Nicolaas van Asch
Nicolaas van Asch passed away on Oct. 4, 2005.
Services will be held 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2005, at Lakeview Funeral Home in Sandpoint followed by a gathering.
Ncolaas was born Oct. 24, 1928 in Ryswyk, The Netherlands, the sixth of seven children. He was orphaned at age 5 and he was raised by his sibling and the local orphanage. His sister Jo's handiwork with his birth certificate allowed him to avoid Hitler's forced labor camps. As food became scarce at the end of World War II, he would spend hours picking up coal along the train tracks to trade for bread, potatoes or cigarettes.
By age 24 he was working in Kampala, Uganda, where on a blind date he met Sheila Bindloss. On April 7, 1954, they were married. On Oct. 20, 1962, after stops in several countries they arrived in the San Francisco, Calif., with $13 to their name. They lived in San Bruno before settling down in Pacifica. As luck would have it he landed a job with United Airlines as a mechanic where after 30 years of service he retired.
An ad taken from the TV Guide in 1968 brought them to their piece of paradise in Sandpoint. In 1993 they built their dream home, a time he remembers " as one of the most exciting."
He collected life-long friends wherever he went. In 1984, he was invited by the boys to a reunion at the orphanage to make a farewell speech to the outgoing president and in 2004 returned to attend a reunion with the students from his technical college.
A natural gentleman, the first to stand up and offer his seat when a lady entered the room. A thoughtful host, your drink was never empty at one of his parties and a good time was sure to be had.
His word was his bond.
He will be dearly missed by the woman who captured his heart with her beauty, charm and lovely hands 54 years ago, Sheila van Asch; their children Nic (Karen) van Asch, Kristine Athene (Steve) Robben, Robin (Bobbie) van Asch, Annette (Bill) Sullivan, Keith (Annie) Ridgewell, Bobby (Alan) Lofting; 15 grandchildren and two, almost three, great-grandchildren; brother-in-law, Bill Bindloss, many nieces, nephews and countless friends around the world. He is greeted by his parents, all his brothers and sisters; sisters-in-law, Bobby West, Kay Bindloss and Ishen Searle; daughter, Louise Baines and the many friends who have gone before.
Always in a hurry, even in the end, a diagnosis of lung cancer in July 2005 ended in the early morning hours of Oct. 4, 2005.
We will miss you beyond compare Dad. The song has ended but the melody continues on.
Lakeview Funeral Home in Sandpoint is handling the arrangements. Please visit Nicolaas's memorial at www.lakeviewfuneral.com and sign his online guest book.