In response to my recent e-mail announcing our 55th reunion, I got a reply from Jan Smits's wife that he passed away in late 2023. His obituary follows:
Jan Matthijs Smits V [a Dutch name meaning John Matthew Smith, the Fifth in English], age 71, of Traverse City, Michigan, passed away on November 5th, 2023 surrounded by his family. He fought a tremendous and persistent yearlong battle with pancreatic cancer. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Lois Smits; two sons, Jan M. Smits VI (Kathleen) of Southlake, TX and Casey R. Smits (Jennifer) of Lake Ann, MI; sister, Elizabeth Henning (Jack) of Dublin, OH; grandchildren Elizabeth, Andrew and Amelia Smits of Southlake, TX and Adelyn Smits of Lake Ann, MI. He was proceeded in death by his parents, Jan and Elizabeth Smits.
Jan and Lois married in 1974 in Midland Michigan, where their first son, Jan M Smits, VI was born, and soon after moved to Grand Haven, MI, where their second son Casey was born. In 1985 they moved to Traverse City, which they have called home for more than thirty-eight years, during which they have enjoyed the unparalleled beauty of the Old Mission Peninsula and Grand Traverse Bay.
Jan was born in Detroit, MI and spent his high school years in Wheaton, IL. Growing up, his love of boating and time on the water began on the Saint Clair River (The Flats) where his family had a cottage. This cottage eventually became his and was a wonderful place where a lifetime of memories were forged spanning five generations in the family. This love of the water became a true passion of his spending his summers through high school sailing and cruising as crew on boats like the Aria and the Idle Hour with his boating mentor, Jack Richmond. He shared this passion for boating with his sons and grandchildren. Lake Michigan was the family’s cruising grounds, sailing around Muskegon and later Northern Lake Michigan spending weeks at a time sailing between Traverse City, and Mackinac Island in the summers with Lois, Jan, and Casey. These are cherished memories by his sons and wife, who all share this love of the water. Some of his grandchildren’s collective favorite memories of grandpa were him teaching the kids Michigan Boater’s Safety, and sailing camp on Boardman Lake.
His annual trip with Lois to St. Barts was always a highlight of the year, getting additional beach days in while Northern Michigan was still in the tail end of winter. He made incredible friends everywhere he went, with warming conversations and wonderful stories.
Jan had a wonderful career with General Motors (GM), the majority of it at GMAC in the Traverse City area, always stating that he had the best job in the company. One of his incredible gifts was building enduring relationships with people. He was truly gifted in always finding a way to make a personal connection with each person he encountered, many of which have remained enduring lifelong friendships.
According to his four grandchildren, their favorite things about grandpa were his uplifting personality, smile, and kind loving heart. They also loved the COVID FaceTime book club with him “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. They also loved learning how to sail and drive the dinghy and the golf cart. His grandchildren believed that he could build or fix anything, as did anyone who spent time with him. What they will miss most about grandpa are his stories, life lessons, his warm laugh, and his undivided attention.
Jan was a loving son, brother, husband, father, and grandfather. He taught us all so much. He will be missed, but always loved and remembered as our memories and stories keep him close.
The family thanks all of those who have been so amazing in supporting him though this difficult last year. The friends and neighbors on the Old Mission Peninsula, longtime friends in Traverse City, the First Congregational Church community, friends from St. Barts, longtime friends from General Motors, lifelong friends from Grand Haven and Mount Pleasant; you have truly made this last year a wonderful gift for Jan. The Facetime, phone calls, letters, cards, and visits Jan received during the final year of his life were a tremendous source of joy, peace, and comfort to him.
A celebration of Jan’s life was held Thursday November 9, 2023, at First Congregational Church in Traverse City.
Scott Zapel
In response to my recent e-mail announcing our 55th reunion, I got a reply from Jan Smits's wife that he passed away in late 2023. His obituary follows:
Jan Matthijs Smits V [a Dutch name meaning John Matthew Smith, the Fifth in English], age 71, of Traverse City, Michigan, passed away on November 5th, 2023 surrounded by his family. He fought a tremendous and persistent yearlong battle with pancreatic cancer. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Lois Smits; two sons, Jan M. Smits VI (Kathleen) of Southlake, TX and Casey R. Smits (Jennifer) of Lake Ann, MI; sister, Elizabeth Henning (Jack) of Dublin, OH; grandchildren Elizabeth, Andrew and Amelia Smits of Southlake, TX and Adelyn Smits of Lake Ann, MI. He was proceeded in death by his parents, Jan and Elizabeth Smits.
Jan and Lois married in 1974 in Midland Michigan, where their first son, Jan M Smits, VI was born, and soon after moved to Grand Haven, MI, where their second son Casey was born. In 1985 they moved to Traverse City, which they have called home for more than thirty-eight years, during which they have enjoyed the unparalleled beauty of the Old Mission Peninsula and Grand Traverse Bay.
Jan was born in Detroit, MI and spent his high school years in Wheaton, IL. Growing up, his love of boating and time on the water began on the Saint Clair River (The Flats) where his family had a cottage. This cottage eventually became his and was a wonderful place where a lifetime of memories were forged spanning five generations in the family. This love of the water became a true passion of his spending his summers through high school sailing and cruising as crew on boats like the Aria and the Idle Hour with his boating mentor, Jack Richmond. He shared this passion for boating with his sons and grandchildren. Lake Michigan was the family’s cruising grounds, sailing around Muskegon and later Northern Lake Michigan spending weeks at a time sailing between Traverse City, and Mackinac Island in the summers with Lois, Jan, and Casey. These are cherished memories by his sons and wife, who all share this love of the water. Some of his grandchildren’s collective favorite memories of grandpa were him teaching the kids Michigan Boater’s Safety, and sailing camp on Boardman Lake.
His annual trip with Lois to St. Barts was always a highlight of the year, getting additional beach days in while Northern Michigan was still in the tail end of winter. He made incredible friends everywhere he went, with warming conversations and wonderful stories.
Jan had a wonderful career with General Motors (GM), the majority of it at GMAC in the Traverse City area, always stating that he had the best job in the company. One of his incredible gifts was building enduring relationships with people. He was truly gifted in always finding a way to make a personal connection with each person he encountered, many of which have remained enduring lifelong friendships.
According to his four grandchildren, their favorite things about grandpa were his uplifting personality, smile, and kind loving heart. They also loved the COVID FaceTime book club with him “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. They also loved learning how to sail and drive the dinghy and the golf cart. His grandchildren believed that he could build or fix anything, as did anyone who spent time with him. What they will miss most about grandpa are his stories, life lessons, his warm laugh, and his undivided attention.
Jan was a loving son, brother, husband, father, and grandfather. He taught us all so much. He will be missed, but always loved and remembered as our memories and stories keep him close.
The family thanks all of those who have been so amazing in supporting him though this difficult last year. The friends and neighbors on the Old Mission Peninsula, longtime friends in Traverse City, the First Congregational Church community, friends from St. Barts, longtime friends from General Motors, lifelong friends from Grand Haven and Mount Pleasant; you have truly made this last year a wonderful gift for Jan. The Facetime, phone calls, letters, cards, and visits Jan received during the final year of his life were a tremendous source of joy, peace, and comfort to him.
A celebration of Jan’s life was held Thursday November 9, 2023, at First Congregational Church in Traverse City.
Jean "Frosty" Pengelly (Lay)
I'm so sorry to hear about Jan losing his fight with cancer. Loved all the fun memories from grandkids and friends.
John Simanton
I remember Jan from homeroom. What a lovely obituary! I wish I had known him better!