Alice Prins, 88, left this earth for her heavenly home on September 16, 2020. She demonstrated amazing strength and kindness towards others while experiencing a series of illnesses over the past several years. Her love of her family and friends and her belief in God’s grace sustained her during good times and difficult seasons and ultimately gave her a “peace that surpasses all understanding.”
Alice was born to the late Otto and Anna Kamstra on March 11, 1932, in Friesland, The Netherlands. After living through the frightening experiences of World War II, which included her family sheltering members of the underground and downed allied airmen, she immigrated with her parents and younger brother to Zeeland, Michigan, in 1949. She met the love of her life, Abraham Prins, soon thereafter, when he came calling after he saw her picture welcoming the new family in the local Zeeland paper. They married in 1951.
In retrospect, Alice exhibited incredible fortitude and perseverance. She left the life and friends she knew to live in a strange, new country. She became a nanny for the people who sponsored her family, earning $6 a week while learning her third language – English. At age 20 she contracted polio and lost the use of her dominant left arm and had to learn how to write right-handed. Then in 1956, her mother passed away. Ultimately, Alice dedicated herself to being the matriarch of a large family, raising two daughters and six sons as Abraham was frequently away from home driving truck.
Alice was preceded in death by her husband Abraham in 1999. She is survived by all of her children and her many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Alice will be remembered at a graveside service in Zeeland cemetery at 10:00 AM on September 21. Family and friends are invited to attend. Should you require seating, please bring a lawn chair. The family gratefully declines flowers and donations, but prayers, condolences, and memories are gladly accepted at www.yntemafh.com
