Born in Sumatra, Indonesia, of Dutch parents on July 17, 1926, Willem H. (Bill) Prins died in Port Ludlow, Washington, on January 2, 2018. Bill’s family remained in Sumatra until the start of WWII, when Bill and his sister Minny were sent to Amsterdam to stay with their grandparents. Their parents Simon and Nora were captured and held as Japanese prisoners of war, and the family was not reunited until the war ended. As an adolescent, Bill served with the Dutch Resistance, rescuing pilots of damaged Allied planes, leading them to safe houses, and helping them return to their units.
His was a family of sailors, starting with his grandfather, and Bill followed the family tradition. After attending Netherlands Maritime University, Rotterdam, he served in the Dutch Navy, then joined Holland America Line. In 1957, he qualified to “sail as Captain on vessels of unlimited tonnage on all oceans.” For a brief time, he piloted ships in Curacao, but returned to Holland America and worked on freighters until the shipping company began passenger service. Because of his demonstrated personal interest, Bill was sent to study Hotel Administration at Cornell University, then he became Holland America’s first Hotel Manager. He established hospitality training centers in Indonesia and the Philippines to prepare individuals to work with the company. When the company moved their headquarters to Seattle, he and his family moved as well.
In Seattle, Bill and Robbin met, and they married November 13, 1992. After Bill’s retirement in 1993, they fulfilled their shared dream and set off sailing. They purchased and refurbished the 46’ sloop AEOLUS, and sailed the Pacific coast down to the Panama Canal and into the Caribbean. They settled permanently in Port Ludlow, and kept busy with family and community activities and frequent Holland America cruises. Bill was particularly proud of participating in reintroducing salmon into Chimacum Creek, and he remained active with his walking group, The Walkie-Talkies, as long as possible.
Bill Prins passed on his own terms in January, at age 91. He was preceded in death by his parents; first wife Nel Flentrop; and second wife Lilo Glaser. He is survived by his beloved wife Robbin Prins; sister Minny Hoenderdos; and children Roelof (Sherryl) Prins, Lilo (Randy) Peterson, and Anna (Gerard) Baz. He adored his grandchildren Samantha, Odin, Chase, Peter, Elizabeth, André, Ella, and Marina, and great grandchildren Nora and George. In honor of his service, Holland America instituted the Bill Prins Award for top graduates of the training school in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Memorial gifts may be sent in Bill’s name to Jefferson Healthcare Hospice (360-385-0610) or Jefferson County Animal Shelter (360-385-3292).
Ashes were scattered on Port Ludlow Bay July 29, 2018.
