11 Dec Obituary – Martin Driehuyzen
Martin Driehuyzen died in White Rock BC on November 9, 2017.
He was a long-time member of the Anthroposophical Society and the Christian Community and a pillar of the Vancouver community. Because of his tall, distinguished presence, he was the obvious choice to play Father God in the Oberufer 
Paradise Play. He also played Balthasar in The Three Kings Play. Because of his good humour and compassionate nature, he was often cast as St. Nicholas in his yearly visit to the Waldorf School.
Martin was born in Zandvoort, a coastal town in Holland in 1933. He grew up along the wild stormy coast of the North Sea with its towering dunes and endless beaches. When he was three his father died; this was to be a sadness that Martin carried for the rest of his life. His mother, with no means of income, took her three young children to Germany to live with her mother who received a modest pension. One day on a walk to a park with his grandmother, he spotted a lovely little dog being walked by a young man and burst forth passionately, “A daddy with a dog like that is what I want very much!”
Eventually, the young family returned to Zandvoort. When Germany invaded Holland in 1940 the Germans were seen as enemies. This was a confusing contradiction to a young boy whose beloved family members and friends were not just Dutch but Germans also. Martin’s grandmother with her German pension would not be allowed to receive it in Holland now that Germany was at war with Holland and so once again the family was uprooted and had to move back to Germany – this time to the south. Martin and his siblings spent the war years living in a small Bavarian farming village where farmers still wielded scythes to cut the lush grasses on their land. It was a rich period of Martin’s childhood. At the end of the war in his twelfth year, the family was repatriated back to Holland — to the devastating effects of the German bombardments that had razed his hometown.
For a time, Martin attended the local Dutch state school where he was utterly miserable. His mother, an anthroposophist, saw his suffering and decided to send him to the Waldorf School in Amsterdam. This was to prove a seminal moment in his life where he felt he had teachers who understood him completely and for whom he never stopped expressing his gratitude. Those years in the Waldorf school would inform his fervent lifelong support and dedication to the Waldorf movement.
In grade nine he hitchhiked to the Goetheanum where Goethe’s Faust was being performed. The several performances each day left a lasting impression on him. After leaving high school he studied at Warmenderhof, a biodynamic agricultural school and realized that agriculture would be a leading focus in his life.
Destiny took him eventually to Canada. He landed at pier 21 in Halifax, NS and then traveled by train all the way to Vancouver. He was amazed the vast landscape —forests, lakes, river, hills, and mountains that stretched out in a never-ending sequence. He had come from Holland, a country so flat and cultivated and tidy and — stifling! He loved that he was in a new land that was vast and free and wild.
He found work at a farm in Nanoose Bay on Vancouver Island where his bed was located in a chicken coop! His brother joined him in Canada and the two found work in the oil fields of Alberta.
Riet and Martin
Needing to think seriously about further education, Martin enrolled in the Faculty of Agriculture at UBC in 1955. Now his life was filled with lectures, lab sessions, study, and research. He always made time for social events — music, dancing, bridge, and skiing. A few courses were problematic — particularly English 101. The one bright spot in this course was a classmate, a young Dutch woman named Riet, who cheered the class with her glib questions and feminine charm. The rest is history; Martin and Riet were soon married and went on to have three children, Anna, Michael, and Sacha.
Martin’s studies in university led him to a 27-year career in the BC Ministry of Agriculture working as a soil and water management specialist.
With three young children, Martin and Riet were very active in the early years helping to start the Waldorf School in Vancouver, though it would be many years before their own children would benefit from being enrolled there. Martin was busy on the board for many years, helping with fundraising and then moving the school to a permanent location.
When the Christian Community was founded in Vancouver, Martin and Riet became members and the services would become a mainstay of their lives. Similarly, they attended anthroposophical study groups and lectures offered by the Society until the distances to drive became too far later in life. Cascadia, a member of the Camphill movement, was similarly a source of inspiration to Martin and Riet who faithfully attended the artistic and social events whenever they could.
After Martin retired from civil service, his and Riet’s wanderlust took hold. They bought themselves a Euro Van and with it explored the Balkans, the coast of the Black Sea, Greece, Turkey and after shipping it back to Canada, continued with trips across Canada, the US and down the West Coast to Mexico.
In the last year of his life, Martin remained cheerful and optimistic despite serious health issues which prevented him from walking much. People active in palliative care say that we die pretty much as we have lived and Martin was no exception. The health professionals and patients who came in contact with him enjoyed his gracious, appreciative outlook and lively sense of humour. Although weak, he remained alert to the end, inwardly prepared for crossing and traveling beyond the threshold.
Martin’s funeral took place Nov.11 (St. Martin’s Day) at the Christian Community. The church was full to overflowing with friends and relatives. Singing, with violin and cello-playing, were part of the service. Afterwards, we all went downstairs to celebrate a long and bountiful life filled with gifts and giving.
We in the Vancouver community are grateful that Martin has been a part of our lives all these years and we like to think that he will continue to bless us from the other side.
Susan Koppersmith, with Anna Driehuyzen
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