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Copyright 2001-7 by Sue Brown & Dr. Bill Help Build an online community for foreigners. Join the Xiamen Guide forumOrder Books Common Talk Xiamen Dailys Weekly English SupplementXiamenguide Forum Guide to Xiamen and Fujian business tourism history culture cuisine entertainment investment
Main Page    E-mail   (This page copyrighted 2006 by Gary Veenschoten, MD)

Amoy Vignettes by Dr. Girard Veenschoten:
Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenMy Story   Veenschoten Memorial Henry Stella Veenschoten Memorial Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenDad's Practicality    Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenAh Beng
Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenOur Amoy Animals  Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenChinese New Year Related: Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenHill Family Gary's Father, Henry VeenschotenHill Photos 

Henry Veenschoten                  Dad's Practicality
       by Girard (Gary) Veenschoten, M.D.
Also read Henry V.'s Story by daughter Joanne Hill.

Dad [Henry Veenschoten] was born in 1892, a month before mother. His was a Dutch family who immigrated to the United States from the Netherlands. His father died a few months before he was born. He came from Holland. His mother was born in this country. Dad was the youngest of six children. They lived in a Dutch settlement in northwest Iowa, beginning as poor farmers, becoming well to do. They spoke Dutch in the home. All were great Christian people. A great event of the week was Sunday, when the whole family went to church three times and Sunday school. The ambition of all Dutch families was to have one child become a minister. Here, dad was that person.

Dad went to the academy in orange city, and from there he Stella Veenschotenwent to hope college, graduating in 1914. Then he entered western theological seminary, associated with the college. Dad was graduated in 1917. He could preach in Dutch. Just after seminary he married mother, and then they became long term missionaries of the Reformed Church in America, and, along with quite a group, was assigned to the Amoy Mission in Fukien, China. Mother had an excellent soprano voice, and played the piano expertly. She was well trained in classical music.

They spent two years in language study and were assigned to the station in Chang Chow. Dad's primary interest was evangelism, and, as time went on became moderator of a large classis of Chinese churches in the growing Christian community. In later years he also taught in our Christian Chinese seminary.

I was born in 1919, my sister Joann, in 1923, and my sister Elin was born in 1929.

Dad's Practicality Veenschotens in Toa-bo late 1920s (Gary Veenschoten as always holding an animal
After furlough dad was given a small inheritance. It is important to remember that 25 cents bought a good meal. And a hair cut cost two bits. So dad and mother decided to have built a summer home.

We must remember, too, that Amoy is about 4 degrees north of the tropic of cancer. It faced the Pacific ocean, catching a tremendous amount of moisture against the coastal mountains. We must also remember that there was an inherited British colonial attitude from seventy years of privileged living, in what amounted to a British colony. Also, we have to remember that the times of the twentieth century were extremely turbulent. Thus, building a rest home to get away from the heat, showed both courage and confidence in the future.

Toa Bo Suan (big hat mountain) or, in mandarin, Tai Mo Shan, had been used for rest and recuperation for many years by all of the missionary community.

Here it was that dad and mother decided to build a house in 1928.
Dad and mother had been living in houses that had been built, over the years, to be accommodated to the tropical climate. We had the heat, which was awful in the summer. As I said, the humidity was in the 90's all day and all night. One just couldn't sleep. I have seen people die of sunstroke, becoming delirious. The mosquitoes were huge. They spread malaria, which killed people by the millions. More people died of other tropical diseases, like tuberculosis. I saw a man throw up his lungs on the street in front of our house. I had a positive tuberculin test at the age of 13.

I still have the primary complex. The coast was beautiful with its vistas of the sea. But we had tropical storms, which sometimes became typhoons

Materials
Dad and mother decided on a beautiful site between two hills, and overlooking the ocean fifteen miles away, wooded with tall pines.
There was the ruins of a two story house a short distance away, which provided bricks. This is one of the riches of Fujian (Fukien). It has a rich red soil that bakes into indestructive bricks. There was granite which could be quarried next door. The roof would be made of tile, which have been perfected over the centuries, curved so one course faced up and one course faced down to protect against typhoons.

Dad planned a spacious house facing south toward the ocean, with three bedrooms, two baths, a large living room dining room with a large granite faced fireplace (for which he got the plans from the "Ladies Home Journal" the floors were clay floor tile. We also had screens on the very large veranda facing south, and all over the house.

There were two disadvantages. The coolie had to carry water about two blocks from the spring. The resort was about twenty miles from Amoy. It was a strenuous trip by bus, river boat, and finally "shanks mare" up the 1800 foot mountain.

What happened?
We were able to use the house in 1928, and 1937. It was safe and secure and "far from the madding crowd".

We were in the U.S. in 1932 on furlough. That was also the year Japan started insinuating her way into china. 1934 we had to evacuate to Amoy. The whole of Fukien was unsafe. In 1937 I came back to the u.s. Our parents had to evacuate to the Philippines, after living two years in Amoy (Xiamen).

It is my understanding that the resort was used by the military during the Mao Tse Tung era.

I heard from someone that the house burned down when a fire swept the mountainside.

During their lifetime, I have never heard a word of complaint from either dad or mother about the locale, or how hard their work was, or about the circumstances under which they lived when they came back to the U.S. in 1940. They were given a typical Chinese send off, which the Chinese give to those they love and respect, tapestries which were inscribed with eulogies for their long service.

Please Help the "The Amoy Mission Project!" Please share any relevant biographical material and photos for the website and upcoming book, or consider helping with the costs of the site and research materials.   All text and photos will remain your property, and photos will be imprinted to prevent unauthorized use.  Thanks!  

Dr. Bill   Xiamen University MBA Center
E-mail: amoybill@gmail.com  
Snail Mail: Dr. William Brown 
Box 1288  Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian  PRC   361005

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AMOY MISSION LINKS
Click to help Amoy MIssion Project with photos, text, donations
The Reformed Church of China (Amoy Mission, started by the Reformed Church of America (Dutch) in Amoy Hea-mun (aka Ameouy )A.M. Main Menu
List of Amoy Mission Reformed Church of America (Dutch) Missionaries in ChinaRCA Miss'ry List
Reformed Church of China's Amoy Mission 1877 Report by DuryeaAmoyMission-1877
Fifty Years in Amoy Story of Amoy Mission by Philip Wilson Pitcher Reformed Church of ChinaAmoyMission-1893
David Abeel Father of the Amoy Mission, and China's first education for girls and womenAbeel, David
Henry and Sarah Beltman, Amoy Mission 1902-1928?Beltman
Boot Family of the Amoy Mission,South Fujian ChinaBoot Family
Ruth Broekema Amoy Mission 1921 1951Broekema, Ruth
Henry and Sarah Beltman, Amoy Mission 1902-1928?Bruce, Elizabeth
William Burns, Scottish Missionary to China, visited Amoy Burns, Wm.
John Caldwell China Coast Family Caldwells
Henry and Kate Depree Amoy Mission 1907 to 1948DePree
Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Develder, Wally
   Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Wally's Memoirs!
Douglas CarstairsDouglas, Carstairs
Elihu Doty RCA Missionary to Amoy ChinaDoty, Elihu
Rev William Rankin Duryea, D.D. The Amoy Mission 1877Duryea, Wm. Rankin
Joseph and Marion EstherEsther,Joe & Marion
Katherine Green Amoy Mission 1907 to 1950Green, Katherine
Karl Gutzlaff Missionary to ChinaGutzlaff, Karl
Stella Girard VeenschotenHills,Jack & Joann
. Stella Girard VeenschotenHill's Photos.80+
..Stella Girard VeenschotenKeith H.Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Homeschool
Richard and Johanna Hofstra of the Amoy MIssion ChinaHofstras
Tena Holkeboer Amoy Mission, Hope HospitalHolkeboer, Tena
Dr. Clarence Holleman and his wife Ruth Eleanor Vanden Berg Holleman were RCA missionaries on AmoyHolleman, M.D.
Hope Hospital Amoy on Gulangyu (Kulangsu, Koolongsoo, etc.)Hope Hospital
Stella Girard VeenschotenJohnston Bio
Rev. and Mrs. Joralman of the Amoy MissionJoralmans
Wendell and Renske KarsenKarsen, W&R
Edwin and Elizabeth Koeppe Family, Amoy Mission ChinaKoeppes, Edwin&Eliz.
Dr. Clarence Holleman and his wife Ruth Eleanor Vanden Berg Holleman were RCA missionaries on AmoyKip, Leonard W.
William Vander Meer Talmage College Fukien Christian UniversityMeer Wm. Vander
Margaret Morrison, Amoy Mission 1892-1931Morrison, Margaret
John Muilenberg Amoy MissionMuilenbergs
Jean Neinhuis, Amoy Mission Hope Hospital Gulangyu or Ku-long-sooNeinhuis, Jean
Theodore Oltman M.D. Amoy Missionary DoctorOltman, M.D.
Reverend Alvin Ostrum, of the Amoy Mission, Fujian ChinaOstrum, Alvin
Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Otte,M.D.Stella Girard VeenschotenLast Days
Henry and Mary Voskuil Amoy MissionPlatz, Jessie
Reverend W. J. Pohlman, Amoy MIssion, Fujian ChinaPohlman, W. J.
Henry and Dorothy Poppen, RCA Missionaries to Amoy China Amoy Mission Project 1841-1951Poppen, H.& D.
Reverend Daniel Rapalje, Amoy Mission, Fujian ChinaRapalje, Daniel
Herman and Bessie Renskers Amoy Mission 1910-1933Renskers
Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Talmage, J.V.N.
Lyman and Rose Talman Amoy Mission 1916 to 1931Talman, Dr.
Stella Girard VeenschotenVeenschotens
. Nelson VeenschotenHenry V.Stella Girard VeenschotenStella V.
. Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital Girard V.
Jeanette Veldman, Amoy Mission ChinaVeldman, J.
Henry and Mary Voskuil Amoy MissionVoskuil, H & M
Jean Walvoord Amoy Mission 1931-1951Walvoord
A. Livingston WarnshuisWarnshuis, A.L.
Nellie Zwemer Amoy Mission 1891-1930Zwemer, Nellie
"The MIssion Cemetery of Fuh-Chau" / Foochow by Rev.J.W. Wiley , M.D. (also mispelled Wylie )Fuh-chau Cemetery
Dr. John Otte and Hope Hospital City of Springs
   (Quanzhou, 1902!!)
Xiamen Churches Protestant Catholic Seventh Day Adventist Amoy Mission Missionaries AbeelXM Churches
Xiamen Churches Protestant Catholic Seventh Day Adventist Amoy Mission Missionaries AbeelChurch History Xiamen International Christian Fellowship Expat Nondenominational interdenominational
Opium wars in Xiamen, Fujian China. Opium Wars
Amoy Mission Bibliography A.M. Bibliography
Xiamen YMCA and YWCAYMCA Volunteer!
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