Hendrikus "Henk" Johannes Goeyenbier

Hendrikus “Henk” J. Goeyenbier passed away on April 2nd, 2025 at age 83 surrounded by loved ones at home.  He is survived by his wife, Susan Olson; daughter, Henriëtta Goeijenbier; stepdaughter, Robyn Litvay; stepson, Mike Olson; and brothers, Hans Goeijenbier and Peter Goeijenbier.

Henk was born in The Hague, Netherlands to a Dutch mother and American father.  He joined the Dutch Air Force after secondary school and married in his early twenties to his first wife, Maria.  Henk and Maria had two daughters, Dorita and Henrietta.  Sadly, Dorita passed away from complications associated with her battle with breast cancer exactly one week after her father’s passing.

After the Air Force, Henk joined NATO and became a software developer, analyst, and test engineer on the AWACS aircraft. He was based in Germany with NATO, but made frequent and lengthy trips to the U.S.  Henk retired from NATO in 2006 as the lead engineer for the AWACS software testing team. 

He met his second wife, Susan, while they were both singing with the Seattle Symphony Chorale, and they married in 2006.  After retiring, Henk and Susan moved from Germany to Tacoma, Washington, where they both were very active singing with various choral groups. Henk became a very devoted Seattle Mariners baseball fan. 

Henk loved being a member of the Tacoma Rose Society and had a beautiful rose garden of his own at his home in Tacoma.  He also loved DIY projects, skiing, motorcycles, boating, cars, and was interested in every electronic gadget ever invented. Henk spent many hours volunteering at local libraries teaching computer classes. He will be missed by many.

A Celebration of Life event for Henk will be announced in the future.  Charitable donations in Henk’s name to the Parkinson’s Foundation (www.parkinson.org ) would be greatly appreciated.