The Detailed Story of our Community

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Early in 1963, when Sister Salvina Westra was headmistress of the ‘Stella Matutina’, a Catholic Secondary School for girls on the Walenburgerweg in Rotterdam, she was asked by the Director of the “Kerkelijk Bureau” if the school chapel could be used by the English-speaking people in Rotterdam for Mass on Sundays. 

As she was a teacher of English and lived on the premises, the request was granted. Fr. A. de Veer, a White Father who had been on the foreign missions in Africa, was appointed Chaplain, and in the course of the years, proved to be a fine priest and true friend to whoever sought his help. 

After the initiative of Karel and Pat Heil, and announcements in the local press and via the VVV (Dutch Tourist Board), the first 15 parishioners found their way to the chapel on the second Sunday (the 10th) of February, 1963. This group included Nol and Elsie Heuvelhorst, and Anton and Bridie Wessels who are still members.  

The school was situated near the Central Station, but the chapel, though belonging to the school, was high up on the 3rd floor of the adjacent Infants’ School, so the long winding stairs had to be climbed. However, the chapel itself was a rewarding experience; it was modern and inspired devotion with its stained glass windows and plain altar facing the congregation.

After Mass, there was an opportunity to have a cup of coffee in the basement, which was called the ‘Kriekepit’, the name of the fox’s den in a medieval Dutch story.

The 1960s

The group of 15 British, Irish and American people gradually grew, and in the course of time, the very young children were left in the Kriekepit so that their parents could attend Mass without distraction. 
Fr. De Veer managed to get the weekly Mass Booklets regularly from England, to enable the congregation to join in the prayers. The congregation grew into a fully fledged parish, and was registered as such in February, 1964. At that time, of course, Masses were said in Latin, until 1967.
Before long, assistance was needed for the children. Sister Amora Schouten, also a teacher of English who studied Theology as well, became the very first catechism teacher. When some of the children needed preparation for their First Holy Communion, she devoted herself to that task wholeheartedly. One of the pupils at the school, Nel Scheffers, helped out as a baby-sitter for a number of years.
There was regular coming and going of church members; we had single people, couples and many families, so that from time to time, there was a Christening, a First Holy Communion, just one Confirmation ceremony and two Weddings. One of the highlights of the year was Christmas, when the Chapel and Kriekepit were decorated, and a small choir of pupils from the school supported the congregation in singing Christmas carols.
When Sister Salvina and Sister Amora left Rotterdam for Vlaardingen in September, 1968, they tried, and managed to keep up their work as hostesses to the Parish.

The 1970s

Fr. De Veer left in 1971 and was replaced by another White Father, Fr. A. v/d Pol, who spent many years as a missionary in Africa. It was during his period as Chaplain that the parish procured its own vestments and most of the altar requisites. 
In 1973, the hostesses moved to the outskirts of Schiedam, where, especially on Sundays, bus and train services were so bad that they had to give up their parish work. They were greatly missed.
The parishioners continued the good work of the Sisters by making out a roster for such duties as church preparation, music, coffee serving and so on.
Fr. v/d Pol made many friends among the parishioners and was very well liked, but alas, he was transferred to the Parish for English-speaking people in Amsterdam at the end of 1974. However, not before a successor was found, Fr. A. Sträter, yet another White Father, who had just returned from the missions in poor health.
Despite his poor health, Fr. Sträter was determined to say Mass for us every week, his determination led to the lowering of the altar, so that he could say Mass sitting down.

The 1980s

Despite his illness, Fr. Sträter served us faithfully for a period of 6½ years, until his sudden death in April, 1981. A number of parishioners attended a Memorial Service for him in the Chapel of St. Fransiscus Gasthuis. His great courage was admired by all who knew him.
A cry for help was made to the Mill Hill College in Roosendaal to send priests until another permanent priest would be appointed. The Principal of the College obliged by sending a succession of stand-in priests too numerous to mention, until Fr. J. ter Meer began to say Mass for us at the end of 1981, and remained for approximately 9 months. He had returned from the Philippines to try to settle in Holland again, but his heart was in the Philippines. He returned to work on the mission where he felt he belonged.
For the second time, a Chaplain was needed urgently, so Sister Rosa of the Dominican Convent in Schiedam kindly sent priests to us to ensure that Mass would be celebrated as usual every Sunday. It was a few months before Fr. G. Zegwaard joined us as Chaplain in September 1982. After spending 35 or more years in his beloved Indonesia, he found it very hard to settle down in Holland, but as time went on, he got used to his new post, although he did admit that his happiest years were spent on the missions.
A complete change occurred in January, 1984 when the Parish moved to a delightful little Chapel in the Convent of the Fransiscan Sisters on the Robert Fruijnstraat 35 in Rotterdam. The nuns did not seem to mind the hustle and bustle every Sunday morning, despite their advanced years, in fact, everyone was very welcome. The Cathedral Hall across the street was used for drinking coffee, tea and a chat after Mass, as well as for General Meetings of the Parish. A few female volunteers took turns at making the coffee and washing up afterwards.
Apart from Sunday Mass, the chapel was used on Good Friday for the Stations of the Cross and on Christmas Eve. First Holy Communion was held annually and there were many Baptisms. Fr. Zegwaard was very proud to have christened six babies in the year 1987-1988.
Also in 1987, Mgr. Cassidy who was Papal Nuncio to Holland confirmed six children. He was assisted by Fr. Zegwaard and Fr. Henry, the priest who prepared the candidates for the Sacrament. This event was extra special because there had not been Confirmation in the Parish since 1974. The reason for the big gap was that in the intervening years, there were not enough children eligible for Confirmation in any given year. Those who were of age received the Sacrament outside the Parish. However, there was one exception when an adult, Mr. Leo de Haan made his Confirmation in October, 1984.
A Parish Council was formed in the 1980’s whose members met periodically to discuss Parish affairs such as finance, religious education, house duties etc. They tried to keep things running smoothly with the kind help of a team of hard-working volunteers. The dedicated group of ladies that took care of the catering was organised by Betty Fitzgerald, who carried out this task for many years, until it was taken over by Jacinta Cooper and her family. The first major task of the Parish Council must undoubtedly have been the organising of the celebration to mark the 25th anniversary of the Parish in February 1988.
Former clergy and people who had connections with the Parish were invited to the celebrations. A special Jubilee Mass was concelebrated by Fr. Zegwaard and Fr. O’Donoghue of the Mill Hill Order in Roosendaal, and one of the Sisters played the organ. This was, of course, followed by a big party in the Cathedral Hall, during which the Chairman of the Parish Council read out the congratulatory cards and thanked everybody for their attendance. Several ladies helped with the catering and any food that was left over was given to the Sisters of Mother Teresa for distribution among the poor of Rotterdam. All in all, it was a most enjoyable day.
Another event worth a mention is the Nativity Play that was staged by the children on Christmas Eve, 1988, in which a newly born baby, Neal Conijn, played the part of the Infant Jesus. During the years in the Convent, Anne Dekker who was the catechism teacher at the time, taught the children to sing the ‘Our Father’ in a unique way. The priest would call the children to the altar where they took the initiative and the congregation echoed each line. It caught on and because Fr. Zegwaard liked it so much, it has remained a habit to this day.
Parishioners continued to come and go, the Parish became more International and numbers grew steadily until there were more than 100 people. Sr. Bernadette, the Mother Superior, announced that the convent was going  to close and the remaining Sisters were moving to other convents of the same Order. The search was on again for a suitable Chapel. Three months before we left, Bishop Bär confirmed 10 children in the convent Chapel, so it was a great privilege to be able to welcome a Bishop for the very first time.
The second ‘move’ took place in September, 1989 to the Verzorgingstehuis Frankeland in Schiedam, which is where we have been ever since. The chapel is located in the Old People’s Home and is accessible by the main entrance. As well as the Chapel, the Parish has the use of the ‘Uitkijk’, a very suitable dining-room where those who wish can have coffee, tea, good food and generally socialise after Mass. In another room, Catechism lessons are given by a very reliable teacher, Mari Carmen Versteeg, who has kindly lent her services every Sunday for the last 10 years.

The 1990s

Some people missed the intimate atmosphere of the Convent for a while, but they gradually got used to the new surroundings. The Chapel and other facilities are all at ground level, therefore, ideal for young children in buggies, the elderly and those in wheelchairs.
The Baptism, First Holy Communion and 2 Confirmations ceremonies in 1991 (with Bishop Bär again) and 1993 respectively, were among the highlights of the next 7 years of Fr. Zegwaard’s reign.
A major event was the World Day of Prayer. It was hosted by our Parish for the first time in our own church on the 1st of March, 1991. About 80 ladies and 2 brave gentlemen attended the Service. The theme was ‘’On the Journey Together’’ written by the Christian women of Kenya. The Scots Church and the Anglican Church of Rotterdam also participated in the Service and women from our Parish were asked to provide cakes for the reception afterwards.
Just as a matter of interest, the Parish supports a number of Charities and missions and has done so for a very long time. Charities such as: Fr. Henk van Tilborg’s Mission in the Philippines (since 1985), Vastenactie, The Lenten Campaign, Caritas and Migrant Parishes, not forgetting Memisa. Money is sent annually to some of these Charities. Fr. van Tilborg sends regular letters keeping us informed on how the money is being spent.
To continue the history of the Parish, there was another Nativity Play put on by the children a week before Christmas 1993. Ten lucky children made up the cast and they performed superbly considering the short time they had for rehearsals and verses of carols had to be sung at various intervals throughout the play. The annual International Mass is worth mentioning too because on a couple of occasions, some of our members participated as representatives of the English-speaking Catholic community. It was around this time when the custom of distributing roses to the ladies on Mother’s Day was started by Anne v/d Pluym.
In the spring of 1994, Fr. Zegwaard received a few tickets for the Installation of the new Bishop of Rotterdam, A. van Luyn in the Cathedral of Sts. Laurentius & Elisabeth. The first three people to express an interest were given the tickets to attend the Ceremony. On the following Sunday, those at Mass heard a step by step account of the Installation by Betty Fitzgerald. It was, no doubt, a great experience for all present.
Apart from a couple of trips to California between 1982 and 1996 to attend to the funerals of his two brothers who were both priests, Fr. Zegwaard hardly missed a Sunday until 1994, when he had two spells in hospital. This was his Parish and he made himself available to the congregation whenever he could. There was a time when he rode a big old fashioned bicycle to church, but when the Parish moved to Schiedam, arrangements were made to have him collected and taken home again every Sunday.
1994 was the year of his Golden Jubilee, so unknown to him, a luncheon was organised to celebrate the occasion. It was decided to combine it with his 75th birthday in October of that year. The Special Mass was actually celebrated by himself, and members of his family attended. Then, after having coffee with his family, he was whisked off to the restaurant in Schiedam where everyone was waiting to surprise him. Good food was consumed, photos were taken, the big cake was cut and a presentation was made to father of a T.V. set, plus an album filled with pictures and best wishes, which was put together by a number of parishioners. One could honestly say it was an unforgettable day.

Fr. Zegwaard was in his element and a good time was had by all.
Two years later, on Sunday, 16th June, 1996, people turned up for Mass as usual, only to be told that Fr. Zegwaard had passed away in his sleep on Friday night. Although his health had been deteriorating for some time, it came as a terrible shock as he had been a dedicated Chaplain for 14 years.
A memorial Mass was held for him in his local church, the Paradijskerk in Rotterdam on Wednesday, 19th June. There was a large crowd present to pray for him and sing the hymns he liked; his favourite was ‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’. Though not a singer, at the end of his second last Mass happened to be the First Holy Communion Mass on the 2nd June, he did what he never did before, he announced the number of the hymn, ‘I will be with you’.
The funeral Mass was also held in the Paradijskerk on Friday, 20th June and was followed by the burial in the churchyard of the Sacred Heart Fathers in Tilburg.
He will be remembered for his great loyalty to the Parish as well as for many good deeds, but most of all, for his very lengthy sermons.
It was vital to keep the Parish going, so Fr. A. van Santvoord, who helped us out when Fr. Zegwaard was hospitalised in 1994, came to our rescue. Thanks to him and Peter Higgins, a long-serving council member, more priests were found, namely, Fr. Joop Visser, Fr. Ben Engelbertink and Fr. Augustine Ayaga, a priest from Ghana. Fr. van Santvoord left us in 1998 through ill health and sadly died in april 1999. After enjoying two years with us, Fr. Visser was appointed Parish priest of the Kruisvindingskerk in Rotterdam Zuid and when Fr. Ayaga returned to Africa after his study year in the Hague, Fr. Patrick Eyinla from Nigeria took his place for a year.
Between 1996 and the end of 2000, several Baptisms took place, as well as First Holy Communion every year with the exception of 2000, Confirmation in 1998, the Baptism of Mr. Raymond Cole the same year and also a Memorial Mass for Mr. Nol Heuvelhorst, celebrated by Fr. Visser. Nol and his wife, Elsie (Memorial Mass – 1995) were founder members of the Parish.
Some other important events where the Children’s Mass, the Children’s Carol Recital for the residents of Frankeland and the Nativity Play, which was followed by an appearance of Santa. 1998 was also the year the Parish Council was abolished and was replaced by a new system whereby, Fr. Engelbertink, Fr. Lieberom and Peter Higgins lead a team of  co-ordinators for the various tasks i.e. church preparation, reading, serving, catering, music and so on.
On Christmas Eve, 1999, Fr. Ettore Balestrereo, the Secretary to the Papal Nuncio in Holland, did us the honour of saying Mass, thus completing the events of the 20th century.
Fr. Engelbertink was joined by Fr. H. Lieberom in January, 2000. Both priests have served us faithfully until 2007, making sure to send replacement priests whenever the need arises.