Willy Henriette Pauline Fransje Meyer Rudolph March 23, 1922 – October 21, 2015

 Where do I begin?
The homeless knew her as “Mama”.
Friends knew her as “Willy”.
City officials knew her as “Good Samaritan”.
And I knew her as “Oma” because she was my grandmother.
It’s not too often in life you get to be in the presence of royalty.  Lucky for me, I was related to her.
Born to Dutch colonists in Krikilan, Indonesia, Willy Henriette Pauline Fransje Meyer Rudolph proudly boasted that her great grandfather was knighted by the king of Belgium.  Not only royalty, Willy was also a survivor, enduring 30 months in the horrible conditions of Japanese prison camps during World War II.
After moving to the Netherlands in 1955, Willy and her family migrated to the United States. She and my grandfather spent the rest of their lives dedicated to helping others, preparing food and offering ministry to the homeless and the hungry.  In a matter of five years, they fed over 50,000 people.
The numerous accolades she and my grandfather received for their charitable work wasn’t what was important to them. It was about helping others – it was always about helping others, and I think U.S. Congressman Buck McKeon said it best, “You are a shining example of what’s good in our society.”
The publishers at élite Magazine and The Magazine of Santa Clarita gave me the opportunity to write about this amazing woman, my Oma, because her story was worth telling. During the last years of Oma’s life, she spent her time knitting blankets and hats for the newborns at Henry Mayo Hospital and the seniors at the convalescent homes.  Not one moment went by when she wasn’t thinking of others.
It is with great sadness to say that my Oma passed away last month. Though heaven gained an angel, there’s a bit of an emptiness knowing she’s not here to hug and hold tight. But Oma left a legacy, one we should all hold on to…a life worth living is a life worth giving.
Thank you to Prime Publications for allowing me to share Oma’s story with your readers.