Frances Bruinsma

Frances “Beppe” Bruinsma passed away suddenly on Friday, January 25, 2019. Frances is now reunited in Heaven with her beloved husband, the late Cornelius Bruinsma. They shared 55 beautiful years of marriage together. Frances was born May 23, 1927, in Gaastmeer, Friesland, Netherlands. She was raised on a farm being the oldest of nine children. Frances graduated from housekeeping school in her early teens. While working on the family farm in the 1940’s, she and her family were able to rescue and hide Canadian and American pilots that had been shot down. Frances and her sister were also couriers for their town in the resistance of Nazi Germany. She married her husband, Cornelius Bruinsma, in 1950 and started farming in Koudom, Friesland. She moved with her husband and her sons, Frank, Stewart, and Joe to America in 1978 and setted to Middleville, MI. They started Bruinsma Dairy Farms together and shared a beautiful life together in the agriculture and milk industry. She enjoyed sewing and crocheting. In 2008, she became a United States citizen. Frances was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She will be deeply missed by many. She is survived by two brothers, Hans and Frans Wiersma; two sisters, Teddy Van Der Velde and Richtje Bosma; her children, Frank (Arien) Bruinsma, Stewart (Foka) Bruinsma, and Joe (Brooke) Bruinsma. She was blessed with 12 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren. Words cannot express our deep gratitude to Michael and Michele Hoag for the loving care and compassion for Beppe over the years. Visitation for Frances will be held on Friday, February 1, from 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm at Matthysse Kuiper DeGraaf Funeral Home, 616 E. Main Street, Caledonia.