Henry John Van Zalingen

It is with deep sadness that we announce that Henry (Henk) Van Zalingen passed away
peacefully in his sleep on December 27, 2024 in Edmonton, after a short battle with heart
failure.

Henk is survived by his children Sylvia (Ray Carrier) of Smithers BC, Jeannette (Mel) Watamaniuk of Sturgeon County AB, and Henry (Tracy) Van Zalingen of Golden BC; his 6 grandsons, André (Mikayla), Ben (Jasmine), Matthew (Claire), Stuart (Arisha), Jason (Alysha) and Jack, as well as numerous family members in the Netherlands and Europe. He was predeceased by his parents Hendrik Jan and Gerdina Ine Van Zalingen and his loving wife Femia Maria.

Henk was born in Rhenen, the Netherlands and was the eldest of 6 children, with 3 brothers
and 2 sisters. After completing agricultural college and with a love of farming, Henk immigrated to Canada in 1954 to farm in Saskatchewan. He then worked at a sawmill in BC before moving to Hinton, Alberta where he worked in the forest industry for over 40 years until his retirement August 1, 2000.

During a visit to the Netherlands to visit family, Henk met the love of his life, Femia, who was a teacher at the school where Henk’s father was the headmaster. Femia followed Henk to Canada and they were married in Edmonton on November 18, 1961. Henk and Femia moved to Hinton in 1962, where they spent 49 wonderful years together raising their family, spending time with their grandchildren and enjoying the outdoors hiking, canoeing and cross-country skiing in the beautiful surroundings of Hinton and Jasper.

Henk was an adventurous man who instilled the love of the outdoors and travel in his children,
with many family camping vacations throughout western Canada and the northwestern United
States. Throughout his retirement, Henk and Femia took many long vacations throughout
western Canada enjoying the outdoors, visiting family and friends, and spending time with their grandsons. After the passing of his dear wife Femia in 2010, Henk moved to St. Albert in 2011, where he spent 13 peaceful and happy years in his home on Swallow Crescent. He was a loving and devoted husband, father and ‘Opa’, and he will be greatly missed.

Cremation has taken place. A private family service and celebration of Henk’s life will take place in the summer of 2025 in Hinton, Alberta, where he will be buried next to his beloved wife Femia.

The family extends its sincere gratitude to the staff at the Sturgeon and Misericordia hospitals
for their efforts to stabilize Henk’s condition, and to the staff at Agecare Miller Crossing for their care and compassion in making Henk’s final days comfortable.

In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation to the charity of one’s choice in Henk’s
memory.