Richard Oskamp

North Haledon - Richard Oskamp, age 96, went home to be with the Lord on Friday, November 28, 2025, at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Paterson. Born on November 14, 1929 in Prospect Park to the late Dirk and Elsie (Kerkhoven) Oskamp, Richard attended public school on Paterson Hamburg-Turnpike until sixth grade. He attended North 4th Street Christian School from his sixth to eighth grades. He began high school at Wayne Township Junior High and in tenth grade he attended Pompton Lakes High School, graduating in June 1948. In the summer of 1948, he worked with his father at Little Falls Laundry until he joined the Navy in October. He worked as an airplane mechanic and served in boot camp at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois. He then studied Aircraft Structural Mechanics and specialized in hydraulic systems on F-95 jets. He was stationed in Oceana, Virginia and in 1951, he sailed on the USS Roosevelt aircraft carrier before the USS Midway aircraft carrier, where he sailed from Newark to the Mediterranean Sea and toured all over Europe; which included Italy, where he met the Pope, visited the Eiffel Tower, Gibraltar, Pompeii, Athens, and was able to ski in the Alps. In 1952, he came back to the states and was stationed in Elizabeth City, North Carolina and finished his enlistment term and left the Navy. Richard took a liking to a pretty "red head" that he saw at church when he came home on a leave in June of 1952 and started to take her out for dates and walks in April of 1953. They sat together at church for evening service and alternated Sunday meals with their families.

Richard graduated from the Teterboro School of Aeronautics - Aircraft Engine Mechanics Course in February of 1954. He also took private pilot lessons and became certified to fly as a pilot. Richard started his career as a mechanic for United Airlines in 1954. He and June were engaged in October of 1955 and married on February 3, 1956 at Preakness Christian Reformed Church. The couple moved to Haledon and Richard went to school to become a flight engineer in Florida. He then took a job with Eastern Airlines and the couple moved to Valley Road in Wayne in 1958, shortly after their first child, Diane, was born. The couple had three more children, Richard Jr., Judith, and Kenneth.

He was employed for Curtiss Wright, where he helped design an experimental VTOL (vertical take off and land) airplane and then in June of 1965, he took a job as a flight engineer for Seaboard World Airlines, later known as Flying Tigers. He even flew into the Vietnam war zone as a cargo pilot for a year.

As the children grew, they moved to Sussex in 1968, where Richard made sure he spent quality family time with them. They would play ping pong in the winter and badminton in the summer. He would fish and hunt for woodcock, pheasant, rabbit, and deer, loved to swim and could hold his breath for what seemed like an eternity. Richard loved to garden and he would meticulously plan his garden yearly. Richard also found many other ways use his God-given talents. He restored several old houses and was always tinkering with multiple projects. He also volunteered at the Harvest House in Sussex with his wife. He enjoyed family trips to Terrace Lake, Brigantine Beach, Asbury Park, camping at Lake Dunmore in Vermont, the Bahamas, and Disney.

Richard was an active member of the Sussex Christian Reformed Church since 1968. Even after moving to the Holland Home in North Haledon, Richard and June continued to attend church by watching the weekly live stream services.

Besides his parents, Richard was predeceased by his siblings, Ann Bush, Elsie VanderSpiegel, Garry Oskamp, and Dr. Edwin Oskamp; and his grandson, Wade Howell. He is survived by his devoted wife, June (De Jong); his sons, Richard Jr. of Rutland, Vermont and Kenneth of Milford, Pennsylvania; his daughters, Diane Maxey and her husband Jon "Chris" of Caledonia, Michigan and Judith Howell and her husband Wayne of Wantage; ten grandchildren, Angela, Danielle, Aaron, Wayne "PJ," Clark, Kelly, Joshua, Rebecca, Andrew, and Emily; and eighteen great grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Richard's memory to the Sussex Christian School, 51 Unionville Avenue, Sussex, New Jersey 07461 or a charity of one's choice. Online condolences may be offered to the family at www.pinkelfuneralhome.com