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Dutch American Heritage Foundation |
Reported Robert C. Visser, photos by John van der Hulst
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The 2003 Dutch American Heritage celebration and fund raiser was held on Sunday November 16 in the grand ballroom of the prestigious California Club in downtownLos Angeles. The event attracted a record attendance of 248 DAHEF supporters.
Consul General David van Iterson opened the evening with a brief historical review of the background of Dutch American Heritage Day.
Two honorees were inducted into the Dutch American Heritage Hall of Fame. DAHEF president Martin Perlberger presented each with a plaque honoring the occasion and unveiled the paintings that will be added to the roster of DAHEF honorees.
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Bob van Schoonenberg’s great-grandfather came to the United States from the Netherlands in the second half of the nineteenth century and settled in Wisconsin.
Bob heads up Avery Dennison’s business development, law, patent and trademark, risk management, and environmental, health and safety departments and chairs the Company's mergers and acquisitions committee. He joined Avery Dennison in 1981 and became executive vice president in 2000. Before joining Avery Dennison, Bob was with Gulf Oil Corporation in Los Angeles and in Pittsburgh. He served in the United States Army, military intelligence, in Münich, Germany from 1969 to 1971. Bob, his wife, Sandra, and two sons, Blake and Ryan live in La Canada-Flintridge.
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Bram Benjamins was born in the Netherlands. In 1954, at the age of 27 and after reading John Gunther’s “Inside USA”, he migrated with his wife and young daughter to California and started two successful businesses in aerospace and exotic metals trading and precious metals refining. In 1987 he retired from these two businesses and retained an industrial leasing operation.
During the war years Bram and his parents and sister spent two years in hiding. Following the war he finished high school and studied at the University of Utrecht. In 1975 Bram started taking singing lessons from Mario Lanza and subsequently sang the lead in several operas, including Figaro and Rigoletto, at the Santa Monica Civic Opera. He has been a board member of the Netherlands American Society and has for many years sponsored the annual Queen’s birthday at his home in Beverly Hills. He also has hosted summer parties for the California Association of Child Holocaust Survivors. Bram has two children, daughter Shulamith and son Matt. His wife Hilde perished in a tragic plane crash in 1972. In 1982 Cleo Robinson, a mezzo-soprano, joined Bram as his partner.
The Evening
Master of Ceremony John van der Hulst did a magnificent job introducing speakers and keeping the evening events flowing on time.
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The Pieter Meijers quartet with vocalist Cheryl Stephens provided the superb music that kept everyone on the dance floor.
Entertainment
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During the reception magician Brian Gillis managed to relieve several guests of their watches – yes, they were returned! Later in the evening Brian and his partner Sisuepahn performed mind boggling magic tricks. No wonder they are called “Entertainers to the Stars”.
Silent Auction
Silent auction donations included a downtown Los Angeles tour, two-night stay at the Casa Cody Country Inn in Palm Springs, flying trip to Santa Barbara with lunch, horseback ride with BBQ, sailing escapade, Pieter Meijers CD recordings, an etching “Moulins près de Rotterdam” and Eric Hazelhoff Roelfzema autographed books “In Pursuit of Life”. The mini silent auction raised over $ 2,000.
NESSO Support
Thanks to the corporate and private table purchasers and donors the event was a financial success and the DAHEF board was able to present a check for $10,000 to the Netherlands Social Services Organization (NESSO).
Publicity
The Palos Verdes Peninsula News published the following captioned photo on the Society page in its Thursday, December 4, 2003.
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©2004-2006 Dutch American Heritage Foundation
