Karel Renee Dahmen

Karel Renee Dahmen
Karel Renee Dahmen passed away peacefully in his sleep in the morning of February 16, 2021. He was born in Roermond, Netherlands on May 23, 1919. He grew up in Roermond, a small town in the south eastern province of Limburg, near the German border, where he graduated from the advanced high school in sciences. He went to the university in Delft to study mining engineering in 1938 but the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands in 1940 put a quick end to his studies. When the news of the invasion broke and Karel could see the smoke rising above Rotterdam he and his room mate finished breakfast and pedaled their bikes to the fishing town of Scheveningen. It was there through the hustle and bustle of refugees wishing to escape that they joined with two other students, one of whom had Diesel engine experience. They managed to hot wire a municipal rescue boat called the Zeemanshoop getting one of two cylinders to operate and, along with forty-six Jewish refugees crossed the North Sea. About two thirds of the way across they were spotted and rescued by the British Royal Navy destroyer HMS Venomous. After arriving in England, Karel enlisted in the Royal Dutch Navy where he served on the Dutch anti-aircraft light cruiser HMS Jacob van Heemskerck and where he operated the Range and Direction Finder, an early form of radar for detecting aircraft and ships. After the war, Karel married Hermien Engelberta Everard whom he met on a blind date that was set up by Karel's sister and Hermien's brother. Their life together was spread over the globe in Indonesia, The Netherlands, Texas and Colorado. Karel was an enlightened man, an engineer, philanthropist, student of history, lover of classical music, and water color painter. He loved all people no matter their background, race, or sexual orientation. He was a devout Catholic and worshipped God through church, people and nature. He lived to be a 101 years old and was once quoted as saying, "The only thing significant about me is that I'm still around". He is survived by his five children and their families: daughter Carole Anne Masson and her husband, Pierre Masson, of Paris France, son Maarten Dahmen and his wife Laurence van Rossem of Alkmaar, The Netherlands, son Frans Dahmen and his wife Deborah Rodriguez Dahmen of Austin,Texas, son Pieter Dahmen and his wife Hope Burnett Dahmen of Norfolk, Virginia, and son George Dahmen with partner Ann Kitzmiller of Austin Texas. He will be missed, fair sailing Karel.
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