It is with great sorrow we announce the passing of Jean René van Geuns, peacefully on Thursday, February 18, 2021
Jean René was born in The Hague, Netherlands at the onset of World War II, and later moved growing up in Java, Indonesia.
Jean René and his father, a member of the Dutch Resistance, distributed extra food cards, organized attacks on German Military police and helped transport Jewish families and stranded Allied pilots out of Holland. In an attempt to join the Dutch Free Forces in Englan, Jean René traveled North, and was arrested and imprisoned in a concentration camp in Norway until the war ended.
Jean René returned to Holland to finish his studies and earned a Law Degree from Leiden University. He travelled to East Africa to work in diamond mines in what is now Zimbabwe ( formerly known as Rhodesia). Soon Jean René emigrated to the United States where he met and married his wife of 56 years, Elvia Judith Miranda, and had one daughter Danielle.
Jean René had several businesses in New York and Trinidad. He enjoyed travelling, cared very much for his family, friends, and Masonic brothers. He will be remembered as a generous, charing, gentle man who had enormous integrity and a great sense of humor. Jean René is survived by his beloved wife of 56 years, Dr. Elvia J. van Geuns, Ph.D. and his daughter Danielle.
Jean René often said of endeavors, "Give it hell, life is short." and while this saying may seem to be brief, the reach of Jean René's sentiment remains necessary and important coupled with his activism, courage and bravery he has shown during his life.
Family and Friends will be welcome ot share their memories and expressions of sympathy at a Memorial Service which will be held at a later date, at Cobble Hill Chapels, located at 171 Court Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201.
HJ