Joan & Henk Rauwerdink
 

A tale of two Survivors:  When Henk was a young man in his native Holland, the Dutch were living under German occupation.  To avoid being forced into labor in Germany, he and a friend worked on a farm manually harvesting crops. They slept in a hole in the ground in the forest.  When that hole was discovered by the Germans, their hiding place was moved to another farm and their “bedroom” was a hole under the barn floor.  Downed airmen and workers like Henk and his friend Maarten occupied this space.  It was covered at night by straw and a few pigs.  One night the boss came with a horse-drawn wagon full of grenades, ammunition, and guns that had been air dropped by the British. Happily, they now had tools that could be used for the liberation of Holland.  The Nazis found out about the drop and came searching.  Henk heard a voice outside saying “Not another word; the krauts are all over the farm" and their hole was further camouflaged.  They soon heard sounds of frantic animals and realized the Germans were searching for them and the weapons.  Late in the day, they peeked out and found the whole farm was in flames.  Stay hidden and burn to death or try to slip past the invasion force?  They had to escape, and finally did, expecting to be shot at any moment.   However, the Germans and the Dutch Nazis were so fascinated in watching their fiery production that Henk and his friend were able to get past them without being detected.  They bellied through unbearable heat and found a well-hidden ditch from which the rest of the escape was fairly easy.

Joan & Henk visited the Dutch farm last April. Nearly sixty years after that harrowing escape, they reunited with Maarten and relived that dreadful day.  After the liberation, Henk volunteered for the Dutch Air force.  He trained in England and become a pilot. 

He came to the United States in 1953 and ultimately began a career as a pilot for Pan American Airways that lasted for thirty-one years. Joan and Henk met in 1963 when he and his first wife (who later died of cancer) moved to the same community.  Living next door and having no children of their own, Henk and his wife became very fond of Joan’s three boys. They actually took Joan’s oldest son to their condo in Snowmass for a ski vacation long before Joan ever visited Colorado.  When Joan and Henk married years later, she learned to love skiing and Colorado.  They began spending summer vacations in Snowmass.  One day, driving back east they wondered “Why in the world are we driving back to New Jersey?”  Joan’s youngest boy, Erik, then a junior in high school, echoed their feelings.  When they explained they didn’t want to make him move for his last year of high school, he readily answered that he would move to Colorado and ski any time.

They sold their home in New Jersey. Erik enrolled in Aspen High School, graduated with honors from CU, and now lives with his wife and baby in the valley.  Joan’s oldest son, whom Henk had introduced to Colorado years before, soon found a job as a manager at the Hotel Jerome and moved his family to the Frying Pan Valley

Joan and Henk love Colorado for its beauty, climate, lifestyle, and proximity to so many fascinating destinations.  After moving here, they began taking extensive automobile vacations throughout the west, as well as to practically every state.  Having traveled the world by air while Henk was flying, they were now able to thoroughly enjoy leisurely exploring the United States in depth on terra firma.

Life has sent challenges for the Rauwerdinks.  Joan was diagnosed with Cancer in 1991. Ten years later she received the same diagnosis.  After completing a more aggressive treatment regime, she was able to successfully conquer her illness and resume her active sports life.  They enjoy skiing and bicycling especially, as well as spending time with their three grandchildren. Henk golfs from their home in River Valley Ranch and Joan volunteers at Valley View hospital.  They both are active in the 100 Club, helping with the 4-wheeling program. They recently celebrated 20 years of married life together

by Marge Chandler