Event Date : Friday, March 05, 1965
Event Type : Death
Municipality :
Community : Other - Bradford
Street :
Lot :
Concession : 0
Description : Possibly no man gave such able and untiring leadership in the development of the Holland Marsh and its associated industry, over such a long period of years, as did George Horlings. Mr. George Horlings' untimely death last Friday, March 5, removed one whose name should be written into the history of that great agricultural project as few will ever be. He gave without stint of his talents and without consideration for his physical strength, and he did not live a long life. During recent years friends had been saddened to note that he did not look well, but he continued his busy life. Last week he contracted 'flu and his death resulted from a heart seizure.George Horlings was the second youngest member of a family of five brothers and five sisters and he came to this country at the age of twelve.The Horlings family came to the Marsh in 1936 from Blenheim and almost immediately young George took his place among the older men in the early marsh organizations. His ability in leadership, his talents in establishing good personal relations, and his physique, made him a natural as a leader and his name headed many of those early marsh committees and organizations upon which the foundation for today's great marsh enterprise was built.Marketing was an early problem with the growers and George Horlings was an early initiator of a trucking service from the Marsh. This brought him into touch with the big wholesalers and retailers and he learned the demands of the market. Ten years after his arrival on the Marsh, by 1946, Holland River Gardens Co. Limited was built here, and opened with George Horlings as vice-president and general manager, giving Bradford its first vegetable processing and pre-packaging plant, a plant which developed and grew and prospered under his management. After Holland River Gardens Co. Limited became a part of Hardee Farms Co., George Horlings' business interests expanded and he, with his family, moved from the Marsh to Toronto. During the past couple of years he had operated a vegetable wholesale of his own in Ottawa, with large marsh gardens near that city.Possibly the biggest co-operative undertaking of the Holland Marsh people to date was the drainage of that area following its flooding at the time of Hurricane Hazel, over ten years ago. At that time, unhesitatingly, the people assembled and asked George Horlings to be chairman of the committee to take charge of that termendous undertaking.Mr. Horlings had also been a pillar in his church, the Christian Reformed Church, from the days of the first little pioneer church on the Marsh,to the assisting with the planning and building of the present beautiful edifice. After moving to Toronto the family were members of the First Christian Reformed Church, Taunton Road. A devout Christian, he availed himself of every opportunity to profess his faith.Mr. Horlings is survived by his wife, the former Henrietta Prins; his only son, Harold, of Ottawa; his daughter Winnifred (Mrs. Charles Cromie) and Hendy Horlings. Four brothers also survive, Boele Horlings of Holland, Harry, Walter and William of the Holland Marsh and five sisters, Mrs. Ralph Matthews, Mrs. F. Flack, Mrs. Timon Hagen, Mrs. Chas. Nydam and Mrs. Harry Verkaik, all also of the marsh area.The funeral was held Monday afternoon from the First Christian Reformed Church, Taunton Road, Toronto, with Rev. R. Kooistra conducting the services. Interment was in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto.The honourary pallbearers were Messers. Arthur Van Dyke and Lambert Huizingh of Bradford; Mr. Havener, New York; Mr. Harry Snook, Toronto; Mr. Ray Koning of Chatham and Mr. E. Dylen of Toronto.The pallbearers were nephews of Mr. Horlings, namely George, Tom and Robert Horlings, Bill Nydam, Jim Verkaik and Harry Horlings.
