Jan Rienstra, Jr.

Jan Gatzes Rienstra, Jr., 87, of Nederland, died Wednesday, September 25, 2019. He was born in Woodbury, New Jersey, on June 14, 1932, to Ruth Cecilia Pruitt and Jan Gatzes Rienstra, Sr. Jan served in the United States Army and later became an engineer at Goodyear.

“The love in our family flows strong and deep, leaving us memories to treasure and keep.”
Jan Gatzes Rienstra, Jr. – a Husband, Father, Opa, and Friend. As a native of Woodbury, New Jersey, early in life his family moved to the new town of Nederland, Texas, which was founded by his grandfather. He graduated from Nederland High School in 1949 and soon after joined the Army. He continued his education at the former Lamar Institute of Technology for a degree in engineering where he graduated in the top six of his class. He loved his job working as an engineer and retired from Goodyear. He loved life and lived it to the fullest. Many of his fondest memories were spent outdoors whether it be traveling, a day in the boat, or out in his garden. Jan and his wife of sixty-two years, Caty, had a special love for traveling the country in their motorhomes and traveling to Europe. Our family is truly blessed to have had such a strong man leading us and being the foundation for all of us. He had a special love for boats and sitting by the river, especially with a barbecue sandwich and watching the ships slowly come by. At home, he enjoyed sitting on the back porch, watching the birds, and visiting while drinking coffee. One of his favorite places to be was his garage where he would fix anything you could think of and build new things regularly. He truly was a one-of-a-kind man, stern when he needed to be, but a family man if there ever was one. Family was everything to him and he lived humbly so he could pass on a legacy to his children and their families. We will miss his humor, gentleness, selflessness, and everything else that made him who he was. We are all so thankful and blessed to have the family we do and can only thank him and Oma for that… until we see you again.

Survivors include his daughters, Kim Ronning; Sharon Pullin and her husband, Steve; Tymbre Gack, all of Nederland; and Kyra Day and her husband, Luke, of Bridge City; and son, Trey Rienstra and his wife, Brenda, of Burnet.

He is preceded in death by his parents; wife of sixty-two years, Catharina Rienstra; and sister, Marilyn Hebert.

A gathering of Mr. Rienstra’s family and friends will begin at 11:00 a.m., with his funeral service to follow at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, September 28, 2019, at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, 2711 Helena Avenue, Nederland. His interment will follow at Oak Bluff Memorial Park, Port Neches.