by Lester Ann Hyde Jensen
It was March 28, 1990, my 46th birthday. It was also Trudy Brown Racz's 39th birthday and the birthday of our Grandmother, Sarah Evans Van Dam Day. She would have been 92. We were in Heukelum, the Netherlands, the birthplace of Herbert VanDam. How appropriate that we should be here on this day. Trudy and I are first cousins. Our mothers, Verna Dan Brown and Luella Floy Day Hyde are sisters, daughters of Sarah Evans Van Dam Day and granddaughters of Herbert VanDam. Trudy and I felt like pinching ourselves. Were we really here on this special day or was it all a wonderful dream?
That morning, we had taken a narrow winding road by the Ulist River to get to Heukelum. We crossed the river on a ferryboat, thes ame method people had used for centuries as they approached the village. Twenty camera shutters snapped in unison as we approached. The members of our group, all Herbert VanDam descendants, were so excited. The air in the bus was electric.
We had finally reached our destination, the birthplace of our common ancestor. We stopped at the DeWiel Restaurant, which overlooked the canal and several impressive yachts. Just outside the door stood the status of The Ferryman, or in Dutch, "Der Veerman", the symbol of Heukelum. The town was once very important in the canal system and everything came to the city by ferry. Later that day, many of us bought smaller copies of the statue. The tables were set in anticipation of our arrival. It was beautiful, quaint and clean. A welcoming fire burned in the fireplace. As we were not used to the cool moist climate of Holland in March, we were most appreciative of this warm gesture.
....to be continued
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