Obituary of Cornelius Vanden Dorpel

VANDEN DORPEL Cornelius (Neil) of Bonita Springs, Florida died on February 25, 2016. The son of the late Cornelius and Johanna Vanden Dorpel, he was born in Passaic, N.J. on September 21, 1921. He lived in Lodi, N.J. and Clifton, N.J. and attended Lodi Public Schools. He graduated from Drake Business School and attended Columbia University. He served 3 ½ years in World War II, Army Corps of Engineers as First Sergeant of the 949th Engineers. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for Meritorious Achievement as well as the Asian Pacific Campaign Medal. He was employed for 25 years with the Waldrich Company, Delawanna, N.J. and for 20 years with Fox-Wells & Company, New York City and retired in 1986 as its Corporate Secretary. He was a resident of Wyckoff, N.J. for 25 years and a member of the Second Reformed Church in Wyckoff where he served as Deacon, Elder and Superintendent of the Sunday school. He was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Christian Health Care Center, Wyckoff, N.J. for 11years and served as its Secretary. He moved to Bonita Springs, Florida in 1993. He was a member of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Fort Myers, FL and the Vanderbilt Presbyterian Church in Naples, FL. He served for a number of years as a member of the Board of Directors of the Burning Tree Neighborhood Association of Bonita Bay. He is survived by his wife Jacquelyn of Bonita Springs, FL; one son, Ronald and his wife, Diane of Rumford, Rhode Island; a brother Peter and his wife, Barbara of Whiting, N.J.; a niece, Sally Goin of Edmond, Oklahoma; and a step-daughter, Alexandra McDonald of Bonita Springs, F.L. Neil's wife of 42 years, Jane May died in 1987 and their son, Roger, died in 2000. Neil’s nephew James Howell of Shawnee, OK predeceased him in 2013. Visiting hours are Wednesday from 10:00 to 11:00am with a funeral service at 11:00am at the Vander Plaat Funeral Home, www.vpfh.com, 257 Godwin Ave., Wyckoff, NJ 07481. Burial will be in the Wyckoff Reformed Church Cemetery. Memorial gifts may be sent to the Christian Health Care Center, 301 Sicomac Avenue, Wyckoff, N.J. 07481.