On Sunday 6 June Hans Jongkind passed away. After bravely fighting the complications of a major operation, he passed away peacefully. In the past year, Hans had already had to say farewell to his wife Henny, who did not survive a brain tumor. Hans is survived by his two children and three grandchildren to whom we express our sincere condolences.
Born on July 13, 1944 in Utrecht, Netherlands into an atheistic family, he was eventually drawn to the Advent message by Fernand Lecompte’s lectures. After training at the theological academy “Oud Zandbergen” in the Netherlands and the theological training in Collonges-sous-Salève, France, Hans started his career as a pastor in 1969 in Hasselt. Shortly before his consecration in 1975, he was chosen as the person in charge of the ESDA (written Bible courses) in Belgium. He continued to do this until the end of his career.
This end eventually came much earlier than expected. After years of battling type 1 diabetes, Hans finally had to take early retirement in 1999. He ended up working for the church for 30 years. And despite his illness, he remained actively interested in the fortunes of the Federation. As a volunteer, depending on his state of health, he was deeply involved in the palliative care service where he could bring comfort and support, some of his many pastoral qualities.
During his farewell service on 9 June, led by one of his friends and former colleague Rudy Van Moere, many messages were heard of appreciation, love, sadness and loss. Children, grandchildren, close family and friends, including Henri Van Der Veken, testified to this.
Hans Jongkind eventually turned 77.
Here’s a final interview made on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Belgian-Luxembourg Federation: