thedrifter
02-22-07, 03:06 PM
Close friends stunned to lose 'joyful person'
Thursday, February 22, 2007
By Heather L. VanDyke
hvandyke@muskegonchronicle.com
Anyone who knew Brett Witteveen was aware that he was part of an unusually "close-knit" group of friends -- so tight it's difficult for some of them to imagine he's no longer a part of it.
"He had a group of good kids in his life," said Jamie Woodall, an associate pastor for First Baptist Church in Hart, who has been counseling some of Witteveen's friends and family since his death in Iraq Sunday.
"Brett had this really close-knit group of football buddies and they just hung together all the time," Woodall said. That group included Trisha Kokx, his fiancee.
The couple hadn't set a wedding date because, "we were waiting for him to come back," said Kokx's mother, Teresa Kokx, of Hart. They expected Witteveen to return sometime in April.
Witteveen, a 20-year-old private first class in the Marine Reserves, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol with his unit in Iraq. He was attached to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 24th Regiment of the 4th Marines out of Grand Rapids and had been in Iraq since October.
On Wednesday, some in the small communities of Hart and Shelby struggled to grasp the reality that the well-known football player and 2005 Hart High School graduate was gone.
School officials Wednesday described Witteveen as very popular, bright and loyal to his group of friends.
His "best friend," Jeremy Prudhomme, 19, who graduated with Witteveen and now attends Taylor University in Indiana, can attest to his loyalty.
"I would call him my best friend. He was a very joyful person," said Prudhomme, who said he spoke with Witteveen just last week. He learned of Witteveen's death Monday morning when Trisha Kokx called him with the tragic news.
"We just cried for 20 minutes," he said. Prudhomme planned to travel back to Oceana County this weekend.
He said he would like people to remember his friend as someone who was "passionate" about many things.
"First and foremost, Brett loved his friends and family, then the Marines and then football," he said. "The Marines were his mission in life. He really thought they could win the war. He died doing what he loved."
West Michigan's congressman, Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Holland, said Witteveen "tragically made the ultimate sacrifice while dutifully serving his country."
Prudhomme said Witteveen hoped to attend Taylor -- a Christian liberal arts college near Fort Wayne, Ind. -- when he got out of the military. Witteveen "planned on 'walking on' to the football team," he said.
Witteveen moved from Shelby to Hart halfway through his eighth-grade year and caused quite a stir, said former middle school English teacher Phil Kenyon.
"He was the new kid, good looking, athletic. The girls thought he was something else," Kenyon said.
It seems the high opinion some had of Witteveen never changed, Woodall said.
Woodall said he will continue to try to provide some comfort to Witteveen's friends and family in the coming weeks.
"I did ... want them to know that I had some significant conversations with Brett. There's a certain level of peace that Brett is in a better place than we are," Woodall said.
Longtime friend Kyle Herin, 20, of Hart has known Witteveen since second grade and said their friendship manifested into a strong, unbreakable bond.
"We were constantly hanging out, all of us were. We were always with them. He was always with Trisha, too," Herin said. "He was crazy, fun and a 'do anything' kind of guy."
But those fun memories of Witteveen haven't exactly wiped out the realization he's gone, Herin said.
"I'm still shocked. I'm numb to the idea, I guess. It's just surreal," he said.
Local officials named many others who were close to Witteveen, including brothers Nick and Josh Vanderputt, of Hart, who also were stepbrothers to Witteveen for a while. Vanderputt's mother married Witteveen's father years ago, but they have since divorced. The three young men remained close, said Nick Vanderputt.
Vanderputt, 20, said he played football with Witteveen for 11 years and "knew him all my life." He said learning of Witteveen's death was difficult for his friends.
"All week has been ups and downs. When I first heard, I wanted to get everyone on my football team from my senior year together. We went down to the school and got his football jersey and we got the football from our last game. I brought that ball over to Brett's dad.
"He was taking it in pretty well until all of us walked in the door."
Vanderputt said prior to enlisting, Witteveen told his friends he was considering the military.
After that conversation, they knew it was "exactly what he wanted to do," Vanderputt said. "We all knew there might be consequences, but our memories of him can't be taken from us," he said.
Ellie
Thursday, February 22, 2007
By Heather L. VanDyke
hvandyke@muskegonchronicle.com
Anyone who knew Brett Witteveen was aware that he was part of an unusually "close-knit" group of friends -- so tight it's difficult for some of them to imagine he's no longer a part of it.
"He had a group of good kids in his life," said Jamie Woodall, an associate pastor for First Baptist Church in Hart, who has been counseling some of Witteveen's friends and family since his death in Iraq Sunday.
"Brett had this really close-knit group of football buddies and they just hung together all the time," Woodall said. That group included Trisha Kokx, his fiancee.
The couple hadn't set a wedding date because, "we were waiting for him to come back," said Kokx's mother, Teresa Kokx, of Hart. They expected Witteveen to return sometime in April.
Witteveen, a 20-year-old private first class in the Marine Reserves, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol with his unit in Iraq. He was attached to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 24th Regiment of the 4th Marines out of Grand Rapids and had been in Iraq since October.
On Wednesday, some in the small communities of Hart and Shelby struggled to grasp the reality that the well-known football player and 2005 Hart High School graduate was gone.
School officials Wednesday described Witteveen as very popular, bright and loyal to his group of friends.
His "best friend," Jeremy Prudhomme, 19, who graduated with Witteveen and now attends Taylor University in Indiana, can attest to his loyalty.
"I would call him my best friend. He was a very joyful person," said Prudhomme, who said he spoke with Witteveen just last week. He learned of Witteveen's death Monday morning when Trisha Kokx called him with the tragic news.
"We just cried for 20 minutes," he said. Prudhomme planned to travel back to Oceana County this weekend.
He said he would like people to remember his friend as someone who was "passionate" about many things.
"First and foremost, Brett loved his friends and family, then the Marines and then football," he said. "The Marines were his mission in life. He really thought they could win the war. He died doing what he loved."
West Michigan's congressman, Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Holland, said Witteveen "tragically made the ultimate sacrifice while dutifully serving his country."
Prudhomme said Witteveen hoped to attend Taylor -- a Christian liberal arts college near Fort Wayne, Ind. -- when he got out of the military. Witteveen "planned on 'walking on' to the football team," he said.
Witteveen moved from Shelby to Hart halfway through his eighth-grade year and caused quite a stir, said former middle school English teacher Phil Kenyon.
"He was the new kid, good looking, athletic. The girls thought he was something else," Kenyon said.
It seems the high opinion some had of Witteveen never changed, Woodall said.
Woodall said he will continue to try to provide some comfort to Witteveen's friends and family in the coming weeks.
"I did ... want them to know that I had some significant conversations with Brett. There's a certain level of peace that Brett is in a better place than we are," Woodall said.
Longtime friend Kyle Herin, 20, of Hart has known Witteveen since second grade and said their friendship manifested into a strong, unbreakable bond.
"We were constantly hanging out, all of us were. We were always with them. He was always with Trisha, too," Herin said. "He was crazy, fun and a 'do anything' kind of guy."
But those fun memories of Witteveen haven't exactly wiped out the realization he's gone, Herin said.
"I'm still shocked. I'm numb to the idea, I guess. It's just surreal," he said.
Local officials named many others who were close to Witteveen, including brothers Nick and Josh Vanderputt, of Hart, who also were stepbrothers to Witteveen for a while. Vanderputt's mother married Witteveen's father years ago, but they have since divorced. The three young men remained close, said Nick Vanderputt.
Vanderputt, 20, said he played football with Witteveen for 11 years and "knew him all my life." He said learning of Witteveen's death was difficult for his friends.
"All week has been ups and downs. When I first heard, I wanted to get everyone on my football team from my senior year together. We went down to the school and got his football jersey and we got the football from our last game. I brought that ball over to Brett's dad.
"He was taking it in pretty well until all of us walked in the door."
Vanderputt said prior to enlisting, Witteveen told his friends he was considering the military.
After that conversation, they knew it was "exactly what he wanted to do," Vanderputt said. "We all knew there might be consequences, but our memories of him can't be taken from us," he said.
Ellie