For those who would like to pay their respects to late Adrian Vandermeer, visitation and funeral services are open to all, according to a notice from Vandermeer Nursery.
His passing away was announced on Thursday. Vandermeer was 93 years old.
Visitation will be held at McEachnie Funeral Home on Tuesday, September 1 from 4-8pm, and Wednesday, September 2 from 12:30-1:30pm.
The funeral service will begin at McEachnie Funeral Home on Wednesday at 1:30pm, followed by interment at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery. The reception following the interment will be private and by invitation only.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation.
Ajax Condolences
“I was saddened to learn of the passing of Adrian Vandermeer, a respected business leader, community builder, and proud Ajax resident,” said town mayor Shaun Collier.
He said after leaving Holland in the 1950s and coming to Canada, Adrian chose Ajax as the place to build his future and put down roots. In 1961, while working full time at General Motors, he built his first greenhouse on the same place where the Vandermeer Nursery retail store stands today.
Through hard work, determination, and a deep belief in his community, he steadily expanded the business, acquiring neighbouring lands and growing Vandermeer Nursery into one of Ajax’s most well-known and beloved local institutions, said Collier.
“On behalf of Ajax Council and the Town of Ajax, I extend my sincere condolences to the Vandermeer family, their friends, employees, and all those whose lives were touched by Adrian,: he added.
The Stubborn Dutchman
To many customers and staff, he was simply Mr. V and the founder of Vandermeer Nursery. To us, he was Dad, Opa, and the stubborn Dutchman at the centre of a very big family, said the Vandermeer Nursery notice.
From working full-time in his dad’s greenhouse during the war starting at just 10 years old, to picking tobacco and working in lumber camps after arriving in Canada, and eventually building his first greenhouse by hand, Adrian was never afraid of hard work.
Even into his 90s, he still found ways to keep himself busy. Last year, at 92, he quietly brought enough plants and pots home to make 17 hanging baskets. No one had any idea what he was up to until he proudly brought them all back to the nursery on May long weekend, ready to go out for sale.
For his five children and six grandchildren, his legacy is much more personal than the business that bears his name. It is in the standards he set, the stories he left behind, and the family traditions he helped create, all of which will continue to remind us of him, said the nursery.
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