Jacob "Jake" P And Rita Van Namen  

Jacob And Rita Van NamenMarketing Scholarship - $4,000 - The Jacob and Rita Van Namen Marketing Scholarship was established January 1997. Jacob Van Namen is a true entrepreneur who built a multi-million dollar business in wholesale floriculture. This award i intended to develop knowledgeable, creative individuals who will improve the floriculture industry.

Founder of Vans Floral Products dies at age 90

Jacob Van Namen, founder of Vans Floral Products and former AFE Trustee, died March 31 in Chicago. He was 90.

A successful businessman from Holland, Mr. Van Namen immigrated to the United States in 1955 with his wife Rita and two sons, Jack and John. The family settled in Chicago, where Mr. Van Namen worked a variety of jobs until being hired by DeBoer Wholesale Florist.

By 1960, he was a partner in the business and soon assumed ownership of the company, which became known as Van's Wholesale Florists. "Van" grew the company from a single location in the Chicago area to 12 distribution centers in six states by the 1990s. As his family grew, his sons and daughter followed in their father's footsteps to become active in the business, along with some of his grandsons in later years.

Mr. Van Namen believed strongly in sharing his time, talent and resources in his community and the floral industry by supporting many nonprofit and faith-based organizations. He served as an AFE Trustee, as well as on committees and boards of the Wholesale Florist & Florist Supplier Association (WF & FSA) and the Society of American Florists (SAF). WF& FSA honored him with the Leland T. Kintzele Distinguished Service Award, and he received numerous other awards and recognitions throughout his career.

Mr. Van Namen promoted higher education as a trustee of Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Ill., where he contributed to several building projects. He also supported the horticulture program at Michigan State University with contributions to the International Horticulture Gardens. In addition to his industry achievements, Mr. Van Namen was designated as an Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau, the Netherlands’ highest civilian honor, for his role in promoting and furthering Dutch-U.S. trade

relations. Mr. Van Namen remained active in the business and influential in the industry into his early 80s.

He is survived by his devoted wife of 65 years, Rita; was a loving father of Jack (Carolynn), John (Tracy), Joyce (Rick Mast), Jim (Barbara); dear father-in-law of Ineke and Cyndy; cherished grandfather of 13 and beloved great-grandfather of 15; preceded in death by a son, Tony, and a grand-daughter, Jacqueline Van Namen Coakley.

Mr. Van Namen and his wife established the Jacob and Rita Van Namen Marketing Scholarship in 1997. Administered by AFE, this scholarship is intended for knowledgeable and creative individuals with an interest in agribusiness marketing or the distribution of floral products.

Friends and colleagues can make a memorial gift to the scholarship or to Trinity Christian College, which Mr. Van Namen supported with his time and resources for many years.

Jacob Van Namen, 90, an area businessman and prominent figure in the floral industry for four decades, died March 31 at his Palos Park home.

Mr. Van Namen founded a multi-location wholesale distribution company, Vans Floral Products, based in Alsip, IL. A successful businessman in his native Holland, Mr. Van Namen immigrated to the United States in 1955 with his wife Rita and two young sons, Jack and John.

The family settled in Chicago where Mr. Van Namen worked at a variety of jobs until being hired by DeBoer Wholesale Florists on Chicago's South side.

By 1960, he had become a partner in the business and soon assumed ownership of the company, which became known as Van's Wholesale Florists. "Van" grew the company from a single location in the Chicago area to 12 distribution centers in six states by the 1990s.

As his family grew, his sons and daughter followed in their father's footsteps becoming active in the business, along with some of his grandsons in later years.

Mr. Van Namen was involved with many non-profit and faith-based organizations. He served as a board member and officer for national floral associations and received numerous awards and industry recognition throughout his career.

Mr. Van Namen promoted higher education as a trustee of Trinity Christian College (Palos Heights, IL), where he contributed to several campus building projects.

A highlight in his life was being designated in 2001 as an Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau, the Netherlands' highest civilian honor, for his role in promoting and furthering Dutch-U.S. trade relations.

Mr. Van Namen remained active in the business and influential in the industry into his early 80s.

He is survived by his devoted wife of 65 years, Rita; loving father of Jack (Carolynn), John (Tracy), Joyce (Rick Mast), Jim (Barbara); dear father-in-law of Ineke and Cyndy; cherished grandfather of 13 and beloved great-grandfather of 15; preceded in death by a son, Tony, and a granddaughter, Jacqueline Van Namen Coakley.

A scholarship has been established in honor of Jacob and Rita Van Namen through the American Floral Endowment.

Friends and colleagues can also make a memorial gift to Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, IL, which Mr. Van Namen supported with his time and resources for many years.

Visitation Wednesday from 3-9 p.m. at Colonial Chapel, 15525 S. 73rd Ave. (155th/Wheeler Dr. & Harlem) Orland Park, IL.

Lying in State Thursday from 10:00 a.m. until time of Funeral Service 11:00 a.m. at Faith Christian Reformed Church, 8383 W. 171st St., Tinley Park, IL.

Burial will be private at Fairmount - Willow Hills Cemetery, Willow Springs, IL.

Express your thoughts and condolences at www.colonialchapel. com - Published in a Chicago Tribune Media Group Publication on Apr. 2, 2013

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Jacob "Jake" P Van Namen Birth 23 Oct 1922 Zwyndrecht, Netherlands Death: March 31 2013 Palos Park Cook county Illinois. Burial Fairmount-Willow Hills Memorial Park , Willow Springs, Cook County, Illinois,

married Jun 10, 1947 Schiedam, Netherlands "Rita" Agatha Frederika Storm Birth< Sep 13 1921 Schiedam, South Holland Netherlands Death September 9, 2020 Palos Heights, IL Burial Fairmount-Willow Hills Memorial Park , Willow Springs, Cook County, Illinois,

Rita Storm Van Namen, 98, passed away on Wednesday, September 9, 2020 at Palos Community Hospital, Palos Heights, IL just a few days before her 99th birthday.

Formerly of Flossmoor and Palos Park IL, Rita was a native of The Netherlands until 1955, when she immigrated to Chicago with her husband Jacob and sons Jack and John.

She was devoted to her family, which grew to include daughter Joyce (Mast) and sons Jim and Tony.

A lifelong member of the Christian Reformed Church, Rita was beloved by her many friends in the Roseland community and among members of the Cottage Grove (South Holland), Lynwood, and Faith (Tinley Park) Christian Reformed churches.

She also was involved in the national wholesale florists trade association, WF&FSA, when the family business founded by her husband, Vans Floral Products, became a prominent member of the organization for more than 50 years.

Rita loved the Lord, her family, and music. She also enjoyed traveling to countries around the world for business and pleasure. With their close friends, she and Jacob visited far-flung ports as well as travel in the U.S. They s pent several months a year at their condo in Palm Springs, CA and summers at their home in Culver, IN, where the entire family would gather weekly while the grandchildren attended Culver Military Academies during the 1980s and 1990s.

Rita was known for sprinkling her conversations with Dutch sayings and phrases, and everyone learned a little Dutch from her. If something happened, she would usually say, “Oh well, er is geen kindt in het water” (there’s no child in the water).

Although she endured great hardship and loss during the German occupation of Holland during WWII, her strong faith sustained her throughout her life. She was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Jacob (2013); a son, Anthony Van Namen (1987); a granddaughter, Jacqueline Coakley (1996), and a daughter-in-law, Cyndy Van Namen (2016).

She is survived by adult children Jack and Carolynn Van Namen; John and Tracy Van Namen; Joyce and Rick Mast; Ineke Van Namen; and Jim and Barbara Van Namen. She was a cherished grandmother/Oma of 14 and dearly-loved great-grandmother to 23, ranging in age from 22 years to two-and-a-half years.

Visitation and Funeral will be held at Colonial Chapel, 15525 S. 73rd Ave. (155th/Wheeler Dr. & Harlem) Orland Park, IL. Visitation is on Sunday, September 13, 2020 from 2 p.m. - 5 p.m.; To uphold safety guidelines, all guests are asked to wear a mask and respect social distancing requirements.

A private Funeral Service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, September 14, 2020. While this service is limited to Rita's immediate family, a live-stream will be available. Please visit Rita's Obituary on Colonial Chapel's web-site at colonialchapel. com to view the live-stream of the Funeral Service.

Burial private at Fairmount - Willow Hills Memorial Park, Willow Springs, IL.

They had: Anthony "Tony" Jacobus VanNamen Birt: 9 Feb 1947 Zwyndrecht, Netherlands 5 Nov 1987 Glendale, Los Angles, county California BURIAL Fairmount-Willow Hills Memorial Park Willow Springs, Cook County, Illinois,; married Ineke ---

Services for Anthony Van Namen, 40, corporate vice president of Vans Floral Products Inc., Alsip, will held at 11 a.m. Monday in Hope Christian Reformed Church, 5825 W. 151st St., Oak Forest. Mr. Van Namen, of Palos Heights, died Friday in a Glendale, Calif., hospital, leaving his wife, Ineke; a daughter, Jacqueline; two sons, Eric and Bryan; his parents, Jacob and Rita Van Namen; four brothers and two sisters. Chicago Tribune Nov. 8 1987

John VanNamen married Tracy ---

Joyce Ann VanNamen married Richard "Rick" Mast

James "Jim" Calvin VanNamen married Barbara ---

Jack VanNamen married Carolyn --- ,

New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957
Name:	Jacob Van Namen
Arrival Date:	21 Feb 1955
Ethnicity/ Nationality:	Netherlander (Dutch)
Place of Origin:	Netherlands
Port of Departure:	Rotterdam, Netherlands
Port of Arrival:	New York, New York
Ship Name:	Ryndam

llinois, Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 
Name:	Jacob Van Namen
Gender:	Male
Record Type:	Petition
Birth Date:	23 Oct 1922
Birth Place:	Zwyndrecht, Netherlands
Arrival Date:	21 Feb 1955
Arrival Place:	New York, New York
Spouse:	Agatha Frederika Storm
Petition Number:	417152 

Northern District, Illinois, Naturalization Index, 1926-1979
Name:	Jacob Van Namen
Age:	40
Birth Year:	1922
Naturalization Year:	1962
Naturalization Place:	Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA






Name:	Anthony Jacobus Vannamen [A Van Namen] 
Gender:	Male
Race:	White
Birth Date:	9 Feb 1947
Birth Place:	Zwyndrecht Z, Netherlands
Death Date:	Nov 1987
SSN:	361427775
Notes:	Sep 1965: Name listed as ANTHONY JACOBUS VANNAMEN; 23 Feb 1988: Name listed as A VAN NAMEN

Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 
Name:	A. Van Namen
Birth Date:	9 Feb 1947
Death Date:	5 Nov 1987
Cause of Death:	Natural
SSN:	361427775
Branch 1:	ARMY
Enlistment Date 1:	13 May 1966
Release Date 1:	10 May 1968

California, Death Index, 1940-1997 
Name:	Anthony Vannamen
Social Security #:	361427775
Gender:	Male
Birth Date:	9 Feb 1947
Birth Place:	Other Country
Death Date:	5 Nov 1987
Death Place:	Los Angeles
Mother's Maiden Name:	Storm

Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 
Name:	Jacob Van Namen
Born:	23 Oct 1922
Died:	31 Mar 2013
State (Year) SSN issued:	Illinois (1954-1955