Benjamin Tennis Balkema

I knew Ben from I worked at Farmers Insurance. It was a tense relationship at the start, he was sort of brusk with me. But, as the years went by he softened considerably and by the time I retired we were first name basis friends. He will be missed.

My thoughts are with the family. Loved coming to see him and talking with him during eye appointments!

Thoughts and prayers to Mary, Brent and Blake and their families. Ben was a wonderful and caring person and it was a pleasure to work with him for ten years.

Remembering the fun times at Horseshoe Lake and all the great rounds of golf. Peace to the family.

Te entire staff at Rylee's Ace Hardware was saddened to hear of Ben's passing. It gave us much joy to wait on him over many years. He was one of our favorite customers and he will surely be missed.

We were so sad to hear of Ben's passing. Our family was fortunate to have him as our eye doctor for many years. He always made us feel as though he cared about each one of us personally and would never hesitate to go the extra mile to help us when needed. We offer our sincere condolences to the family at this very difficult time. May God comfort you and give you peace.

I have so many fond memories of Ben. He was my eye doctor for more than 40 years. He was a kind, gentle, funny man who sincerely cared about his patients. He always took the time to ask about my husband and children by name and remembered many details about them. I loved hearing him talk of his "sweet Mary". Will miss him greatly and think of him often. Praying for peace and comfort for the family.

On behalf of our mother, Betty (Houwerzyl) Karel, we wish to extend our deepest sympathies.

Sorry to hear of Ben's passing. I think I've pretty much known him all of my life. Just saw him at Park Church a few months ago and talked with him briefly. A great guy and always fun to talk to. Condolences to Mary and sons.

Tom Johnson