Douglas A. Vanbeek

Douglas A. Van Beek, age 83, passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family on April 4, 2011. He was born March 6 1928, in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin to the late Jerome and Dora Van Beek. Doug graduated from Lincoln High School in 1945. In 1946, he was drafted into the Army, trained in Fort Knox Kentucky and subsequently served in the Signal Corps in Manila, Philippine Islands. A notable fact is that Doug was the last draftee from Wisconsin for WWII. Upon his discharge, Doug returned to Wisconsin where he was employed at Seaman Body (Nash) until he began his apprenticeship as a bricklayer in 1950. Doug was always looking to better the life he provided for his family, so while working full time as a bricklayer he received an Associate Degree in Structural Engineering from MIT (Milwaukee). He used his degree to teach bricklaying at MATC, a career that lasted over 30 years. Doug's passion for life and love of people is exemplified by the way he spent his free time. An avid coin and stamp collector, Doug and his friend Walter Weiss founded the South Shore Coin Club in 1963 and remained an active member until he could no longer physically attend meetings. He was always looking to show youngsters the joys of coin and stamp collecting, and many Boy Scouts owe their Coin Collecting Merit Badge to Doug. Aside from numismatics, Doug was an avid gardener and belonged to the Boerner Botanical Gardens where he would spend time volunteering. During the summer months, Doug could always be found watering his plants and tending to his gardens. He volunteered his time to many activities (calling Bingo at picnics, running the poker dart booth at Church festival, and manning the donut machine at church functions to name just a few) and friends have commented that Doug would give you the shirt off his back. Consider this generosity Doug has donated over 95 pints of blood to help those in critical need. Doug is preceded in death by his parents Jerome and Dora Van Beek and brother Jerry. Doug is survived by his wonderful wife, the former Mary E. Ahler whom he wed on October 21, 1950 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Burlington, Wisconsin. Doug proudly states that his grandparents were the only family members in their generation to reach their 60th wedding anniversary. Doug and Mary met that milestone last year, when they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. Doug is also survived by siblings Audrey, Joyce, and Cliff. Doug and Mary have six children Janice, Margaret, Karen, Julie, Andrew and Joseph. He was immensely proud of his children and frequently boasted about his 10 grandchildren (Christopher, Jeremy, Kathy, Martin, Taylor, Alise, Theodore, Emily, Rachael and Nathan) and his great grandchild, Marley. Relatives and friends of Douglas A. Van Beek are welcome at the Max A. Sass Funeral Home, 8910 W. Drexel, Franklin WI on Friday April 8 from 4-7 p.m. Funeral Liturgy will be held Saturday April 9 at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, 3722 South 58 Street, Milwaukee, WI. In lieu of flowers, memorial funds should be donated in his name with checks written to BAC Local 8, PO Box 510617, New Berlin, WI 53151 and memo: Scholarship Fund.