Hendrika Maria Groeneveld

Hendrika Maria Primowees was born to Johannes Primowees and Hendrika Maria Primowees (nee Hanck) in Amsterdam, The Netherlands on July 24, 1931. She spent her early years growing up with her six brothers during the German occupation in World War II. She would later tell us many stories about her experiences – some humorous, some exciting, and some sad. She told us of the time she went to the coast with her father by train to get fish for the family while avoiding being caught by the German guards – jumping on the return train at the last second with a fish under her coat. She would talk about the bombing raids – how at first they would shelter in the basement, but later would go to the roof and watch. About the elderly German guard at the carnival who just longed to be home with his family. And about the Jewish baker being rounded up one morning never to be seen again. All this and she was only 14 when the war ended.

After the liberation of Holland in 1945, she went to England to study nursing and eventually returned home to continue her studies and eventually find employment with KLM Airlines at their home office. Apart from secretarial duties, she was tasked with escorting the children of embassy personnel to the consulates and embassies all over the globe. She would talk about how it was an exciting time for her as she got to visit far off places, culminating in a fortuitous trip to Sydney, Australia. Although apparently engaged at the time, she met our father Christianus Groeneveld through mutual friends and the rest is history. They were married soon after and settled down in Manly, a suburb of Sydney. Chistopher Ronald John was born in 1961.

As fate would have it, after several years in Australia, they decided to take a risk and emigrate to the United States (dad once said with about $600 to their name). Through a sponsor, they ended up settling in Altadena, California and became fast friends with other Dutch immigrant families in the area. With so many kids about the same age, they all became our extended family. Before long Marcus Anthony “Andy” was born in 1966. Our parents found great success in the US, but often reminisced about their time in Australia so moved back twice over the years, but always came back to what eventually was home – first buying a house in Alhambra and then moving to South Pasadena, CA - forming wonderful friendships along the way.

In retirement, Rita and Chris enjoyed splitting their time between South Pasadena during the winters and the village of Twisk in the Netherlands during the summers. They traveled extensively throughout these years with Bali, Indonesia being one of their favorite destinations. After her husband’s passing, things slowed down a bit, but she still managed one more trip to Australia and a memorable trip to Holland with her sons and grandson Oliver. Her final years were spent in Portland, Oregon.

She passed away peacefully on December 19th, 2023 after suffering an acute stroke several days prior.

Rita is survived by her brother Jean Primowees, her sons Christopher and Andy, her daughter-in law Dana, and grandson Oliver.