Gerrit Hendrick (GH) Kleine Masselink (2024)

Gerrit Hendrik (1858)
2nd Child of Hendrik Kleine Masselink (1829)

<GH with wife Etta Poets Masselink
​
See 'Spouses' Tab for more information about Etta

GENEALOGYOF GERRIT HENDRIK KLEINE MASSELINK (Masselink in the USA)
​Generation 8
After emigrating to the USA, he was known as GH Masselink and George Henry Masselink.
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907 (Masselink in the USA)
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927 (Masselink in the USA)
​
Father: Hendrik Kleine Masselink (Generation 7)
​Mother:Geerdjen Walkotte Kleine Masselink (Dies in 1869 in Hardinghausen, Germany)
Kleine Masselink Siblings:Fenne (1855); Gerrit Hendrik (1858); Hendrikjen (1860); Harmina (1864); Aleida (1866).
All born in Hardinghausen, Grafschaft Bentheim, in what is now Germany.

Spouse: Etta Poets Masselink (Married GH in Michigan - See 'SPOUSES' Tab)
Children: Henry (1883); Paul Reemt (1885); Gertrude (1887); Andrew (1888); Herman (1890); John (1891); Anna (1893); George (1895); William (1897); Edward (1901)
​All born in either Michigan or Iowa

Known as GH,he is the lastdirect 'Kleine Masselink' male ancestor born in Grafschaft Bentheim, Germany.GH's descendants aresurnamed 'Masselink' because after arriving in Michigan he shortened his Kleine Masselink surname to Masselink, as the German term 'Kleine' (meaning someone who originally inherited thesmaller share of a farm in what is now Germany) had no meaning inAmerica. GH was named after his father (Hendrik 1892) named him after his father, Gerrit Hendrik (1792), as was the tradition in the Old Country. That tradition was continued in Michigan when GH named his first born son Henry (which is the same as Hendrik in Germany) after his father Hendrik (1829).

Although the US Census statesthatboth GH's and Etta's native languageis Dutch, they identified with the Christian Reformed Church's German speaking minority. GH grew up speakingPlattdeutsch (a German dialect that is closer to Dutch than German that was spoken in his native Grafschaft Bentheim) and later learned to speak proper German in school. Etta was born in Emden, in now what is Germany, so her native language is actuallyGerman. GH preferred to read his Dutch language Bible. Etta mostly wrote in German about family events in this Dutch Bible.

Henry F.Masselink 1883

First Child of GH Masselink 1858

GENEALOGYOF HENRY MASSELINK Generation 9

1 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK HENRY 1858-1966

​

Mother: Etta Poets Masselink
Masselink Siblings:Henry (1883); Paul Reemt (1885); Gertrude (1887); Andrew (1888); Herman (1890); John (1891); Anna (1893); George (1895); William (1897); Edward (1901)
​
Spouse: Daisy Hahn Masselink
Masselink Children: George (1915); Martha (1916); Elmer (1918); Angie (1922)
Descendants of Henry and Daisy Masselink with the 'Masselink' surname

• 10 George (1915 MN);Father Henry (1883)
• Spouse:Rena Hibma Masselink
• Masselink Children: Thelma (1945); Howard (1946); Robert (1948); Marlys (1954)
• 11Thelma Masselink Grande (1945 MN);Father George (1915)
• Spouse: Norman Grande
• Grande Children: Carmen; Paul
• 11 Howard Masselink (1946 MN);Father George (1915)
• Spouse: Glenda Brower Masselink
• Masselink Children: Gregory (1981); Sara (1984)
•  12Gregory Masselink (1981 MN);Father Howard (1946)
• 12 Sarah Masselink (1984 MN);Father Howard (1946)
• 11 Robert Masselink (1948 MN);Father George (1915)
• Spouse: Esther De Weerd Masselink
• Masselink Children: Rita (1976); Allen (1978); Beth (1982); James (1985)
•  12 Rita Masselink (1976 MN):Father Robert (1948)
• 12 Allen Masselink (1978 MN):Father Robert (1948)
•  12 Beth Masselink (1982 MN):Father Robert (1948)
• 12 James Masselink (1985 MN):Father Robert (1948)
• 11 Marlys Masselink Kroll(1954 MN);Father George (1915)
• Spouse: Roger Kroll
• Kroll Children: Ryan; Rachelle; Meliasa
• 10 Martha Masselink Califf(1916 MN);Father Henry (1883)
• Spouse: Robert Califf
• Califf Children: Charles (1946); Patti Califf Dobbins (1949); Robert (1950)
• 10 Elmer Masselink(1918 MN);Father Henry (1883)
• 2004 Sep 16Elmer dies in Michigan
• Spouse: Phyllis Birtles Masselink
• Masselink Children: Karen (1951); Beverly (1952); James (1953); John (1958); Dawn (1965)
• 11 Karen Masselink Zang Felty(1951 MI 11);Father Elmer (1918)
• Spouse 1: Joseph Lang
• ​Lang Children: Shawna
• Spouse 2: Thomas Felty; No known children
• 11 Beverly Masselink Alberda(1952 MI);Father Elmer (1918)
• Spouse: Gary Alberda
• Alberda Children: Chad
• 11James Masselink (1953 MI);Father Elmer (1918)
• 11 John Masselink (1958 MI);Father Elmer (1918)
• 11Dawn Masselink (1965 MI);Father Elmer (1918)

• 10 Angie Masselink Talsma(1922 MN);Father Henry (1883)
• Spouse: Dick Talsma
• Talsma Children: Donna Talsma van Dam (1947)Genealogy Contributor; Raymond (1948); Glenn (1950)Genealogy Contributor; Diane (1953); Dorothy (1956); Delores (1959); Roger (1961); Daria (1959); Denise (1972)
• In 2011, Angie had 26 Grandchildren and 21 Great-Grandchildren
• 22 Sep 9Born in Moulton Township, MN
• Attended country and Edgerton Public Schools
• 1940Graduated from Edgerton High School
• Worked as a clerk in a grocery store in Edgerton for a short time
• 1946 Jan 29Married Dick Talsma on her parents' farm.
• They made their home on a farm northeast of Chandler, MN for seventeen years.
• 1963Movedto another farm southwest of Chandler.
• 1981Remained on the farm till husband's retirement and then moved to Chandler, MN.
• 2010Resident of the Edgebrook Care Center in Edgerton, where she died in 2011 at the age of 88.
• ​2011 Mar 25Angie dies in Edgerton MN and is buried at the Chandler Memorial Cemetery.
• Angie was a housewife and mother, but also was active in her church and community. She was a member of the Chandler Christian Reformed Church, where she was in the Ladies Aid, and enjoyed bird watching, flowers, and many years of working with the Chandler Christian School. She loved getting together with her friends each Saturday morning for coffee and playing cards. Angie and her husband also loved to travel and over the years made trips to forty nine of the fifty States and most of the Provinces of Canada
• Talsma Children of Angie Masselink Talsma:
• 11Donna(Masselink)Talsmavan Dam(1947 MN);Mother Angie Masselink Talsma (1922)
• Lives in Chandler, MN; FB Post 2015 Jul 2: "I was really curious about you when I saw Allan and Glenda Masselink become friends with you on FB. My mother was Angie Masselink Talsma, the youngest daughter of Henry and Daisy Masselink. I am the eldest of nine, one deceased and most of us live right here in SW Minnesota. She [Angie] passed away in 2011. Hope to learn more about you and your family."

GENEALOGYOF PAUL REEMT (PR) MASSELINK; Generation 9
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
​9 MASSELINK PAUL REEMT 1885-1984
​http://www.geni.com/people/P-R-Masselink/6000000001932321422

Mother: Etta Poets Masselink
Masselink Siblings:Henry (1883); Paul Reemt (1885); Gertrude (1887); Andrew (1888); Herman (1890); John (1891); Anna (1893); George (1895); William (1897); Edward (1901)
​
Spouse: Martha Peters Masselink
http://www.geni.com/people/Martha-Masselink-Peters/6000000001932113853
Masselink Children:Etta (1914);Johanna (1915); Anna (1918); Gertrude (1919); Gerald(1921); Raymond (1922); Lucille (1926); Esther (1930)
About Martha Masselink-Peters
Martha (birth name Martje) Peters and P.R. Masselink loved each other greatly; that was obvious. She called him 'Reemt' always; and he called her 'Martha' ; no 'Honey' etc., just love and respect. But theirs was not an easy life. Martha, in addition to bearing 6 children in 8 years, with two more after that, did everything herself. She had a large garden, from which the family ate, canning what they ate in the colder months. No freezers or refrigerators. She and P.R. were pretty much self sufficient except for a few things.
To hear my mother Anna speak, and my own observations while young, Martha wasn't as relaxed as P.R. and made that known as well. No wonder, with all the kids and hard work. But she was dedicated to her family, her husband and her community. When she had more time after the kids grew up, she was involved in her church and schools as well.
When she died at 87 years, my mother told me the doctor said that she was 'totally worn out'.
Like P.R., she was also progressive. When P.R. bought a car early on, she was determined to learn to drive. And she did. Etta and Joanne also used the car to drive to High School. P.R. quickly made use of new machinery and developments. He also believed in quality, and Martha had a washing machine powered by the finest gasoline engine of its day, the engine being used for other purposes as well. Grandpa had a Buick back in the later 1940s, although his last car was a 1960 White Ford. He also had John Deere's; I remember that in the mid 1940s.
When they moved to Edgerton in 1944, I remember visiting them over the years. I remember Etta Poets living with them her last years. Martha's house was always warm and open, and I got to play their foot-pedal organ. But the Living Room was off limits except for special company!
Martha's last days were preceded by a broken hip, causing them to move to the retirement home, where she later had some strokes, causing them to move to the nursing care section. The last one paralyzed her from the neck down according to Trudy Masselink. She passed away shortly thereafter.
What I as their oldest grandchild remember, however, was love and warmth. I'll add more as I can...(Earl Duthler)

Descendants of Paul Reemt and Martha Masselink with the 'Masselink' surname

10 Etta Masselink(1914MN);Father Paul Reemt (1885)
​Never married, No children
1956 Dies in Grand Rapids, MI

10 Johanna Masselink Jones(1915 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
Spouse: Russel Jones
​Jones Children: Margaret Jones (1944); Edward Jones (1945); Phyllis Jones Meulendyk

10 Anna Masselink Duthler Maring(1918 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
Spouse 1: William Duthler
Duthler Children: Earl (1940) Genealogy Contributor; Ronald (1944); Bruce (1947)
http://www.genealogywise.com/profile/EarlReemtDuthler
​Spouse 2: Harry Maring; No known children

10 Gertrude (Trudy) Masselink Bouma(1919 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
Legallychanged her name from Gertrude to Trudy
Spouse: Frank Bouma
​Bouma Children: Marcia Bouma Koster Van Ostenberg Draft (1941) Genealogy Contributor​; Fred Bouma (1947)

10 Gerald Masselink(1921 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
195? Moves with family to California
Spouse 1: Johanna Barr;
Masselink Children: Elaine (1942); Marilyn (1944); Paul (1945); and Judith (1948)
11 Elaine Masselink Hammingh(1942 MI); Father Gerald (1921)
Hammingh Children: Janet; Julie; Henry
11 Marilyn Masselink Biemold Holt Carter (1944 MN); Father Gerald (1921)
​Marilyn has fond memories of her parents and recalls their romantic and affectionate love for one another.
Spouse 1: ? Biemold
Biemold Children: Cheryl; Daniel
Cheryl Biemold D'Ettorre (CA 12);Mother Marilyn (1944); (Email 5 May 2015);Genealogy Contributor
Spouse 2: ? Holt
Holt Children: Christopher
​Spouse 3: Richard Carter; No known children
11 Paul (Rod) RodneyMasselink (1945 MN); Father Gerald (1921)
Spouse: Janice Van Leeuwen Masselink
Masselink Children: Kristen (1967); Kathleen (1974); Korin (1977)
12 Kristen Masselink Jones(1967 12); Father Paul (1945)
12 Kathleen Masselink (1974 CA 12); Father Paul (1945)
12 Korin Masselink (1977 CA 12); Father Paul (1945)
11 Judith (Judy) Masselink Naaktgeboren(MN 11); Father Gerald (1921)
Spouse: Henry Naaktgeboren
​Naaktgeboren Children: Shelly; Chad

10Raymond Masselink(1922 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
Spouse: Agnes Kaldenberg Masselink
​Masselink Children: Gwenneth (1946); Paul (1947); Douglas (1949); Randall (1950); Patricia (1962); Emily (1966)
11 Gwenneth Masselink De Young (1946 MN); Father Raymond (1922)
​Spouse: Henry De Young; No known children
11 Paul Masselink (1947 MN); Father Raymond (1922)
Spouse: Carol Radebaugh Masselink
Masselink Children: Jessica; Raymond
 12 Jessica Masselink
12 Raymond Masselink
11 Douglas Masselink (1949 MN); Father Raymond (1922)
​Spouse: Gail Walters Masselink; One known Masselink child
12 Masselink Child (Name Unknown)
11Randall Masselink (1950 MN); Father Raymond (1922);
Still in Italy?
Spouse: Donetella Venziani Masselink; No known children
11Patricia Masselink (1962 MI 11); Father Raymond (1922)
11 Emily Masselink (1966 MI 11); Father Raymond (1922)

10 Margaret Lucille (Lucy) Masselink Blom(1926 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
1981 Jun 23 Lucy dies in Leota, MN
Spouse: Henry Blom; Henry buys Lucy's grandfather's (GH) "Home Place" farm from her Uncle Andrew's children
Blom Children: Karen Blom Polman (1947); Dennis Blom (1949); Steven Blom (1951); Phillip (1954); Gregory (1959)
Phillip Blom (1954) now owns the GH "Home Place" farm.
http://www.geni.com/people/Margaret-Lucille-Blom-Masselink/6000000002677956040

10 Esther Masselink Vander Tuig(1930 MN); Father Paul Reemt (1885)
Spouse: Gerald Vander Tuig
Vander Tuig Children: Beth (1960); Julia (1966)​

Gertie Masselink Kallemyn
3rd Child of GH Masselink

1 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
​9 MASSELINK GERTRUDE (GERTIE) MASSELINK KALLEMYN (1887-1972)

Mother: Etta Poets Masselink
Masselink Siblings:Henry (1883); Paul Reemt (1885); Gertrude (1887); Andrew (1888); Herman (1890); John (1891); Anna (1893); George (1895); William (1897); Edward (1901)
​
Spouse: John Kallemyn
Kallemyn Children:George (1908), Merle (1911), Edward (1913), Marvin (1917), Etta (1921)

1887 Jun 24 Gertie born in Fremont, MI in the vicinity of Reeman.
1908Mar 8Married John WillemKallemyn in Leota, MN; John is a blacksmith in Leota and the son ofMartin Kallemyn, the man from whom her father GH purchased his 240 acre farm near Leota, MNin 19XX
1972 Sep 24Gertie dies in Pella, IA.

Gertie had an expansive heart with many doors and windows for easy access. You could always get a lot done from Gertie, and we loved to sit next to her in church.

The Leota church was not air conditioned and in the summer during a one and a half hour service, it could get pretty stuffy. "I'm thirsty" was a sure fire opening and with Gertie it worked every time. There were two pumps nearby. On was in the parsonage lawn and it was definitely not interesting. The other was at Brinks acrossa smallroad. Brinks had a goat in a neat little shed. Also a treadmill, and sometimes the goat was on it. It was easy to read Gertie that way. Years later when at a banquet, they put on a "This is Your Life" skit forher youngest brother Edward and they brought a live goat to commemorate this.

In later years when we arrived in Trosky (a small town in Pipestone County, MN)by train for our summer jobs, there was no question what to do. We called Gertie. In a little while her husband John would come to get us. By the time we got home, Gertie had a chicken dinner ready. A familiar sight on the farm was Gertie with a stout wire hook catching a chicken. How many chicken dinners and meals she brought to shut-ins no one will ever know. Maybe there is a record of it somewhere.

Once when I was at her home in Pella a letter came from a graduate student at one of our universities. He wrote: "I have always failed to thank you for all you did for me when I was at Greenly College." Gertie said "I wonder what he means." I asked "Didn't you do something for him?" She replied, "No, not really." "oh" she said, "he used to come over with the boys and his shirts were always so dirty. So I told him to bring them over. But they went right in with the wash. And one time he was in the dormitory with the flu. A dormitory room is no place to be sick. So for a week or so we put a bed up for him in our front room. But he wasn't any bother." Many of the best deeds are not remembered. "Lord, when saw we thee sick?"

John Kallemyn was a blacksmith in Leota and a good one. People came to him from miles around. Heput a strip of iron in his forge until it was red hot. Sometimes we were allowed to operate the bellows. He would hammer it out on his anvil into the shape of a horseshoe. It had to be the right size and fit. Few could do it as well.

How Gertie met him I do not know. She was a beautiful girl with flowing hair with a sort of "catch me if you can" disposition. I cried when they were married. She will always have a warm place in my heart. I was six.

Above recollections by Rev. Dr. Edward Masselink.

Andrew Masselink (1888 MI 9)4th Child of GH (1858)

​Andrew was the efficient one. He could grow a crop when everyone else failed and he might have qualified for membership in the Master Farmer's organization. While others were debating whether a thing could be done and how to go about it, he was probably out there doing it. Heended upowning four farms in Minnesota.

As a young man he was shy, quiet and rather retiring, and to us young ones, understanding, patient and kind. When I was eight years old or so, one morning at the breakfast table there had been talk of chipping a carload of steers to the stockyards in Sioux City, Iowa. During the day the steers had been separated from the herd and placed in an enclosure where we usually did our milking. On the way home from school I had driven the milk cows from the pasture. Coming home, I had opened the gate and had mixed them with the separated steers. I should have known better and should have been more alert, and was told so in no uncertain terms and was duly flattened. Coming past me, Andrew said quietly, "It's all right Ed, we all make mistakes." It happened 75 years ago, but I never forgot it.

Andrew and I slept together in the little southeast bedroom with the closet taken out of it. Gertie and Annie slept across the hall. Henry, Reemt, George, [John]and Bill slept in the long rooms where we kept the seed corn under the beds. This long bedroom was partly heated by a small grate in the kitchen ceiling. (The kitchen and dining room were the same.)

You learn a great deal about a person when you sleep with him. I was a difficult one to sleep with and on occasion when I slept with someone else they let me know it. Andrew was always considerate. He let me warm my cold feet against him. I tossed around a lot, but he never kicked me. In the morning when he got up, he was careful not to waken me. Such [memories] stay with you for life.

Andrew always managed to save a little money. When he was about 19 he decided to blow it and go to the State Fair in Minneapolis, MN. As far as I know, no one in the community had ever done this. He took the train to Miloma Junction and then the Minneapolis-St. Louis train to Minneapolis. He got a room and stayed three days. When he came home he told us that hehad visited the Savage Mail order Catalog Plant and had seen the horse Dan Patch, the famous trotter belonging to [Mr.] Savage on the racetrack. Every week we knew at which statefair Dan Patch was racing, even as far away as Omaha and St. Louis. He was one of the sleekest race horses ever and we had a picture of him.

Andrew also a good streak of get-up-and-fight in him. During the Dutch to English controversy in the Leota Christian Reformed Church, he and Reemt were alternating elders as brothers could not serve at the same time. Reemt encouraged the preacher by quietly but unequivocally supporting him. Andrew, on the other hand, went to bat with the die-hards and stood up against the English group.

Andrew was an indefatigable worker in the Kingdom of God.He made regular trips to the prison in Sioux Falls, SD with Reverend Cornie Van Zee.When Van Zee was in Anchorage, AK, Andrew and his brother-in-law, Dr. Garret Beckering, undertook the whole support of the extensive evangelistic effort in Alaska. In the annals of the Kingdom he will have a remembered place.

Above recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink.
Andrew owned and worked four farms and very active in the Christian Reformed Church and schools. (Of course when Andrew was outcontributing his time for various civic and religious duties, his (sometimes resentful) wife was left at home to keep thehousehold running - grandson Thomas.)

1888 Sep 24Andrew born in Fremont, MI in the vicinity of Reeman; As a result of a fire that burned down GH's log cabin, the family found refuge in an abandoned blacksmith shop with a mud floor. Here their son Andrew is born.

1894 Sep 23Future wife Berendena (Bena) Beckering is born in Leota, MN. (See SPOUSES Tab).

1911Bena and Andrew both belong to the Leota Young People's Society of the Leota CRC.

1915 Jan 27AndrewandBena Beckeringmarried by Domine William De Grootin Leota, MN; Respective fathers, Frank Beckering and GH Masselink signed the Marriage Certificate as witnesses, 10 Children.

1915Bena has a terrible stomach ache that won't go away. Andrew's cure is to go to the barn, fill a rucksack full of oats, heat it and placethe hot oatson Bena's stomach.When the hot oat remedyfailed towork, Bena's mother Grace (a strong-willed andquick-tongued woman) was summoned. "She surveyed the scene without mirth" andthen reprimanded Andrew soundly for not recognizing that Bena was pregnant withtheir first child, who was to be named George (Born 1916 Jan 21).

1917 Jun 2WWI Draft Registration Card: Self employed farmer; Requests draft exemption because he "supports family (wife and one small child)alone on a 160 acre farm"; Medium height and build; Blue eyes; Dark brown hair.

1940 JanAndrew and Bena's 25th Anniversary is spent with family during the day and with the consistory in the evening. Hattie and Cora Koedam bake fluffy angel and sunshine cakes served with coffee, sandwiches, cookies andice cream.

1961 SummerWhenson Ed Masselink andfamily visitedAndrew and Benain Edgerton,Andrew fell off the roof at age 72 while helping to repair theshingles on his two story house. He wasbrought to thethe hospital by ambulance and released soon after.

19XXHouse in Edgerton, MN is soldand they move permanentlyto Grand Rapids, MI

19XXMove to 814 Edna Street, Grand Rapids, MI. This modern house is Bena's dream come true. Andrew would not buy a house unless it was within walking distance to church and this house is locatedabout two blocks from Seymour CRC. This house is also about a half block away from where their son Edward lives at 871 Edna Street.https://www.google.com/maps/@42.921882,-85.646885,3a,75y,169.95h,89.8t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s-Tw2ikpjAjL3lMaJI1RQYg!2e0

19xxAndrew transfers ownership of hisfourfarms to his children.

1975 Jan 27Family and friends celebrate Andrew and Bena's 60th wedding anniversary.

1975 Oct 2After some resistance by Andrew, they move to Heather Hills Retirement Home in Grand Rapids, MI. Son Edward tells his father that hismother Benaneeds to retire tooand that she is moving to Heather Hills.Andrew has the choice of staying alone on Edna Street or moving withBena to Heather Hills. Andrew decides tomove with Benato Heather Hills. Their Edna Street house is donated to the Christian Reformed Board of Home Missions for use by overseas missionaries visiting the United States.

1977 Nov 11Andrew dies at the age of 89; Had 36 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren on the date of hisdeath; Buried in Washington Park Memorial Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI; His brother, Dr. Edward Masselink,officiates at the funeral; Burialplot originally belonged to son Edward; Andrew, Bena, Edward, and Edward's wife Geraldine are all buried in adjoining plots; Edward's stepdaughter Jane's husband, Jose Pantoja, is buried close by; Burial location is across the street from the corner of Emerson and Richmond; Andrew's eldest son George dies shortly afteron 1977 Dec 23.

1977-1989Bena stays at Heather Hills, 1055 Forest Hill SE, GR, until her health deteriorates and she needs a gall bladder operation; The operation is difficult and she develops Alzheimer's disease; "She sat restlessly in her wheelchair with an expressionless face, no longer caring or conscious of person, time or space."

1989 Feb 1After taking ill with the flu, Bena dies and is buried along side her husband at the Washington Park Memorial Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI.

GENERATIONTEN Children:Gerrit (George) (1916), Franklin (1918), Edward (1920), Grayce (1922),Harold (1924), Jeanette (Toots) (1926), John (1928), Benjamin (1933), Kathryn (1939)

See Below: GENERATION TEN: The Nine Children of Andrew and Berendena (Bena)Masselink
...and also see above'SPOUSES'/'Beckering' Tab

Click on the below imageto enlarge picture

Generation Nine

Child #5

Herman Masselink (1890 MI 9); Father GH (1858)

1890Mar 29Son Herman born in Fremont, MI in the vicinity of Reeman; + At the age of two.

1892 DEC 18Son Herman diesat home in Reeman, MI as a result ofan accident; Herman falls intoa tub ofhot water in the kitchen of their log cabinwhile playing with his nine year old brother, Henry (on either Saturday bath day, December 17, 1892 or Monday wash day, December 12). As a result of the hot water burns, Herman dies soon after on Sunday, December 18 at the age of two andburied in an unmarked grave alongside the fence next to the officeof the Fremont Cemetery.Henry never forgets this tragic death. GH and Etta become discouraged after the death of Herman. Providence seems to point the wayto a fresh start in Iowa.

Reverend John (Johannas)Masselink, ThD
(1891 MI 9) Father GH (1858)

Generation Nine

​A native of Fremont, Michigan, John spent his boyhood years in the Leota and Edgerton areas of Minnesota. He was the aggressive man of action. When World War II started, hundreds of men were steaming into the Fort Custer Training Center located near Battle Creek, MI. John went to the commander and asked, "What arrangements do you have for services next Sunday?" The commander replied "We are not yet organized for that, and our military chaplains have not yet arrived." John offered to provide ministers for which the Commandant was very grateful. The next Sunday, John, Bill and Ed each preached to overflow meetings at two chapels. John had also brought the choir from his Third Christian Reformed Church in Kalamazoo, MI.

When John had been installed at the Third Christian Reformed Church in Kalamazoo, he went directly to see the superintendent at the large Kalamazoo Public High School. When he left it was with the arrangement that on the first Thursday of every month he would conduct the chapel service at the high school.

There was also a large 1200 bed mental hospital in Kalamazoo. John arranged with the superintendent, Dr. Mortar, to preach once a month on Sunday afternoon at the hospital. John's daughter, Ethel, went along to play piano at these services and soon observed how dreary life was for the patients. On Thursday evenings, she got them together in the gymnasium and the patients in various formations would march around the room while she played Onward Christian Soldiers on the piano. When the patients discovered that she was having a baby, they sent Ethel dolls that were made with lots of love.

In 1908 Edgerton built a new school. It was an adequate red brick building set well back from the road with a large boulder and a flagpole in front of it. The community was very proud of it and resolved to make good use of it. Among the innovations, they offered a ten week winter course after corn picking for older students to advance their education. Andrew (19) and John (17) both decided to go. During the cold winter they stayed with old Mrs. Strecher. They cut wood and ran errands for her and for a small stipend, she furnished them with a room. This was the first introduction of the idea of higher education in our home. The next fall John left to attend Calvin College in Grand Rapids. There was some talk of Andrew going too but he was needed on the farm. I still remember the desolate feeling when John went away.

A year later John conceived the idea of a Dutch summer school in Leota. The idea was enthusiastically received,especially since it involved no money. The Leota Public School was made available and from the first day he packed it with 50 or 60 children. He pedaled to school on his Ranger bike with his youngest brother Ed on the handle bars. Instruction and singing was in Dutch, which greatly pleased all concerned. There was a final program and when John left for school, he stood at the church door to say farewell to the congregation. Every face glowed to think that our church had a real live person studying for the ministry.

In 1916, Grundy College and Seminary were opened. John had already been in Wellsburg, IA(about 13 miles from Grundy Center, IA) selling Thompson Chain Reference Bibles. That brought him into many homes and that is how he met his future wife, Kathryn Nessen. It was not hard to persuade him that Grundy Seminary was the place to go. In the fall 1916?+GH and Ettamove to Grundy Center, IA so sons George, John, William and Edward canattend Grundy College and Seminary. "They were a kindly family". After he was ordained in 1918, he continued his studies at the Divinity School of the University of Chicago and at the Southwestern BaptistTheologicalSeminary from which he received his doctorate.

Above recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink.

1891 Sep 23Born in Fremont, MI in the vicinity of Reeman.

1909 FallDeparts the farm in Minnesota to attend Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI.

1917 Jun 5WWI Draft Card states that John is a CRC Minister in Alamosa, CO and claims a draft exemption as a licensed minister; He is described as being single and having blue eyes, brown hair and a medium build.

1917 Marries Kathryn A.Nessen in Wellsburg, IA (1898-1982); Her father was born in Germany and her motherwas born in IA; Two Children: Ethel and Christopher

1918 Graduates from the Christian Reformed Seminary of Grundy Center, IA (Grundy College and Seminary)

1918 Nov 17 Ordained; Source Church is Ebenezer CRC, Leota, MN

1918-1920 Pastor, Ridott CRC, Stephenson, IL CRC; Sister-in-law Dena A K Neesen isdescribed in 1920 census as a servant.

1920-1924 Pastor, Fulton, IL CRC

1924-1927 Pastor, Second CRC, Muskegon, MI

1927-1943 Pastor, Third CRC, Kalamazoo, MI

1930-1940+ Livesat 410 West Walnut ST,Kalamazoo, MIwith wife Kathrynand children Ethel and Christopher; Occupation: Clergy; Income is $2500 in 1940

1938 Student, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas; Th.D.

1942 Apr 27 WWII Draft Card: John is 5' 10 1/2" tall, 195 pounds, light complexion, blue eyes, brown hair

1943-1949 Pastor, First CRC, 407 Columbus, Grand Haven, MI; 1945 Daughter Ethyl lives with Johnand his wife.

1949-1958 Pastor, Second CRC, Orange City, IA

1958 Retires from active pastorate but continued to assist several vacant churches

1964 Mar 21Died Grand Rapids, MI at age 72 after a short illness diagnosed as acute leukemia; Entombed in the Graceland Mausoleum, Grand Rapids, MI; "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of a faithful servant" Psalm 116:15; Wife Catherine lives in the Hillside Apartments, 505 Cherry ST SE, Grand Rapids, MI

Two GENERATIONTEN Children: Ethyl (1920)and Christopher (1929); Seven Grandchildren in 1964.

1 Ethel Victoria Masselink Cannon (1920 IL10); Father John Masselink (1891);* 1920Nov 19, German Valley (Ridott)IL ; + 1997Jan 16, Rolla, Phelps County, MO; 1941 Marries Leland (Lee) Cannon in Grand Haven MI;Lelandattended Bethany Seminary in Chicago; 1964 in Grand Haven, MI

2 Christopher R.Masselink (1929 MI 10); Father John Masselink (1891); * 1929 DEC 12 Kalamazoo MI; + 2012 MAR 6; 1956 Marries Joan M.Chrestenson (1934-2003); 1964 in Peoria, IL
2.1 Rebecca Masselink Morkin(1953 IL11); Father Christopher (1929)
2.2 Mark Masselink (1957 IL11); Father Christopher (1929)
2.3 Jenifer Masselink (1963 IL11); Father Christopher (1929)

Anna (Antje, Annie)
Masselink Post Hamberg (1893 IA )

7th Child of GH (1858)

Annie was a spirited person. When others about her became discouraged, disheartened, impatient, she usually took the long look. "What's time to a tree" she used to say. It was a characteristic she heeded during her life.

She was not yet 15 in 1908 when her sister Gertie was married. That meant she was needed at home, so she did not complete grades 7 and 8 in school. Later when she was 20, she re-enrolled in District 90 and she and her youngest brother Edward trudged off to school together. She completed the two grades in a single year, which showed her spirit and courage.

Her brother John's Dutch Summer School[in Leota?]was a fantastic success, so Edgerton decided to be in on it too. So they asked her brother John to recommend a Calvin student as a teacher. And so it came that they got a young man from Allendale, MI by the name of Benjamin Post. He was an immediate sensation with the girls. He stayed with the minister Rev. Abraham Bliek, whose eligible sister also spent the summer with them. Being on location, she was considered to have the inside track.

Before long, Annie's brother John invited Ben to spend a weekend with us. In no time Annie was kidding him. He was a bit embarrassed and shy. At home he had not been used to kidding. Very soon he was back, and you know the rest of the story.

After a year of post-graduate study, Ben was ordainedon September, 1919 in Wright, IA. He was a warm compassionate man and was greatly loved both as a pastor and a preacher. He only served about 15 months.

It was thanksgiving recess 1920 and her brother, Edward, was at Grundy, IA. He had written Ben and Annie that he was coming to spend the day with them. Getting off the train at Richfield at 9 PM, Edward went to a hotel. The next day someone came 12 miles to get him. Edward was told earlier that their ministerwas sick.

Upon entering the parsonage,Edward saw that Annie and Edward's father and mother (GH and Etta)were already there. Ben was also there, buthis face and left eye badly swollen witherysipelas https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erysipelas. Recent frost and very heavy rains made the Iowa mud roads impassible and therefore impossible to get a doctor. But on Tuesday, a doctor did get through. "He lanced the swelling, the worst possible thing to do with erysipelas, which is a type of blood poison". The situation looked critical. Later that afternoon, Annie's brother William came.

Seeing it could be a long illness, it was decided that Edward should go to Edgerton to help their brother George, who was on the family farm in Edgerton. Tuesday evening, Edward boarded the same train to Richfield on which he came the day before.

Landing in Trosky, IA at about noon on Wednesday, there was a telegram that Ben had died during the night.Edward's sister Gertie and brother Henry had joined him on the trainback to Annie's. They got off at Richfield, and Henry and Edward were back in the same hotel room that Edward was in Monday night. The next day, Thursday, a man with a team and a buggy came to get them. The horses were taken to the livery stable to be fed and rested, as the roads had been so bad. On the way back, Gertie rode in the buggy while Henry and Edward walked alongside. The mud was so thick that large clumps were brought up by the wheels. This mud would clog between the wheel and the buggy and had to be dislodged with a stick. It took all afternoon to cover the twelve miles, and the horses were exhausted.

On Wednesday afternoon an embalmer came from Kanawha and a casket was obtained. There was haste because the burial was to be in Michigan and there was a Sunday intervening. On Thursday morning the congregation assembled for their Thanksgiving service. Instead, it was the funeral of their pastor. Rev. Hoefker of Kanawha officiated. Directly after the service, the casket was placed in a hearse and taken to Clarion. Clarion was farther away, but the last few miles were graveled. The casket was placed on the same train that Edward, Henry, and Gertie had come in on the day before.

Annie's father GH and her brother William accompanied the remains on the way back to Grand Rapids, MI. The doctors forbade Anne to go along. She had a seven month old baby (Connie)with another (Benjamin)on the way. Annie's mother, Etta, stayed with Annie and her baby while GH and William were in Grand Rapids.

Edward told this in some detail so that there should be a record of these days, the most trying experience of Annie's life. The days ahead were more placid. The next two years were spent in Grundy center, IA with her parents. When her brother William became the pastor of the Lafayette, IN Christian Reformed Church in 1922, Annie and her son Benjamin went along. Her daughter Connie stayed with her parents in Edgerton for a year or more. GH used to take Connie downtown and when they passed Martin Kallemyn's candy store, she would place herself in front of him. Then she would turn his feet towards the door and take his hand. An efficiency expert from the start.

William ismarried in 1927 and brotherEdward was going to Trinity Reformed Church in Grand Rapids. So Annie and her children, Connie and Benjamin, went along with Edward to his new church.. Their father GH died just then, so mother Etta came with Edward also. Edward remembers moving into the parsonage with a family of five andthat set the pattern for the next twelve years. During the last year or two, mother Etta lived in her own little homeby her son William,near the Alpine CRC parsonage.

Annie married Garret Hamberg in 1941 and happy days followed until he suddenly died at the change of the year 1955-1956. She later lived alone in an upstairs apartment on Pine Street in Grand Rapids, next to West Side Christian School.
Above recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink.

1893 May 29 Annie born in Wright, Iowa

Some time after 1902 One of the church organists at Ebenezer CRC, Leota MN.

1918 Marries Reverend Benjamin Post (+1920) in Leota, MN; Ben graduates Calvin College 1915 and Calvin's Theological School of the Christian Reformed Church 1918; Two Children: Connie (1920), Benjamin (1921).

1920 Husband Ben Post dies while she was pregnant with second child, Benjamin.

1941 Marries Garret Hamberg in Grand Rapids, MI; The Reeman general store was owned at one timeby Garret Hamberg; Reeman was where allAnnie's older siblings were born; No Children

1959 +/- Lived on Pine Street in an upstairs apartment two doors down and on the same side of the street as West Side Christian School. George'sand Edward's children who went to West SideChristiansometimes went to herapartment when they were sick; Best remembered for her dish of rock candy.

1982 Died, Grand Rapids, MI; Her brother Edward was with Annie 15 minutes before she died at the age of 88 at Raybrook Manor.Sixty-two years after her husband Ben died, she was laid alongside him in the Allendale Cemetery.

GENERATIONTEN Children: Connie Post Rodenhouse(1920) and Benjamin Post(1921)

Reverend George (Gerrit) Henry Masselink
(1895 9 IA)
8th Child of GH (1858)

​George was a man with a wide range of interest and unusual natural endowment. He could talk intelligently about a broader scope of subjects that almost any man his brother Edward knew. That made him such an interesting conversationalist.

If you drove with him in the countryside, his mind was constantly observing and making notation. He would make a note about the types of crops that were being grown, the topography of the land, a different kind of silo, whether the farmer set his fences straight. Things others passed by unnoticed were of intense interest to him.

He was a competent mathematician who could teach algebra and geometry in the Highland Park Junior College in Dearborn, MI. He was a good chemist and could fill a job as a metallurgist at the Ford Plant in Detroit. He took his hand at farming, and for two years operated the home farm in Edgerton. He could build ahouse as he did on Walnut Street. Name it, and he was game to take a try at it. (George's brother Andrew's son, Edward Herman Masselink, remembers Georgeacquiringfryers and other equipmentto go into the potatochip business and later happilyselling greeting cards door to door.)

During his teaching career, he was an excellent counselor for young people, and they sought him out constantly. In an instant he could share their enthusiasm and in giving them advice, he had an intuitive grasp of their personality. With them he had an immediate sense of comradeship whether it was in setting traps with the griffin boys at the valley school along the Chaumberarie Creek or in counseling a young man for a professional career.

During the depression there was an oversupply of teachers and wages were minimal. George, wherever he was teaching, often found a little empty chapel to start a Sunday School. He often talked about how great it would be if he could conduct weddings and funerals. So in the fall of 1933 or 1934 he enrolled in the McCormick Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Chicago. While there, he served as pastor assistant in the Presbyterian Church in Evanston, IL and the next year in the Presbyterian Church in La Grange, IL. On graduation he informed them of his plans to continue teaching while doing church work on the side. So he was ordained as an evangelist without charge in the Chicago Presbytery and his name was in the Presbyterian yearbook thereafter.

His first assignment was as stated supply in the Congregational Church in Boscobel, WI, the birthplace of the Gideons (He always kept a special interest in the Gideons.) The church in Boscobel was too institutionally frozen to suit him, but he liked Steuben in the Kickapoo valley where he went on Sunday afternoons. They installed new cement steps for him and redecorated the church. From a picture post card they painted the whole front wall as a fresco of the city of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, of which they were very proud. When he conducted the funeral of an old lady they said to him: "Lay her away real nice, Rev." Later he served the Presbyterian Church in Stockbridge, MI. Several years afterward the Dancer family entertained us all at a sumptuous dinner.

George never shunned hard labor and always treated Edward as a little brother. When their car broke down on the road, it was always George who crawled under and attached the chain. George's wife Ann always gave him a good counter balance and he was inordinately proud of her and his family. We shall always remember him for his spontaneous enthusiasm and his kind and gentle spirit.

Above recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink.

1895 Jul 4Born in Meservey, IA

1900 Jun 14 Living with parents (GH & Etta) and siblings in Grimes, Cerro Gordo, IA; Listed as Henry H. (age 4) in the 1900 census.

1920 Census states that George was a rural school teacher.

193x Ordained in Chicago.

1943 Marries Anne Langeries, Grand Rapids, MI; Three Children: Sally Masselink Siebesma(1944), Robert (1945), Karen Masselink Klemp(1949).

1961 Lived at 1413 Winnik SE, Grand Rapids, MI; Organized a 31 Jul 1961 potluck Masselink reunion at Zeeland City Park.

1984 Jan 5George dies and is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Grand Rapids, MI. Dr. Edward Masselink officiates at his funeral.

GENERATIONTEN Children: Sally (1944), Robert (1945) and Karen (1949)

1 Sally Masselink Siebesma(1944 ? 10); Father George Masselink(1895)
2 Robert Masselink(1945 ? 10); Father George Masselink(1895)
3 Karen Masselink Klemp(1949 ? 10); Father George Masselink(1895)

Reverend DoctorWilliam Masselink Sr, ThM, PhD, ThD

9th Child of GH

​Dr. Masselink and his wife Mary were the salt of the earth. The Reverend Doctor William Masselink, or "Uncle Bill," asmany knew him,was greatly loved as a pastor and a preacher; a kindly man who preached the gospel with such passion and fervor, sometimes with tears running down his cheeks, that he was popularly known as "Weeping Willie." A gifted and fluent speaker in English, Dutch and German, his sincere, fervent, and zealous personality always make an indelible impression on the minds and hearts of his hearers. Hewas indebted to hisChristian father and mother (GH and Etta)who were "instrumental in giving him hisfirst training in the Word of God. Their piety and consecration will never be forgotten."His academic credentials and number of scholarly publications (see below)are, to say the least,notable. InTimmerman's book referenced below, he stated that Dr. Masselink came as close to Chaucer's "persoun of a toun" as anyone he knew:

But riche he was of hooly thought and werk . . .
This noble ensample to his sheep he yaf,
That first he wroghte and afterward he taught.

The following are recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink:
​
They say you can tell a man's character by the way he treats his dog. Our dog was Hector and Bill (William) was his master. Bill undertook to train the dog. When he issued a command and the dog did not respond, he would slap the dog's ear, but not hard enough to kill a fly. If Hector as so much as raided a paw to "shake hands", he received a treat. The dog followedBill wherever he went.

The daythey left for Grand Rapids, Bill went ahead to a well half a mile down the road to pump a tank full of water. From there he walked to the road and joined us in the carriage. For days afterwards, Hector followed this trail. Coming to the road he would look right and left and then return home. In the spring when we returned, Hector, on seeing Bill, jumped over the wheel and into the carriage. The same loyalty as that Bill received from members of his church who got to know him.

Bill as the aggressive one, and so between the two of them, he would do most of the planning and made the decisions. One of the most important of these was in the late spring of 1919. Things were dull on the farm with wages at one dollar a day. He had heard of the University of Chicago and said, "Let's go."

The University of Chicagobegan in 1896 and was less than 25 years old. John D. Rockefeller had said to William Raimey Harper, "Build me a university and get me the best faculty you can find." Almost all of these men [faculty] were still there. But the school was liberal, almost radical. Before theywent, they warned their father GH about this. He said, "Just let them go. They will know how to work their way through." It was their father's confidence in them that kept them on track.

This brought them into contact with some of the leading scholars of the day: Edgar J. Goodspeed, Shailer Matthews, Gerald Birney Smith and others. They had free tuitionwith a free room in South Divinity Halland worked in a restaurant across the way for their board. "We were in business. We did this three summersfor a year's work."

During the winters, Bill went to Princeton. After graduating, he was sent to Lafayette, 14th Street Holland and to Alpine Christian Reformed Churches. He was a fantastic preacher with overflow attendances in all these places. He was always willing to begin at the bottom but he believed in the top. When Edward had a call to the Burton Heights Christian Reformed Church, they looked over the church building and Bill had alreadyfigured out a way in which it could be enlarged. They told Edward that the Sunday night before there had been 70 people in church.

Bill already had a PhD from Louisville Baptist Seminary, but he could not rest until he had another doctorate from the Free Universityin Amsterdam, NL.

As a pastor, Bill lived with his people. A doctor once told Edward of the time he had called at a home of Bill's church where there was serious illness. When the doctor came, Bill was helping them bring a bed downstairs to the dining room because it was too hot upstairs. A nurse from the Tuberculosis Hospital once called Edward for Bill's phone number. A man at the hospital was dying and was calling for Bill. All he could remember was thathe had delivered a cord of firewood at Bill's house on the West Side [Alpine CRC parsonage?]years before. While he was pitching the wood through a window into the basem*nt, Bill had talked to him.

Bill's wife Mary was the joy of his life and the object of his love since high school days at Grundy. She deserves equal share in everything he did. For Edward, Bill was a beloved brother and they managed to stay near together throughouttheir entire ministry.

The above are recollections by Dr. Edward Masselink.

1897 Feb 15William (Willem)is born in Meservey, IA.

1901 Sep 26 Future wife Mary C. De Boer born; + 18 Apr 1976 Grand Rapids, MI.

1918 Student, Grundy College and Seminary, Grundy Center, IA; Diploma; From Timmerman's Book: GrundyCenter in the years 1916-1920 was a religious town, but it was not dominated by religion. No church held three services on Sunday; even the college church had only two, one in Dutch and one in German. The school had no prayers, silent or vocal, and no Bible study or Bible clubs. Dancing was taught and in the springsome students danced around a maypole holding a ribbon. The college church was mainly comprised of students, professors, their families and a few local residents. (The town also had Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and Catholic Churches). William Masselink was a student at the seminary and taught a small catechism class of six or seven. "He was such a kindly gentleman that some of the warmth infiltrated the catechism book...he motivated the class through friendliness and occasional ice cream cones".

1918 Jun World War I draft card states that he was a Divinity Student living with his parents in Grundy Center, IA; Medium build with brown eyes and light brown hair.

1919 Student, Princeton Theological Seminary; Master of Theology (Th.M.).

1920 Student, Chicago Divinity School.

1921 Student, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky; Ph.D.

1922 JUL 9 Ordained; Source Churchwas Ebenezer CRC, Leota, MN

1922-1925 Pastor, Lafayette, IN Christian Reformed Church, his youngest brother Edward preached there as a seminary student during his Christmas Vacationwhen Bill was sick.

1925-1928 Pastor, 14th Street CRC, Holland, MI

1927 Oct 25 Marries Mary De Boer, Leota, MN; Three Children: Edna Mae(1931), Dr. William, Jr. (1933), Paul (1938); His career was her career: she too was a pastor in her effervescent geniality and helpfulness.

1928-1942 Pastor, Alpine AvenueCRC, Grand Rapids, MI. Alpine CRCmade it possible forDr. Masselink to attain his goal of studying at the Free University in Amsterdam,he responded by saying"My prayer is that they may receive much spiritual benefit because of it." He labored atAlpine "with much joy". "When a tramp came to the manse (Alpine Church parsonage) shivering with cold, William went to the closet and gave him an overcoat without noticing it was the best coat he had...sometimes he would wipe tears from his eyes as he preached; this was not out of sentimentalism but profound tenderness". "He had a phenomenal memory. After spending some time at the free University studying under Dr. Hepp, he preached a series of sermons that seemed to be a rerun of the lectures he had attended as a student at Grundy College" some twenty plus years before.

1935 MAR 10 "It is through your ([Alpine CRC] generosity and co-operation that we are now placed in a position to realize our ideal to study at the Free University".

1936 Jun 3 Wife Mary, daughter Edna and son William sail from Antwerp. Belgium and arrive in New York City.

1937 Student, Vrije Universiteit (FreeUniversity), Amsterdam, NL; Doctor of Theology (Th.D.); His dissertationis published in 1938asthe book: "J. Gresham Machen, His Life and Defence of the Bible".

1938 Jul 21 Arrives South Hampton, England from New York City aboard the shipDeutschland of the Hamburg-American Line en route to Holland; Occupation listed a pastor.

1938 Oct 6 Departs Hamburg, Germany alone on the SS New York and arrived in New York City on 15 Nov
1938; Age 41; Residence was listed as 961 Alpine Ave, Grand Rapids, MI (the Alpine Ave CRC parsonage).

1942 Apr 20 World War II draft card states that William is 45 years old andthe Pastor of the Alpine Avenue Christian Reformed Church; 5' 10", 210 Pounds, Brown Eyes, Red Hair, Ruddy Complexion; Mother Etta lives nearby on 742 11th ST NW.

1942 AUG 4 Bids farewell to Alpine CRC after 14 years of faithful service

1942-1952 Pastor, Second Englewood CRC, Chicago, IL (also known as the "72nd Street Church").

1943-1973 President, National Christian Association which publishes the "Christian Cynosure" (Anti-Lodge organization).

1947
Founder, Chicago Christian School for Handicapped Children (now Elim Christian Services). When Reverend William Masselink brought his son Paul to school in 1947, he was told that Paul would not be allowed to enroll because he had Down Syndrome. In an age when children with disabilities were hidden and misunderstood, this Chicago pastor saw an opportunity to remind us that “God’s strength is made perfect in weakness." An education for Paul, particularly a Christian one, seemed improbable, if not impossible. This was a challenge that inspiredthe Masselink's to try it on their own. Soon, Mrs. Masselinkwas teaching Paul and another boy in the parsonage of Second Christian Reformed Church of Englewood. The Masselinks discussed their concerns with Rev. William Kok, of nearby First CRC, and together they approached the Principals Club of the Chicago Christian schools and brought their concern for a Christian special education to the table.

Other schools agreed that this would be a worthwhile undertaking. Rev. Kok and Rev. Masselink promptly set up a Christian special education school in the basem*nt of Second CRC. After one year, teachers Christine and Henrietta Van Der Laan packed up the kids, the station wagons, and set up at Rev. Kok’s church, First CRC. They stayed for another year until the spring of 1950, when the Board hired Elim’s first full-time administrator, John Kamp, and moved the school to an eight-acre parcel of land in Worth, Illinois. In these formative years, Elim rapidly blossomed into a full-fledged special education school.Elim believes that each person with disabilities is called by God to participate in His kingdom work, just like Paul Masselink, so many years ago. http://www.elimcs.org/about-us/our-vision

1951 May Professor Cornelius Van Til taught courses in ethics and apologetics at Calvin Seminary during the2nd semester and engaged Dr. William Masselink in a dramatic debate about "Common and SpecialGrace"before a full housein the seminary chapel. Dr. Van Til championed a militant faith that impaled dissenters. Masselink ably defended the view advanced by Kuyper, Bavinck, and Hepp; but Van Til found the position of these stalwarts untenable and averred that, if it prevailed, one might as well blow up the science building with an atom bomb. This injudicious and provocative remark did not sit well with many at Calvin, but one could hear itechoed in following days by certain partisans who tended to think that truth was held in custody by the orthodox at Westminster Theological Seminary located in Philadelphia, PA. "Masselink may not have been the most profound critic in the phalanx of theological warriors, but he was one of the most courageous" and manyfelt he had won the debate.Dr. Masselink's thoughts on Common Grace were published in 1951and 1953 (see below).

1952-1963 Faculty, Reformed BibleInstitute, Grand Rapids, MI

1963 Retires from active pastorate and the Reformed Bible Institute, Grand Rapids, MI

1973 OCT 19 Dies; buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Grand Rapids, MI; Last residence is listed as Lake Worth, Palm Beach County, Florida 33460.

1987 John J. Timmerman of Calvin College remembersDr. Masselinkwith great fondness and writes that he was "one of the kindliest persons I have known." His touching tribute to William Masselink is found in Through a Glass Lightly (Eerdmans), pp. 177-178 and is summarized or quoted in some places above.

GENERATION TEN Children: Edna (1931), William Jr (1933) andPaul (1938)

1 Edna Mae Masselink Duthler (1931 MI 10); Father William MasselinkRev Dr (1897)
1931 * Grand Rapids, MI
1959 Oct 16 Married Harvey Duthler (Owner of Harvey Cadillac and Lexus in Grand Rapids)
TwoChildren with surname Duthler:
1.1 Mary Ann Duthler Leese (1963)
1.2 Robert W. Duthler (1966)

2William John Masselink Jr DDS aka"Junior"(1933 MI 10); Father William MasselinkRev Dr (1897); Colonel, US Army Dental Corps, Retired ; 1933 Born Grand Rapids, MI; 1957 Oct 3 Marries Glenda Oberschmidt

GENERATION ELEVEN:Children: 2.1 William Ted (1959) and 2.2 Marsha (1961)
2.1 William Ted Masselink PhD(1959 GE 11);Father William MasselinkDDS (1933)
1959 Born Augsburg, GE where father was an Army dentist on Active Duty; Lives and teaches in Berlin, Germany;1981 Marries Noralyn Hoitenga MasselinkPhD (1959 MA); 1987 Divorced; Professor of English at SUNY-Cortland in New York; Publications range from academic articles on language acquisition in adolescents and John Donne’s sermons to notes on email netiquette and grade inflation; Rediscovers poetry during a tumultuous year which brought a diagnosis of stage three breast carcinoma; Noralyn has three daughters, none with the surname Masselink; 19XX 2nd Marriage:
2.2 Marsha Masselink MD(1961 MI 11); Father William MasselinkDDS (1933)

3 Paul Henry Masselink (1938 MI 10); Father William MasselinkRev Dr (1897); Has Down Syndrome (See 1947 above); + 1995 Nov 12 Grand Rapids, MI; Buried with parents in Woodlawn Cemetery, Grand Rapids, MI; Never married; No children; Former Elim student; When he reached school age, it became apparent that he would need to attend a special Christian School for his disabilities; However there was no such school at the time,sohis father, Dr. William Masselink, along with the Reverend William Kok, started Elim Christian School whose first classes were held in the basem*nt of the Englewood CRC; Paul Masselink and Fred Van Zeelt were the first students of the school and were taught by Paul's mother; After completing his education, Paul spent his time in various workshops, and later in three different group homes at Pine Rest, where he lived until a month before his death.

Publications by Dr.William Masselink: All of the below are in the personal library of Thomas Masselink (GEN 11)

​1930 Book: "Why Thousand Years?" (Eerdmans, reprinted 1953). "May the Great King of the Church be pleased to use these meager means to be instrumental in creating a better understanding of prophecy to the honor and glory of His Great Name".
A website articlefrom this book titled"The History ofChiliasm",Chapter III, pp. 20-30,can be found at:
http://www.the-highway.com/chiliasm_Masselink.html.
A website article from this booktitled "The Erroneous Interpretation of Prophecy", pp. 31-39, can be found at
http://reformedperspectives.org/search.asp/au/wil_masselink/scat//kw//st//
http://reformedperspectives.org/article.asp/link/http:%5E%5Ereformedperspectives.org%5Earticles%5Ewil_masselink%5Ewil_masselink.Error.html/at/The%20Erroneous%20Interpretation%20of%20Prophecy

1931 Book:"I and the Children Thou Hast Given Me" (Eerdmans). Book is "Dedicated to my Father and Mother [GH and Etta]to whose God-fearing example and faithful covenant training I owe more than words can express."

1934Book: "Sermons on the Commandments" (Zondervan). "These sermons are examples of the highest type of expository preaching...they intimately reveal the author's heart touching religious experiences." 2010 Reprinted (Kessinger) and is currently being sold on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_n_0?fst=as%3Aoff&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Amasselink&keywords=masselink&ie=UTF8&qid=1430237359&rnid=2941120011

1938 OCT 5 Paperback: "Machen as Apologist"(L. Neuendorff, Bonn, Germany). Dr. Masselink's doctoral thesis (academisch proefschrift)at the Free University, Amsterdam, NL (Vrije Universiteit te Amsterdam).

1938 Book: "J. Gresham Machen, His Life and Defence of the Bible" (Zondervan). Book form ofhis doctoral thesis at the Free University, Amsterdam, NL; Bookwas also "published in Germany for the author".

1951 Pamphlet: "Common Grace and Christian Education (A Calvinistic Philosophy of Science)". This is"A presentation and defense of the Historic Reformed Conception of Common Grace over against the views of the `New Movement' as drastically advocated by Schilder, De Graaf and others; and less drastically set forth by Van Til, Vollenhoven and Dooyeweerd" and is written to "Make a small beginning to meet the growing demand in Reformed circles for a Calvinistic philosophy of Christian Education". 192 pages. (In those days they knew how to polemicize!)

1953 Book: "General Revelation and Common Grace": A Defense of the Historic Reformed Faith Over Against the Theology and Philosophy of the So-called `Reconstructionist' Movement" (Eerdmans) "...let us be on our guard against any com-promise whatsoever with the ungodly world. We are living in an age of apostasy. Our witness must ring...true to the Scripture."

1963?Pamphlet: "What is Wrong With the Lodge?" (Reformed Bible Institute; 1981 Reprinted in"Christian Cynosure"). "Christians must be instructed regarding this evil ... I shall endeavor to show that the Lodge is in conflict with Scripture."

Below are some Masselink books by William, Edward, and Ben Masselink; Benwrote novels and scripts.Ben's brother,Eugene, was architect FrankLloydWright's personal assistant (See 'STORIES' Tab).

Dr. Masselink distinguished himself by "faithful pastoral care, sound teaching, wise counsel and pulpit excellence". Hewas a "workman who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the Word of Truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

Most of the stories recorded in this genealogyabout his parents (GH and Etta) and his nine Generation9 siblings were told by Dr. Masselink. Below are recollections by Edward's nephew, Edward H. Masselink, Sr.

Edward H. Masselink wrote and published the Masselink Family Genealogy in 1984 and 1987. The following isthe tribute to his Uncle Ed thatEdward H. Masselink wrote: Since Dr. Edward Masselink has not written about himself, I will write a few lines about him. Dr. Masselink holds both a Masters and a Doctorate in Theology and has served as a pastor in both the Reformed and Christian Reformed Churches.

My first recollection of "Uncle Ed", as we always refer to him, was his wisdom in settling a quarrel I had with my brother George on the way to church In Leota from the farm. He was scheduled to preach there and we were riding in his 1928 Buick that had a jump seat on the right front side. I got there first but my brother decided he was going to sit there. This unbrotherly dispute was resolved by Uncle Ed tellingme "you sit in the front jump seat the first mileand George can sit there the last mile", a decision with which we all agreed.

I also recall when my wife Gerry died, he and Aunt Clazina not only called onme and my familyoften, but he also graciously agreed to assist in the funeral service. This request was made about 15 minutes before the service as I was unable to contact him by phone prior to this. Needless to say, he delivered a very appropriate message on such short notice.

Most of the articles abouthis parents and siblings on this web pagewere written by Uncle Ed. He wrote them in longhand and needed to be typed. I obtained the services of a former student of his at the Reformed Bible College by the name of Marie Filmore. She agreed to type the articles and to correct any errors in spelling and sentence structure as she held herself as an expert in these fields. Why do I note the name and credentialsof this typist? Because she was amazed at Uncle Ed's ability to recall over the telephone some words that were difficult to read. She was also amazed that his spelling and sentence structure was always correct. Even more amazingwas that Uncle Ed was 86 at the time, had written the articles about a year prior, and could still recall the words that were not legible when asked about them over the phone.

In the front of the Masselink Genealogy booklets (See HOME/Masselink Scholarship tab) you willfind a notice about the Masselink Scholarship Fund of which Uncle Ed was instrumental in obtaininga large donation from the National Christian Association (NCA)in July 1986 in honor of his brother Bill.(Uncle Ed and his brother, my Uncle Bill, were both Presidents of this anti-lodge organization).

We all would like to know what impact we made in this world and if we will be remembered and for how long. When I joined a Senior Bowling league around 1986, the first question I was asked when I introduced myself as Edward Masselink was "Are you any relation to Dr. Edward Masselink?" and then they couldn't wait to tell you their story: "He was my pastor at Burton Heights", "He married me", "I made Confession of Faith under him" and "What a great preacher he was". This round of comments were repeated when I joined the Cottonwood Heights Christian Reformed Church in 1987...and even though Uncle Ed had retired from active ministry in 1966, some twenty plusyears later peoplewere still eager to tell youthe impactUncle Edhad on their lives. I am sure there were many more people who would eagerly tell you about their interaction withhim if they could find an audience who would appreciate knowing that they knew Uncle Ed.

Aboverecollections by Edward's nephew, Edward H. Masselink, Sr.

1901 MAY 1 Born in Meservey (Wisner, Franklin, IA) "Strong in grace, that is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 2:1), Edward is the youngest of seven brothers, four of whom became ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

1905 "My earliest memory is of a day when climbing over a barbed wire fence my trousers got hooked, so there I was suspended on the fence. Eventually a water monkey from a nearby threshing crew rescued me and let me ride home with him perched high spring seat of his red water wagon. I must have been about four."

1906"About a year or so later, Mr. and Mrs. Kooiman came to visit with their daughter Margie who was about my age.We had a hay rack standing undera tree, so Margie and I decided to play church. I sat on the seat and stood on the rake while she sat on the tongue. I was just making the announcements -t he consistory will meet tomorrow evening - when we were called inside. I do not know when Peter Kooiman died, but I was still pretty young."

1907 "At age six I started school which always opened the first Monday after Labor Day. I had a hard time starting with arithmetic, I knew the numbers but could not figure out the +, -, and = signs. One day after school the teacher made me go to the blackboard and wrote a problem on it. I knew I would get it wrong, and I did. She erased it, put it on again and went outside to dust the erasers. She did this several times. I tried again and got it right. The thrill of that achievement has never left me."

1910"My first automobile ride came when I was nine. It was in a red Oldsmobile with a canvas top with straps from the top to a place along side the engine. It had no doors and acetylene headlamps and a horn that tooted by a large rubber ball. Van Duran from Pella, IA was visiting us and dad was taking him to farm that he just bought. I rode in the back seat. It was 1910."
http://www.boldride.com/ride/1909/oldsmobile-model-x3-touring#gallery/2

1912 JAN "At age 12 and in the 7th grade, moved with his family to Grand Rapids, MI to get a Christian School education; His close association with the Minnesota community came to an end and a new chapter in the Masselink story began."

1920 Student, Grundy College and Seminary, Grundy Center, IA; Diploma

1919-1922 Student, University of Chicago Divinity School;Attended school there three summers in a row with his brother William (Bill).

1922 DECFirst sermonat Lafayette, IN Christian Reformed Churchby Dr. Edward Masselink:

"My first sermon was in Lafayette, IN during Christmas vacation in 1922 when I was 21. A few weeks earlier I had preached a class sermon. For Christmas vacation I went to Lafayette, arriving on Saturday noon. They met me at the depot and directly informed me that [my brother] William (Bill) [then pastor of the church] was sick and I could preach. One difficulty was that I checked my suitcase with my Sunday suit and it was not on the train. This was overcome by putting a few pins in Bill's trousers to hold them up. I was several inches taller than Bill, but that could be overcome by dropping the pants a few inches. If I stayed behind the pulpit, no one would notice So I bravely consented and when Bill found out that he did not have to preach, he slept and felt much better. We ended up by each taking half of the service with me staying discretely in back of the podium."

1925 Student, Princeton Theological Seminary;BA and a Fellow in Biblical Theology; As a result of an assignment in Church History, gains a deep and lifelong interest and appreciation for the Heidelberg Catechism; Visits Heidelberg twice.

1926 Student, University of Chicago, MA

1927 Student, Calvin Theological Seminary; Graduate work; Calvin Seminary did not hold a Grundy diploma as good enough; Calvin Seminary requirements were not met until after his ordination.

1927 OCT 9 Ordained and installed as the pastor of Trinity Reformed Church. Source Church is Ebenezer CRC, Leota, MN

1927-1929 Pastor, Trinity Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, MI

1928 Student, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY; ThD; Lived in Mullins Hall; After two yearsresidence awarded aPhD; Graduation from Princeton came with the high honor of the Dr. Vos Scholarship in Theology and used the stipend to attend Southern Baptist Seminary.The President of the Seminary taught him "the melody of the Gospel"...using a one finger simple tune on the piano, the lesson was simple: "Preach the whole Bible, in all its beauty, but never leave the pulpit without making sure that everyone has heard the melody of the Gospel."

1929-1940 Pastor, Burton Heights CRC, Grand Rapids, MI

1939OCT 7Marries Clazina (Klausina) Pearl Baker in Grand Rapids, MI. He is 38 and she is 22. Klausina was born in Patterson, NJ; Clazina was an integral part of their team ministry (both used the word "we" and "our work" with no self-consciousness); Many remembered when "they" came to La Grave, "they" made one of"their" goals to visit every member every year; They visited the sick together and they talked out sermons together in advance.Four Children: Dr. Ellen (1940), Carolyn (1942), Mary E (1946), Marjorie (1948)

1940-1944 Pastor, La Grave Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI; Those who heard the "new preacher" at LaGrave in 1940 reported that they were taken to a cross, into an Eden and saw fish nets torn...they were there...they not only heard and saw Jesus, they felt they could reach out and touch Him; Once while breaking bread at the Communion Table, he spontaneously broke out singing "Beneath the Cross of Jesus"...the organist picked up on the right notes and the congregation joined in; Worked tirelessly to keep congregational life flourishing during the war years.

1944-1950 Pastor, First CRC, Cicero, IL (Now the Lombard, ILCRC); Also hosts a popular radio program on WHFC-AM duringhis pastorship in Cicero...as abiblical theologian with an experiential benthis half-hour devotionalapplied theBible to everyday life...radio made Masselink’s name familiar in Christian circles in Chicagoland.

Before each sermon he had to "climb the mountain" to catch the vision. He would sit at the piano and spend an hour or so singing hymns, shutting out all the world around him as he grew nearer to the Lord; For those who knew him, it was also difficult for him to climb down "from the mountain top" after the service was over.

1948 MasselinkChallenges the CiceroMob "If that Masselink doesn't shut his mouth, we'll have him riding out of town on a slab," so a Chicago mobster in 1948 threatened the Reverend Dr. Edward J. Masselink, pastor of the First Christian Reformed Church of Cicero, Illinois for the previous four years. What had a minister of the Gospel done to incur the wrath of the infamous mob once headed by the notorious “Scar face Al” Capone? Masselink, as a Christian leader, felt duty-bound to help clean up the scandal-ridden government of the town of Cicero and so became involved in local politics. (The mob won). See: http://www.swierenga.com/Cicero.html
and https://www.calvin.edu/hh/origins/Spring06_24_1.pdf (pages36+).

1950-1955 Pastor, Twelfth Street CRC, Grand Rapids, MI

1955-1962 Pastor, Central Avenue CRC, Holland, MI; Enlarging the church's ministry was a distinctive part of his pastorship; He proves to be a man of heartfelt and powerful preaching, especially his expositions about the Heidelberg Catechism; He wrestles with the Lord for the souls of men, particularly those in the congregation that had drifted away.

1956 Central Avenue Congregation contracts with WJBL (now WPNW) to broadcasthis morning worship services.

1957-1965 Church ministers to Mexican migrants who work in the area each summer.

1957 OCT 6 Celebration of the 30th anniversary of Dr. Masselink's ordination.

1958 Two young people recently arrived from the Netherlands meet with the minister and consistory to make confession of their faith. Dr. Masselink asks them if he could ask their questions in Dutch and they readily agree. This is the last known session in which the Dutch language was used at this church for official business.

1960 Dutch services held in the afternoons until 1960.

1962-1966 Pastor, Thirty-Sixth Street CRC, Wyoming, MI

1963 At the CRC Synod, gives the address at the denominational celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Heidelberg Catechism.

1964 Book "The Heidelberg Story" published; Book jacket states that: "Dr. Masselink has maintained a life long interest in the Heidelberg Catechism. His faith in Scripture finds its richest and clearest expression in this Catechism. You will feel this as you proceed with your reading of The Heidelberg Story. It will challenge and inspire you to move to a higher plane of faith and action. The research for this book was begun during his seminary days at Princeton";Acopy of this book can often be found on used bookstore websites. This book is in the personal library ofThomas Masselink (GEN 11).

1966 MAY 1 Retires from active pastorate; Continues to serve as a supply preacherand as the editor of "The Christian Cynosure", a Christiananti-lodge publication of the National Christian Association (founded in 1868).

1973-1983? President, National Christian Association, an anti-lodge organization (replaced deceased brother William)

1977 OCT 9 Fiftieth Anniversary of Ordination to the Gospel Ministry and installation as the pastor of Trinity Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, MI. His ministry of over a half a century gives the churches which he has served and his many friends reason for thanksgiving and praise.

1993Officiates the wedding ofhis nephew, Edward H. Masselink, Sr at the age of 92 whose new wife Marie'svows include the promise to "love, honor, and obey him in all things lawful" per the 1959 Form for the Solemnization of Marriage of the Christian Reformed Church. Rev. Ed looked old inhis wheel chair but his mind was razor sharp. The often heard comment was "I hope I'm that sharp when I am his age". The common retortwas, "I wish Iwas that sharp now."

1999Atage 98 writesto the Princeton alumni paperthat he is "alert, retired, and still indebted to Princeton Seminary."

1999 JUL 5 Dies in Grand Rapids, MI at the age of 98, survived by his wife Clazine; 8 great-grandchildren on the date of his death

Children (GEN 10): Ellen (1940), Carolyn (1942), Mary (1946), Marjorie (1948)

1. Ellen Masselink Ward MD(1940 MI 10); Father Edward J. Masselink Rev Dr (1901); + < 1999 AUG 16; Four children with the surname Ward.

2. Carolyn Masselink Staat Wagner (1942 MI 10); Father Edward J. Masselink Rev Dr (1901); Four children with the surname Staat.

3.Mary E.MasselinkPlantinga (1946IL 10); Father Edward J. Masselink Rev Dr (1901); Husband Theodore is MD; Four children with the surname Plantinga; Lived in Canada

4.Marjorie Masselink Calvert (1948IL 10); Father Edward J. Masselink Rev Dr (1901); Married Charles Calvert

GEN 11 Grandchildren:Linda (Mark) Smith;Dr. Christine (Edward) Krause;James (Vivienne) Ward; Cody Ward;Michelle (Roger) Rainwater; Laura Staat;Blaine (Catherine) Staat;Guy Staat;David Plantinga; ElissaPlantinga (Deceased) andAbigail Plantinga.

George Masselink Sr. 1916

First child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)

See MASSELINK'S TAB and SUB-TAB: George Masselink Sr. 1916

GENEALOGY OF GEORGE HENRY MASSELINK SR.
Generation 10
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK GEORGE HENRY MASSELINK Sr. 1916-1977

Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)
​
Spouse: Alice DeBruyn Masselink
Children: George Jr (1947); Patricia (1951); Theodore (1955); Lois (1960)

11George Allen Masselink Jr. 1947
Spouse: Carol Dickman Masselink
12 Amy Lynn Masselink (Jon) Wiers 1974
12 Gerrit John (Jenna) Masselink 1978

11 Patricia Masselink Holland 1951
Spouse: Fred Holland
12Laura Holland Sage 1977
12 Michael Holland 1980
12 William Holland 1986

11 Theodore (Ted) Masselink 1955
Spouse: Patricia Schmitt Masselink
12 David Masselink 1984
12 Michelle Masselink, DVM 1986
-Associate Veterinarian; Graduated from University ofMNveterinary school in 2012. Following graduation, completed a year long internship at Bluepearl Referral and Affiliated Emergency Veterinary Services before beginning at Southview Animal Hospital inInver Grove Heights, MN;Shares home with two dogs, Gertrude and Hildegard, and a cat named Sebastian; In free time enjoys practicing and teaching yoga and spending as much time outside as possible.
12 Ryan Masselink 1988
12 Kelsey Masselink 1991

11 Lois Masselink Hein Spicuzza 1960 [SEE SUB-TAB]
Spouse: Erich Hein: 3 Children
Spouse: Terry Spicuzza: No Children
12 Ericka Hein Bradd 1984
13 Emory Bradd 2013
​ 13 Quinn Bradd 2016
12 Alicia Hein Smith 1987
13 Leo Smith 2013
​ 13 William Smith 2015
12 Kevin Hein 1990

​
FranklinMasselink 19182nd child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)

​GENEALOGY OF FRANKLIN (Frank) MASSELINK
Generation 10
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK FRANKLIN MASSELINK 1918-2000
​
Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)

Spouse: Gene Brander Masselink
Children: Randall (1943); Sheryl Masselink Renken (1943) [Not Twins]

11 Randall (Ron) Masselink 1943
Spouse: Nancy Flier Masselink
12 Kelly Masselink Zambella (Adopted)
12 Kurt Masselink

11 Sheryl Masselink Renken 1943
​Spouse: William Renken
12 Troy Renken
12 Tracy Renken

1918Aug 13Born Chandler, MN; Named after Bena's father, Frank Beckering;Dutch traditionsays the second son is named afterthe mother's father; Frank Beckering is a tall, thin, mild mannered man.

1920Jan Living on farm with parents and siblings; Moulton, Murray, MN; Father Andrew is 31, Frank is 1

1930AprLiving on farm with parents and siblings; Moulton, Murray, MN; Father Andrew 42, Frank is 12

1942Marries Jean Brander Grand Rapids, MI; They move back to Edgerton and farms.

1943Jean believes a woman could not get pregnant while nursing hernewborn child; She was wrong.

1946Frank and Gene not enjoying the farm life. Frank's father Andrew encourages Frank to move back to Grand Rapids and be by George when he opens their Trucking Company.
1946Brothers George and Frank Masselinkopen and are co-owners of Masselink Brothers Trucking Servicefor business in Grand Rapids, MIwith a single straight truck making deliveries for local furniture manufacturers.

1949Occupationlisted astrucker.

2000Nov 3 Dies in East Grand Rapids, MI at age 82; Preceded in death by brothers George, Edward and John
​
2015 Oct:Jean living in Grand Rapids, MI

20XX Jean Dies in Michigan

EdwardMasselink Sr. 19203rd child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)

See MASSELINK'S TAB and SUB-TAB: Edward Masselink Sr 1920)

GENEALOGY OF EDWARD HERMAN MASSELINK, SR. Generation 10

1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK EDWARD 1920-1998

Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)

Spouse: Geraldine Schipper Masselink
Children: Edward Masselink Jr. (1947); William Masselink (1949); Thomas Masselink (1951)

Spouse: Wilma Pastoor Koopman Masselink: Children of Previous Marriage: Nancy Koopman Holtvluwer (1949); Jane Koopman Pantoja (1958)

​Spouse: Marie Harkness Masselink: No Children
​
11 Edward Masselink Jr. 1947 [SEE SUB-TAB]
Spouse: Hilda Rietsema Masselink: 1 Child
12 Edward Masselink III 1970 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13Niklas Masselink 1998 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Caleb Masselink 2002 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Keagan Masselink 2005 [SEE SUB-TAB]
Spouse: Rennae Doornbos Masselink: 2 Children
12 Jerilynn Masselink Jacobsen 1979 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Naomi Elaine Jacobsen
13 Layla Rennae Jacobsen
​12 Travis Masselink 1982 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Adalynn Masselink 2007 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Keely Masselink 2009 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Jase Masselink 2012 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Sadie Masselink 2014 [SEE SUB-TAB]
Spouse: Debra Cheseboro Griffin Masselink: Children of Previous Marriage:Lisa Griffin, Laura Griffin Marsmen, Jenifer Griffin, Rebecca​ Griffin

11 William Masselink 1949 [SEE SUB-TAB]

11 Thomas Masselink 1951 [SEE SUB-TAB]
12 Andrew (Tim) Masselink 1973 [SEE SUB-TAB]
13 Taylor Masselink 1999[SEE SUB-TAB]

Grayce Masselink Staal 19224th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)

​GENEALOGY OF GRAYCE (GRACE) MASSELINK STAAL
Generation 10
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK (GRAYCE MASSELINK STAAL) 1922-2015
​
Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); (John 1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)
​
Spouse: Kenneth Staal
Children: Beth Staal (1954); Ellen Staal Zierleyn (1955); Kristyn Staal De Haan (1958); Amy Staal Velthouse (1959); William Staal (1961)

1922Apr 4Born in Chandler, MN; A curly-headed girl named after her mother's mother, Grace Beckering; Beingthe first Beckering granddaughter, "she was pampered like no other".

1952 B.A. Education, Calvin College

1953Marries Kenneth Staal in Zeeland, MI

2015Resides in Grandville, MI

2015 Jul 8 Diesat the age of 92 in the company of her family; Preceded in death by her husband of 50 years, Kenneth, her parents Andrew and Berendena Masselink, and 5 of 8 siblings; Charter member of South Grandville Christian Reformed Church and very active as a leader in the Friendship Group, as a Calvinettes counselor, and as Sunday school teacher for many years; Enjoyed her career as a reading teacher in many Kent County area schools and her involvement in the family business: Manufactures Carloading Company as well as her work at Grandville Printing; Following Grayce's wishes, cremation has occurred.

​Harold Masselink 1924

5th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)
Pharmacist

GENEALOGY OF HAROLD MASSELINK;Generation 10

1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK HAROLD 1924-2009

Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)

Spouse: Karilyn Dykstra Masselink, RN
Children: Cynthia (1956); Alwin (1957); Beverly (1960); Faith (1963)

11 Cynthia Masselink 1956

11Alwin Masselink1957 (Pharmacist)
Spouse: Marie Jorgensen Masselink (Pharmacist)
12 Dr. Andrew Masselink, PharmD (Pharmacist)

11 Beverly Masselink Taylor1960
Spouse: Robert Taylor

11 Faith Masselink Marsmen 1963
Spouse: Steve Marsmen
Faith's nephew, Scott Marsmen, married Edward Masselink Jr.'sstep-daughter, Laura Griffin

Additional Grandchildren of Harold:
12 Jennifer
12 Kyle
12 Craig
12 Trent
12 Joy

​1924Aug 7Born Chandler, MN; Named after Herman, Father Andrew's brother who died at age two
1930AprLiving on farm with parents and siblings; Moulton, Murray, MN; Father Andrew 42, Harold is 5
1955Marries Karilyn Dykstra; 4 Children
2009Apr 22 Died inGrand Rapids, MI

Jeanette (Toots) Masselink DeJong 19266th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena
<Toots at the Kleine Masselink Farm in Grafschaft Bentheim, Germany
​
GENEALOGY OF JEANETTE ELEANORMASSELINK DEJONG Generation 10

1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK (JEANETTE MASSELINK DEJONG) 1926-

Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)
​
Spouse: Dr.Gerald Francis DeJong (1921-2001), PhD
Children:Owen DeJong; Gerald DeJong, PhD; Drew DeJong; Nanette (Nan) DeJong; Chester DeJong; Karl DeJong
Grandchildren as of 2001: Antoine, Colette, Audrey, Kristen, Max, Luke and Emily.

1926Born Leota, MN; "Amidst canning of meat, Jeanette cameunexpectedly";Named by her mother Bena for her twosisters, Ella and Jennie.

1950May 6Marries Gerald Francis DeJong (1921-2001), PhD http://iagenweb.org/boards/sioux/obituaries/index.cgi?read=267056
​
1970Mother's Day:Wrote "A Tribute To My Mother: Berendena Beckering/Masselink

2000Toots and Gerald live in Orange City, IA

2014Visited Masselink ancestral home in Hardinghausen, Grafschaft Bentheim, GEwith brother Benjamin

John Masselink 1928

7th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena

​Pharmacist

​

GENEALOGY OF JOHN MASSELINK;Generation 10
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK JOHN 1928-Deceased
​
Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)

Spouse: Sharon Walroth Masselink
Children:Barbara (1962), Denise (1962) [TWINS]; John K (1963)

Spouse: Paula Little Masselink; No Children

11 Barbara Masselink (1962 MI 11);Twin of Denise (1962)

11 DeniseMasselink (1962 MI 11);Twin of Barbara (1962)
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11 John K.Masselink (1963 MI 11)

1928Sep 12Born Leota, MN;Named after Andrew's brother, John; As a result his Uncle John opens a ten dollar savings account in his new nephew's name

1942 AUG 29Gets a postcard from his brother Ed who recently enlisted in the Army Air Corps.John is living on Andrew's farm that has an Edgerton, MN mailing address

1956 AUGPicture shows John working at Trio Drugs in Flint, MI

1960Marries Sharon Walroth;3 Children:Barbara (1962), Denise (1962), John K (1963)
​
1978Marries Paula Little; No children

Benjamin Masselink 1928
8th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena

< Ben with sister Jeanette (Toots) in front of the Masselink Cafe, The Netherlands (2014)
​

GENEALOGY OF BENJAMIN MASSELINK;Generation 10
​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK BENJAMIN 1933-
​
Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)

Spouse: Kay Ketelboeter Masselink
Children: Chan (1962); Jami (1965); Kristin (1967); Timothy (1976); Tyler (1976) [Timothy and Tyler are twins]

11 Chan Masselink (1962 SD)
Spouse:Veronica Anderson Masselink

11 Jami Masselink (1965 KA)

11 Kristin Masselink Jones (1967 ND)
Spouse:Married
2014 Mar 14Email fromKristin (Masselink) Jones: I am taking my dad, Ben, and my mother, Kay, to Europe in a few weeks. My dad wants to see his roots and we will be staying very close to Hardinghausen and checking out the area. Aunt Jeanne (Toots) and her daughter, Nan, may be joining us as well. Nan lives in Britain. We plan to check out the Masselink Cafe as well [in the Netherlands].
2015 Apr 30 Email: "We had an amazing time and saw the original Masselink family homestead and met some relatives. It was pretty incredible.I will sort through my photos and send you them. I also have a blog that I kept and I will send you excerpts."

11 Timothy (Tim) Masselink (1976 SD)
Spouse: Jessica Tadlock Masselink
2003 Aug 30Marries Jessica Tadlock at First Lutheran Church, Sioux Falls, S.D; Bride is a graduate of Iowa State University with degree in exercise and sport science and a graduate of Western Iowa Technical School with a degree in nursing. She is currently working toward a master's degree at Mount Marty College of Anesthesia; Groom is a graduate of Augustana College with a degree in nursing and is currently working toward a master's degree at Mount Marty College of Anesthesia, son of Ben and Kay Masselink of Sioux Falls.
http://siouxcityjournal.com/lifestyles/relationships-and-special-occasions/weddings/tadlock-masselink/article_c39f44cf-155b-5771-bfcb-48e3565fbbd0.html

11 Tyler Masselink (1976 SD)

1933Benjamin born in Leota, MN; "Born on a wintry day, they chose the name in a unified way."

1959Graduated from Dakota State College with a printing management and journalism degree; Assistant Plant Manager at the Midwest Beach Company of Sioux Falls, SD.

1959 JUN 20Marries Kay Marie Ketelboeterin South Dakota; Ben's youngest sister,Kay Masselink, of Edgerton, MN was the maid of honor; Harold was a groomsman, Frank ushered and his daughter Sheryl help to serve the refreshments; Parents Andrew and Bena lived in Edgerton, MN; Live in Sioux Falls, SD

1978 MAR 25 Son Tyler dies at about age 2

2014Visited Masselink ancestral home in Hardinghausen, Grafschaft Bentheim, GEwith wife Kay, daughter Kristen and Ben's sister Jeanette (Toots)

Kathryn (Kay) Masselink 19399th child ofAndrew (1888) and Bena (1894)

< Kay in 2016

​
​GENEALOGY OF KATHRYN ANN MASSELINK VAN MANTGEM
Generation 10

​
1 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE HARMEN 1660-1731
2 KLEINE MASSELINK GEERD 1693-1743
3 KLEINE MASSELINK HARMEN 1719-1771
4 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1747-1790
5 KLEINE MASSELINK FENNE 1771-1843
6 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK 1792-1870
7 KLEINE MASSELINK HENDRIK 1829-1907
8 KLEINE MASSELINK GERRIT HENDRIK (GH) 1858-1927
9 MASSELINK ANDREW 1888-1977
10 MASSELINK KATHRYN 1939-
​
Siblings: George (1916); Franklin (1918); Edward (1920); Grayce (1922); Harold (1924); Jeanette (Toots) (1926); John (1928); Benjamin (1933); Katheryn (Kay) (1939)
​
Spouse: Rev. Jacob Van Mantgem (Divorced)
Children: Michael Van Mantgem (1965); Phillip Van Mantgem (1966)
​
Elementary School Teacher and Textbook Sales

1939Born Leota, MN; Named after her father Andrew and mother's sister, Catherine

1959 JUN 20Kay Masselink of Edgerton, MN is maid of honor at brother Ben's wedding in South Dakota.

1962Marries Rev. Jacob Van Mantgem in Edgerton, MN

​2000Lives in Ft. Collins, CO

1920 AUG 27 Born at home in Chandler, MN;Third of nine children; Named after Andrew's mother Etta (Parents thought he would be a girl); Middle name "Herman"was father Andrew's brother who died at the age of two; Andrew is 31 and Bena is 25; Respective occupations are farmer and housewife; Place of residence is Chandler, Moulton Township, Murray County, MN.

1930 Census: Age 9; Moulton, Murray County, MN

1930 December 24 Mrs. J. Keuning, Ed's 6th grade teacher at the Leota Christian School, presents him with aChristmascard from his teacher. The card includes a poem about Santa Claus written by Yates. Ed lists eight other names as his classmates, including his cousin Gertie Masselink (Ed's Uncle PR's daughter).

1939 MAY 25 Ed graduates from Western Christian High School;A boarding school located in Hull, IA; Class Motto is "Better Faithful Than Famous".

Attends The University of Grand Rapids to learn sheet metal; Later becomes Davenport College?
Attends Michigan State College and participates in mandatory ROTC. His ROTC training allows him to skip basic training and go right to an Army Air Force school in New Jersey.

1942 AUG 12 Enlists in Kalamazoo, MI as a Privatein the U.S. Army Air Corps for the "duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law"; Education: One year of college; Occupation: Sheet metal worker; 70" tall, Weight 149; County of residence: Pipestone, MN, Serial No. 16 085 435; Ed tells the recruiter he can only do two things: Type and sheet metal.

​1942 AUG 29 Writes his brother John a postcard saying: "Hope you did not work too hard pitching bundles. Did you get a letter stating I made you my first beneficiary. Your Bro. Ed". At the time, Ed is a Private stationed at the 564thSquadronSchool, Flight Barracks 344, Atlantic City, NJ.

1942 OCT PVT Edis attending the Curtis-Wright Technical Institute in Glendale, CA; School taught both aircraft mechanics and sheet metal repairing. Attenda the Glendale CRC while training in California.

1943 APR 1 US Army Air Corps 500th Air Service Squadron activated and stationed atMac DillField, Florida. On1943 JUN 18, the 500th was assigned to the 54th Service Group and moved to The Avon Park Bombing Range, Avon Park, Florida. The 500th was disbanded on 1948 OCT 8. Ed was assigned to the 500th atMac DillFieldsometime between 1943 APR 1 and1943 JUN 18 and served as an instructor there.

1943 JUL 10 Corporal Ed Masselink writes a letter describing his time at Avon Park. He writes that he had just moved to Avon park which means that he was assigned to the 500th prior to 1943 JUN 18. He describes Avon Park as the nation's largest bombing range, covering some 200,000 acres and about twenty miles away from the nearest town. They live, eat and sleep in tents andthe 500th's Headquarters and mess hall are also in tents. Ed is also being cross trained as he "manages to get a little flying time as an aerial gunner in B-26's." This does not appear to behis first letter to this woman who he probably met at church (as he asks her to give his regards to a Rev. and Mrs. Weersing and to send him her picture) while attending the Aircraft Service School in Glendale, CA. Rev. Jacob J. Weersing was the Pastor of the Glendale CRC from 1938-1949.

The 500th Air ServiceSquadronwas assigned to: Avon Park Bombing Range, FL, 18 June 1943-6 Sep 1943; LakelandArmy Air Field, FL 6 Sep 43-15 Nov 43; Camp Patrick Henry, VA -22 Nov 43; Oran, Algeria 13 Dec 43-Jan 44; Bombay, India -Feb 44; (Sookerating, Kweilin - ??), Tezgaon, India Feb 44-Nov 45.

1943 Sometime Between SEP 6 and NOV 15Ed probably has predeployment leave and goes to Grand Rapids wheregets serious about his future wife Geraldine Schipper. Ed has Gerry's picture with him when he deploys overseas,

1943 NOV 22 Departed with the 500th for the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater by the way of North Africa.

1943 DEC 13 - 1944 JAN Oran, Algeria

1944 FEB 13In the CBI Theater, India

1944 DEC Sent a Christmas card from the China Burma India (CBI) Theater of War

1945 Sent future wife Gerry a carved wood box of the Taj Mahal in Agra from Kashmir, India

1946 JAN 28 Returned to the United States from overseas duty.

1946 FEB 4 Discharged from the U.S. Army Air Corpsat Fort McCoy, WI as a Technical Sergeant (then the second highest enlisted grade); Brown hair, brown eyes, 5' 11", 160 pounds; Job title is Airplane Sheet Metal Worker; Fired 'marksman' (lowest qualification ranking) with the carbine rifle; Served in North Africa, India and Burma; Awarded the Asiatic-Pacific Theater Service Medal, American Theater Service Medal, the European-African-Middle East Service Medal, the Good Conduct Medal and four overseas bars representingtwo years of overseas deployment; Had 1 year 3 months and 16 days of service in the United States and two years two months and seven days service overseas; Still assigned to the 500th on the date of his discharge; Refused to sign up for the Inactive Reserve when discharged which kept Ed out of the Korean War.

1946 APR 12 Friday 8PM Geraldine Schipper marries Edward Masselink at the Alpine Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, MI; Both reside at 1330 Myrtle ST NW, GR; Ed's occupation is sheer metal worker, Gerry's is secretary; Alpine's minister, Rev. Peter Y. De Young officiates; Reception after the ceremony in Church Parlors (Basem*nt); Double wedding with her oldest sister, Alice is announced in the GR Press on 1946 APR 9; Youngest sister Joan is the maid of honor; Best Man is Ed's brother George; Applied for the Marriage License No. 79-240 on 1946 APR 5;Three children: Edward Jr; William and Thomas.

1946 Brothers George and Frank Masselinkopen Masselink Brothers Trucking Servicefor business in Grand Rapids, MIwith a single straight truck making deliveries for the local furniture manufacturers.

1947 MAR Ed joins the PI-TIE Fraternity of the 'Plastics Industries Technical Institute Engineers of Los Angeles, CA.

19XX? Lives on 1117 Dickinson St SE, Grand Rapids, MI, 49507 (verify)

1947 Son Edward Herman Masselink, Jr. born Grand Rapids, MI.; Named after his father, Edward, Sr.

1949; Builds house and residesat 1456 Emerson NW, Grand Rapids, MI; Owner of Masselink Plastic Shop, 436 Bond Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI;

1949 Son William Michael born Grand Rapids, MI; Named after Geraldine's father, Willem Myndert Schipper.

1951 Son Thomas Andrew born Grand Rapids, MI; Middle name 'Andrew' is Edward's father'sfirst name.

1951 Wife Geraldine diagnosed with multiple sclerosis

1954; Inspector, General Motors Fisher Body Plant on Alpine Ave; Plant manufactured door panels and sewed seat covers

1957 DecMasselink Brothers Trucking incorporatedwhen theycontract with the Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Railroad to deliver Less Than (Box) Carload (LCL) freight in the Grand Rapids and surrounding areas; About this time, third brother Edward Masselink, leaves General Motors to join Masselink Brothers.In his wife's 1961 Obituary, Edward is listed as Vice-President, Masselink Brothers Trucking Service.

1961 Jan 2 Wife Geraldine dies at home at1456 Emerson, Grand Rapids, MI"after ten years of affliction with multiple sclerosis"; Buried at Washington Park Cemetery, Grand Rapids, MI. Though her gravestone and other records show she died in 1960, she actually died in 1961.

1961 Jun Second Marriage; Marries Wilma Pastoor Koopman; Two step-children: NancyJeanKoopman Holtvluwerand Jane LouiseKoopman Pantoja; Moves with three sons (and their dachshund Heidi)from 1456 Emerson to Wilma's house on 871 Edna ST SE, Grand Rapids, MI; Joins Alger Park CRC (Wilma is a charter member); Some records show their marriagetook placein the Fellowship Room of the Alger Heights CRC in1960, butit was actually in1961.

1973 Moves to 7555 Westlane Ave, Jenison, MI, 49428

1993? Third Marriage; Marries Marie HelenHarkness (11 Jan1924 - 8 Jun 2006), Grand Rapids, MI; Dr. Edward Masselink officiates; No children.

1998 May 21Edward Masselink diesGrand Rapids, MIat the age of 77.

2006 Jun 83rd Wife Marie Harkness Masselink dies at age 82 Lansing, MI; Longtime resident of the Laingsburg area and was employed for many years by the Michigan State Police; Enjoyed dancing, traveling, cooking, baking and doting over her large loving family. Predeceased by three husbands; Fred Coffey, Floyd Harkness andEd Masselink; Funeral services held Monday, June 12; Buried at Washington Park Memorial Gardens,1205 Richmond NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504; Plot: Section E.

GENERATION ELEVEN

1 EdwardHermanMasselink, Jr

1947 Born Grand Rapids, MI; Father Edward Masselink, Sr
1967 Marries Hilda; One child: Edward Herman III (Son namedafter Ed and his father )
1975 Marries Rennae; Two children: Jerilynn Rennae (namedafter Ed's mother, Geraldine)and Travis
1988 Marries Debra; Four step-children: Lisa, Jenifer (Jenny), Laura, Rebecca (Becky); Laura marries Scott Marsmen,nephew of Ed's first cousin, Faith Masselink Marsmen.

GENERATION TWELVE
ANDREW (TIM)TIMMERMAN MASSELINK
Only Childof Thomas and Sue Masselink

1973 Andrew (Tim)Timmerman Masselink born in Sparrow Hospital, Lansing, MI; 'Andrew' is hisfather's middle name and 'Timmerman' is mother's maiden name; Goesbythe nickname 'Tim'; If born a girl, would be 'Gloria Geraldine' (GG) after his mother's aunt and father's mother; An "Army Brat" (Father in the Army from 1973 until 2005), lives in bothWest Berlin, Germany andRiyadh, Saudi Arabia as well as Alabama, Indiana, Maryland, Michiganand Virginia.

1991JUN 5 Graduates from Howard High School, Howard County, MD

1999 Daughter Taylor born Sanford, FL

20XX Marries Angelina Mass

GENERATION TWELVE MASSELINK
FIRST COUSINS

1970 Edward Herman Masselink III;Marries Amie Forsleff
1973 Andrew Timmerman Masselink; Marries Angelina Mass
19XX Jerilynn Masselink Jacobsen
1982 Travis ReynoldMasselink; Marries Cara Elizabeth Borck

GENERATION THIRTEEN
TAYLOR JOLENE MASSELINK
Daughter of Andrew (Tim) Masselink (1973)

TAYLOR HASNO FIRST COUSINS AND16SECOND COUSINS
Asecond cousin is achild of a first cousin of one's parent
Second cousins are fourth-degree relativeswho share a3.125% genetic overlap

GENERATION THIRTEEN SECOND COUSINS
1998 Niklas AndrewMasselink (1998 MI 13); Father Edward Herman Masselink III (1970)
1999 Taylor JoleneMasselink (1999 FL 13); Father Andrew Timmerman Masselink (1973
2001 Elena Nicole Arends (2001 MI 13); Mother Lisa Griffin Arends
2002 Caleb GarritMasselink (2002 MI 13)(2002 MI 13); Father Edward Herman Masselink III (1970)
2003 Connor John VanderPloeg (2003 MI 13); Mother Betsy Holtvluwer VanderPloeg
2004Griffin AnthonyArends (2004 MI 13); Mother Lisa Griffin Arends
2005 Keagan AlexandraMasselink (2005 MI 13); Father Edward Herman Masselink III (1970)
2005Grady Scott VanderPloeg (2005MI 13); Mother Betsy Holtvluwer VanderPloeg
2006 Naomi Elaine Jacobsen (2006 MI 13); Mother Jerilynn Masselink Jacobsen
2006 Orin Scott Marsmen (2006 MI 13); Mother Laura Griffin Marsmen
2007 Adalynn Reeves Masselink (2007 MI 13); Father Travis Reynold Masselink (1982)
2009 Keely NicoleMasselink (2009 MI 13); Father Travis Reynold Masselink (1982)
2009 Leeum Christopher Pape (2009 MI 13); Mother Jennifer Griffin Pape
2011 Joanna Christine Marsmen (2011 MI 13); Mother Laura Griffin Marsmen
2011 Layla Rennae Jacobsen (2011 MI 13); Mother Jerilynn Masselink Jacobsen
2012 Jase TravisMasselink (2012 MI 13); Father Travis Reynold Masselink (1982)
2014 Sadie ElizabethMasselink (2014 MI 13); Father Travis Reynold Masselink (1982)
​ADD LAURA'S TWO YOUNGEST
ADD BRIAN'S (2016)