Richard Lee Van Hollebeke

Dick Van Hollebeke passed away quietly at home, surrounded by his wife Monda and his children, on January 2nd, 2021. Born in Moline, Illinois on August 15, 1939, Dick moved to Seattle at the age of three with his parents Suzanne and Maurice and four brothers, Ralph, Robert, Ramon, and Ronald. He attended O’Dea High School, class of 1957, and after joining the Coast Guard (Reserves) in 1959, attended Gonzaga University. Soon after marrying Monda (nee Sherick) in 1963 he and his brother Ray opened Van’s Nursery at 145th and Aurora, and then Dick ran a landscaping company until he began a second career in 1974 as an insurance professional and stock-broker, officed in Seattle and a few years later, in Edmonds. He received the highest professional designation from The American College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania in 1986 after years of coursework and study. Dick’s life centered on family and community. He considered the Edmonds community his family. In emulating a life of service to his six children (Maureen, Jean, Joseph, David, Mark, and Kathryn) he inspired them to be of service in their own communities. Dick “moved in circles, and those circles moved” (Poet Theodore Roethke). For the past 43 years he has volunteered in and led many civic projects. As a business owner at the corner of 5th and Walnut, Van Hollebeke Insurance and Financial Services (now owned and operated on the Edmonds waterfront by his son David Van Rask), he was an active member of the Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Development committee. He served the City of Edmonds as a Council member from 1995-1999, served for 10 years on the Edmonds College Foundation, and 10 more years as a member of the college’s Board of Trustees. In 2016 the Washington State Association of College Trustees gave him the Trustee of the Year award, and in 2017 on behalf of the Foundation, he was awarded the prestigious Cornerstone Award in recognition of his significant influence on the Edmonds College Community. During his tenure, he interviewed many local, state and national leaders, as well as college and public personalities on Inside Edmonds College, a monthly television program for the college. Many projects energized Dick, and because of his enthusiasm, many other local citizens. He headed up a committee to “Save Yost Pool” with a small group who raised $58,000 in 4 days so that when they attended the next Council meeting and spoke about the wave of citizen support for Yost, the matter of closing the pool was quickly dropped. Dick offered to be a citizen advisor to the Edmonds Parks and Recreation Master Plan Committee, and most recently served on the current Edmonds’ Civic Field park project at the 6th Avenue site of the Edmonds Boys and Girls Club. He would have loved to live to see the beautiful park that is soon to be constructed. With Trish Feaster and Jerry Fireman, Dick launched a new festival, the Creative Age Festival of Edmonds (CAFÉ), to challenge and encourage those approaching retirement or already there to stretch their world views, hone their skills, build that boat or write that novel, and re-enter the mainstream of community life. It was held in the spring of 2016 and 2017 and will resume when the new Waterfront Center is open. For fun, Dick whistled and sang, enjoying membership in Choir of the Sound and the Sno-King Chorale as well as his parish folk choir. In the early 1980’s he performed for several seasons with Civic Light Opera, including playing Lazar Wolf the Butcher in “Fiddler on the Roof.” But his signature performance, for friends, was Tevye’s “If I Were a Rich Man,” which he would be glad to sing upon request! He was happiest when the grandchildren were over because he could slip back into being a child at play. He loved to travel—Europe, New Zealand and Australia, South Africa—but more often, the San Juan Islands and the Olympic Peninsula were his favorite haunts, and he considered the best trip of his life was traveling with Monda in his Prius (before he got his beloved red Tesla) all around the United States and into Eastern Canada. His hobbies were woodworking—a teak cradle which slept each grandchild and many nieces and nephews’ children—toy-boxes, an armoire, and work benches this past year for grandsons Nick and Zach. He enjoyed re-landscaping and sprucing up his yard and building a large back deck that held many family events and social and political parties. Politics! Now that was an undisguised passion of his and he campaigned for many a local and state candidate, including his brother Ray who served in the Washington State Senate. He never missed a candidate forum or debate. Dick swam nearly every weekday for 40 years at Lynnwood and Yost Pools, making countless life-long friends. When he retired, he learned to play the French game of boules—Petanque—and joined the Board of the Edmonds Petanque Club at its inception. He organized the Food Bank Tournament every year for six years, now an annual event. Furthermore, if anyone should walk past the courts and look interested, he beckoned them into the game immediately and had a reputation for teaching dozens of unsuspecting passers-by how to play. What people will remember most about him is his friendly personality, his humor, his readiness to reach out to anyone in need of help, his warmth, his smile, his character. No one ever passed him on the sidewalk without being greeted. Even in New York City when he went to a Mariners Game with his sons! Dick is survived by his wife of 57 years, Monda, and children Maureen, Jean, Joe (Alix), David, Mark (Amy) and Kat (Patrick Tewson); nine grandchildren, Chelsea (Nick) Dryden, Ashleigh (Garrick) Rogers, Zachary Osterhout, Nicolas Yang, Georgia and Jude Van Hollebeke, Remy Van Rask, and Rosalie and Audrey Tewson as well as 4 great-grandchildren, Liahna, Elora, Soren, and Ronin Rogers. Dick was preceded in death by his parents, and his brothers and their wives—Jane (Ralph), Irene (Robert), and Donna (Ray)—except for Jo Anne, who survives her husband Ron. Jo Anne and Monda now head the Van Clan. Contributions, in lieu of flowers, may be sent to the Edmonds College Foundation (to fund student scholarships), and to the Edmonds Food Bank. The family wishes to thank friends, neighbors, parishioners, and other members of the community for their out-pouring of support and their tributes acknowledging Dick’s impact during his lifetime. Events: • Virtual Vigil A virtual vigil service with opportunities to share stories about Dick and other remembrances o Thursday, January 14, 2021 o 7:00 — 8:30PM o Zoom link https://auth0.zoom.us/j/99633982537?pwd=UkxrU2VhclhHU2RkRmlqcmVEWkdhUT09 • Virtual Requiem Mass at St. Joseph's Catholic Church Due to COVID restrictions, in person attendance is limited to immediate family only, but virtual attendance is possible via the parish's You Tube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/StJosephParishSeattle/ o Friday, January 15, 2021 o 11 AM o Attend via this link: https://www.youtube.com/c/StJosephParishSeattle/ o More details available upon request from [email protected]