Rik’s 100 Years – A Story of Strength and Family

Hendrika, known warmly as Rik, has just been welcomed into the Respect 100 Club, and her secret to a century of living a grounded, determined and hardworking life.

“Work hard, be determined. Fresh vegetables from the garden. Exercise, yoga, walking and gardening”, Rik says, are the secrets to a long and healthy life. 

Born into a family of seven and the eldest of five children, Rik grew up in a household shaped by hard work and the simple pleasures of life which included helping her mother keep the home, tending the garden, cooking, sewing and embroidery on our clothes to wear and of course attending Sunday mass before visiting her Oma and Opa.

It was a childhood rooted in family, faith and community.

Like so many of her generation, Rik’s life was touched by war. She remembers it clearly – they felt like soldiers took everything, music and the radio silenced, and her beloved John hiding beneath the floorboards like so many others. It was a horrible time. 

John her husband came into her life as a friend of her brother – handsome, she notes, and good company for sailing, dancing and going to the movies.

Together they built the thing Rik is most proud of: her home and her family. 

Ask Rik what one moment she would return to, and she doesn’t hesitate by saying “on my birthday when my daughters came over with my little great grandchildren. I wouldn’t know what life would be like without them.” 

Her advice for the rest of us is just as warm and unhurried as the life she has lived “make the best of things, be happy and laugh. Speak kindly.” 

Welcome to the 100 Club, Rik – what a life.