James Arthur Verploegh "Jim" was born August 31, 1953, to his parents, Adriaan and Irene Verploegh in Plainwell, Michigan. Jim peacefully passed away in his sleep on June 22, 2022, at age 68. Beloved husband of Diane for 45 wonderful years. Loving father of Ross (Amie) Verploegh and Shane Verploegh. Dear brother of John (Diane) Verploegh, Kathryn (Verploegh)-(Mark) Albertson, and Dianne Verploegh. Uncle to nieces and nephews. Dearest godson of Jerry and Kathy Smith.
Jim was a man for all seasons; he gave greatly of himself for others and his pure heart touched many. He was always patient and caring, and preferred lingering in the quiet, peaceful spaces in life. Jim greatly loved his family, especially his children to whom he was a wonderful father. To all who knew him, he was supportive to all faults and to no end. Jim will be tremendously missed by all who knew and loved him.
Jim’s earthly work began, according to one of his early resumes, with his “supervisor: father” doing farm work; the job description read “helper – anything that had to be done.” He also loved solving puzzles and introduced his sister when they were young to his first computer - an abacus, with little plastic pieces strung across wires that could be flipped on and off. In his pursuit of knowledge, he graduated from Michigan Technological University in 1976 with degrees in Math and Computer Science, one of the first in the field, as well as with an MBA in 1981 from the University of Saint Thomas. He utilized his newfound talents starting with geophysics-based offshore exploration at Shell Oil in Houston where he proposed to Diane, and subsequently New Orleans where they lived as a married couple. He mentored peers, created jobs, and solved some of the hardest software engineering problems in applications from telecommunications, networking for factory automation, energy management, automation for financial markets, and embedded automotive electronic control. He had recently retired from Continental Automotive in June of 2021.
Jim answered Christ’s call and was baptized and confirmed into the Catholic Church in 2008. He was the loyal caring husband to Diane for 45 years, attending mass every Sunday with her at the St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Parish in Livonia. As a family man, he raised his boys to be strong men of faith and to not compromise on their values. Jim never had to say much to show his love. He lived in the small moments – always kissing his wife Diane before leaving the house, hunting for Petoskey stones with his son Ross, splitting and stacking firewood with his family, discussing computers and electrons with his son Shane, loving his new daughter in-law Amie, and playing with his sister Kathy and their pony Smokey. He gave selflessly of his time, talents, and resources, never letting his left hand know what his right hand was doing. Jim will always be remembered as a loving husband, little brother, protecting father, technical teacher, deep thinker, and faithful believer by those with whom he shared his life.
A visitation will be held on Wednesday, June 29, 2022, from 2PM until 8PM at Harry J. Will Funeral Home in Livonia. Funeral mass, Thursday, June 30, 2022, from 10AM until 11AM at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church: 11441 Hubbard, Livonia, MI 48150. Jim to lie in state from 9:30AM until 9:50AM. Procession to and committal service at Glen Eden Memorial Park from 11AM until 12:15PM. Luncheon at the Cantoro Italian Market from 12:30Pm to 3:00PM. Link to RSVP is below.
If one desires to donate, the family requests they be made to Miles Christi Religious Order USA: 25300 Johns Rd., South Lyon, MI 48178
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