Farewell Gerry

Our good friend Gert Jan Van Soest died unexpectedly yesterday. We miss him.

GerryGerry died suddenly on Tuesday. He was on a job at his workshop when his body gave up on him. I can not believe that I will not see him again. He has been a good friend.

He was fun, social, energetic – a doer. I got to know him during the past decade as he helped me start Astraea and GRI Eqwuity and even run retreats. His example of a wonderful tradition of respect for nature and traditional skills (like carpentry -oak furniture, motor mechanics – he stripped and rebuilt a 1956 Land Rover for my uncle, animal husbandry – breeding hunting hounds, and wildlife appreciation) will be long remembered.

He will be remembered for many things and from many eras, of which I knew only a few. Holland bore his roots. There are fantastic stories from Asia, Africa and South America. He was always the best to tell them; they could fill a quiet party with amused rapture. There was a successful engineering career during which he brought Heineken to Ireland, gave Guinness a good run for their money and then went on to CEO of Heineken NV. There was Ireland – from Cork to Killruddery to Carlow, from Heineken to Lisnavagh.

He loved animals and had personal relationships with all his hounds. He respected nature and was a keen game sportsman of the highest ethics. He also enjoyed food, wine, music and company.  He treated guests, whether it was a cup of coffee or a banquet of game he had prepared from a dawn in the reeds with shot gun and hounds, through hanging and the kitchen, to chinaware and a glass of wine on the table. Gerry was a good friend. He’d help when needed and never shied from challenge. He did things well and cared for his family and friends. He was straight talking and you knew where you stood with him. He had old world values which are welcome in a fast paced world.

We love and miss him. Farewell Gerry …

Shed a tear and drink a cup of whiskey to wish Gerry well on his next journey.

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