to settle.
This is the place where Anton met the love of his life, Willie. After a five-year romance they decided to get married on 06 August, 1960. During the romance Anton had to serve (conscripted) in the Dutch Army for about 2 years. He served with distinction in the Hussar Tank Corp. When he finished his required service, he began his foray into the automotive repair industry, where he worked as a mechanic for 40+ years.
After Anton and Willie married they moved in with Willie's parents for a while. During that time Anton and Willie applied for their immigration visas to move to the United States. During their wait for the visas to be approved, a miracle happened. They were blessed with a baby boy, Richard William.
After the visas were approved they took a giant leap of faith and moved to the U.S. They settled in a small town, Ft. Myers, FL. There they carved out a simple but fulfilling life. Some family were close, Anton's brother Phil, wife Francis and two children, Pam and Paul, were in town too.
Anton was also blessed with "another son" Gary, who is Rick's best friend for life. Rick joined the Navy and served proudly for 20 years. Rick married and had a wonderful daughter, Stacy. Later in life Rick found the love of his life, Wendy. With that, Anton now found himself with four wonderful grandchildren, Stacy, Joseph, Felicia and Sean. And when Joseph met Trisha they had a handsome young son. Anton was very proud of his great grandson, Hunter, who was his pride and joy. How happy he was to become Hunter's Opa-Opa.
Anton worked hard for his family and carved out a good life for them. He loved fishing, catching crabs, harvesting oysters, anything to do with saltwater. He love it all and made the best of everything. Anton was a God loving, honest man to a fault. Family and friends could always count on him. If he made a commitment, it happened.
He lived an adventurous life. Lived on three continents and loved them all. But most of all, he loved, loved his wife Willie, with all of his heart and soul. He cherished 61 years with Willie. His son Rick, he could not have loved and admired more. He also loved his daughter in law, Wendy, very much.
So, there it is... A life well lived. Richard, Dad, Opa and Opa-Opa will be sorely missed by those who loved and knew him. We (the family and friends) will miss you dearly. You leave a big hole in our hearts and souls. But, we rejoice in the fact that you are now without your earthly restraints and are with our Lord watching over us all. Rest in peace.
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