Maarten Tromp

OXFORD - Maarten Cornelis Tromp, 85, of Rocky Hill Road, passed on Sunday, May 25, 2014 at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester. Maarten was a loving and devoted husband to the late Ernie R.E. (Weterings) Tromp. He was an exceptional father and grandfather and enriched the lives of all who knew him. He is survived by his six children, Patricia L. Kruglewicz and her husband Stephen, Marianne B. McArdle and her husband Peter, Isabel J. Pellegrini, Margie Tromp Milas and her husband Michael, Cornelia J. Couture all of Massachusetts and Lillian Tromp Patch of Rhode Island, grandsons Nicola Pellegrini, Maarten Pellegrini and Derek Couture. Maarten was one of 11 children. He was predeceased by his brothers Rudolph Tromp from California and Jurry Bobby Tromp from the Netherlands. He leaves surviving siblings, many nieces, nephews, cousins, grand nieces and nephews that reside in the Netherlands and California. Born in Surabaya, on the island of Java, Dutch East Indies (nka Indonesia), the son of the late Johannes Tromp and Johanna Miijer, Maarten resided in Oxford for the last 49 years. As a young man, Maarten was an officer, chief engineer with the Dutch Merchant Marines, Dutch East Indies. After, he traveled to the Netherlands with his wife and oldest daughter. There he studied to become a mechanical engineer and had four more daughters while living and working in Holland. He settled in Massachusetts, had his 6th daughter, and retired after decades of work as a mechanical engineer. Maarten was president of the former Dutch-American Society of Massachusetts, a social organization that promoted fellowship for those of Dutch heritage. He was in close connection with the Indo-Dutch publication out of California that promotes fellowship amongst those of Dutch-Indonesian heritage. Maarten was a very well-rounded handyman. His favorite hobby was the game of chess, he was meticulous. He enjoyed playing tennis and golf and watching sports. He also enjoyed history and all music, and loved home-cooked Indonesian and Dutch dishes. Maarten will be truly missed by all. A funeral Mass will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, May 30, 2014, at St. Roch's Church, 332 Main St., Oxford. Burial will be at a later date at St. Joseph's Garden of Peace in Webster. Calling hours are Friday, May 30, 2014 from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. at Paradis Givner Funeral Home, 357 Main St. Oxford. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association P.O. Box 417005, Boston, MA 02241-7005 or the American Lung Association of Massachusetts, 460 Totten Pond Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02451-1942.