Gerritt Verstoep

Gerrit ‘The Licorice Kid’ Verstoep, aged 72, of Florence, SC, passed away on 1/30/2022. Born in Greene, NY. He lived in Syracuse, LA, Des Moines and South Bend. He was the son of the late, Arie Verstoep and Johanna Welsch Verstoep. He is predeceased by his sister, Agatha Verstoep Rivera and Brother in law Max Translateur. He is survived by his son, Jamie Verstoep, and his wife, Christy. His granddaughter, Amanda Yarborough. His grandons, Arie Verstoep and his wife Mackenzie, and Hunter Montrose. Great grandson, Lukas Montrose. His sisters and their families, Janie & David Koss, Arianna & John Schaffer and Vivian Translateur. Gerrit was a retired rock star, computer programmer/systems analysts. He was still enjoying his life’s long passion as a comedian. Nothing was off limits. After losing his leg due to diabetes, they were taking his measurements for a prosthetic leg. When asked how tall he was, he replied, “5’10, give or take a foot.” He never missed an opportunity to challenge a server to combat. When they would say, “Wanna box for your food?” He’d say, “No. But, I’ll wrestle you for it.” Gerrit’s biggest accomplishment was raising the best man that he knew. Jamie. These last two years, Gerrit was in a nursing home. Of course, he kept them laughing, and singing, and tried to keep them in the loop on current events. And, if you can believe it, he had a pretty impressive winning streak in Bible trivia! Gerrit had hopes that the ones that passed before him, would be able to convince “the man upstairs”, that he would not cause too much trouble. We happen to think that heaven just got a little more crowded. In the end, we all become a story. Gerrit’s story was full of love, laughter and wisdom. In lieu of flowers, please be kind to someone. Call a friend or relative that you haven’t spoken to lately. Visit a nursing home resident. Forgive someone. Per his wishes, there will be no memorial service. Instead, we will have a Celebration of Life. It will be held at Southern Hops on Saturday February 5th from 4:00 pm-until. Come share a memory! Cremation services provided by Stoudenmire-Dowling Funeral Home.Please sign the tribute wall for the family at www.stoudenmiredowling.com.