Desiree DeCoste
Beaver Staff
Napanee resident John Immerseel recently released a second edition to his book For a Better Life, which was first released last year.
The story is about Dutch immigration to Canada following the end of WW II. Immerseel himself immigrated to Canada aboard the Sibajak in April 1952 when he was three.
Immerseel started his project for his book back in 2012 after his curiosity about his trip to Canada developed into his own personal project.
“I was curious,” Immerseel said. “I came to Canada on the Sibajak on April 26, 1952. As I was growing up, our trip to Canada was often a topic of conversation at home. As I became older, I often wondered about who the other passengers were, where they came from, and what became of them. Curiosity developed into a personal project that began in 2012 that led me to find and contact as many of the former passengers as possible. I soon discovered that many of the former passengers had already passed. It then became important for me to preserve, in book form, as many memories as possible of the immigration experience as told to me by the passengers on that trip that were still living.”
Born in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1948, Immerseel graduated from the University of Guelph in 1972.
A biologist by training, Immerseel had a long career with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, during which he held several positions with the Ontario Provincial Parks and Protected Areas Branch. He retired as Zone Manager for Southeastern Ontario in 2005 and since retiring has devoted his time to writing.
Having a long-standing interest in history and especially postwar Dutch emigration, Immerseel has a few projects on the go.
“A project I recently completed was a pictorial history of the ship, the 1938 Nieuw Amsterdam, by Dr. Nico Guns,” stated Immerseel “The Nieuw Amsterdam was judged the ship of the century by maritime specialists and is of special significance to the people of the Netherlands. Again, my role was to complete the final English language text. My next project is to complete the final English language copy of the History of the Holland America Line by Nico Guns, a book currently existing as a Dutch language book. This book will be published later this year. As far as future books of my own are concerned, I do have a couple of ideas. When I have time, I will begin researching and writing them – perhaps later this year. But they are long term projects requiring a significant amount of research.”
Immerseel went on to explain how his book, For a Better Life got its title.
“Not long after beginning the project, it became quite evident there was a larger story that needed to be told,” Immerseel expressed. “That was the story of why so many people had decided to leave the Netherlands during the postwar years. I asked each family who contacted me why they or their parents left the Netherlands. There was one clear answer – to find a better life. That led me to another question – a better life from what? As I began to explore the social and political reasons for such a large-scale emigration, the answers prompted more questions. It was from this that I decided upon the title of the book, For a Better Life.”
For more information on the book, or to order a book email Immerseel directly at john.immerseel@gmail.com.