Bailey, Hendrika "Rickey" Cornelia, on Wednesday early evening, March 23, 2011, was called home by the Lord our Creator. Beloved wife of Clifford Gordon Bailey; beloved mother of Erik Schot (Joan), Yvonne Hannan (Kenneth), and James Schot; beloved grandmother of John Schot (deceased), Ashley and Schot Hannan, and Kevin Schot; and beloved aunt of Jaap (Marry), Maartin (Addy and Theresa), and Harm (Mable) van der Laag and children, living in the Netherlands. Three husbands, Colonel Johan W. Weyne, Lt. Commander Hendrik J. Schot, a titled Baron, and Lt. Colonel John "Jack" P. Miller preceded her in death. Hendrika, known as "Rickey" to family and friends was born on March 30, 1916, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, one of three sisters, into the family of a well-to-do textile manufacturer. Her two sisters preceded her in death. Rickey was one of only two girls in her class to attend the first Hoogere Burger School (HBS) in Amsterdam with a curriculum emphasizing the sciences and mathematics. She graduated with honors. Her education was completed at a French finishing school in Paris, France. At both schools she made many lifelong friends. Rickey, Erik, and Yvonne survived nearly four years in Japanese internment/concentration camps on the Island of Java, Indonesia, during World War II, at which time she contracted many tropical diseases, which nearly took her life. After recovering from the many adverse affects to her health resulting from her years in the camps, she continued to live her long life to the fullest always aided and abetted by her great sense of humor and her optimistic, positive, can do attitude. Besides living in The Netherlands, she lived in Paris, France, in Farnham, England, in Jakarta, Indonesia, in Singapore, in Westchester County, New York, and from 1970 on, in Ft. Lauderdale and Lauderdale By The Sea, FL. Rickey was a remarkable woman in many ways. She was gifted in music as a pianist, and in the arts as a hat designer, painter, and sculptress. She was a beautiful woman and had an uncanny flair for high-fashion. She also was an accomplished business woman, becoming an executive with American Home Products, and later on running her own business importing rubber conveyor belting from The Netherlands. She loved to travel and her trips took her through most of Europe, including Russia, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil (the Amazon), China, South Korea, and Japan. Rickey was a generous benefactor to the Florida Opera, the Ft. Lauderdale Symphony, Nova University, the American Cancer Society, Boys Town, the Lighthouse for the Blind, and many other organizations. She was a lifetime member of the Freedom Foundation, and a member of the Opera Guild, the Ft. Lauderdale Symphony, the Gold Coast Jazz Society, the English Speaking Union, and the Coral Ridge Yacht Club. A viewing will be held at the Kraeer-Fairchild Funeral Home at 4061 N. Federal Highway in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 954-565-5591. www.kraeerfairchild.com, on Sunday March 27, 3 to 5 p.m. A Celebration of Life Service will be held at The Church By The Sea, at 2700 Mayan Drive in Fort Lauderdale, FL, on Monday, March 28, at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations to her memory may be made to Hospice By The Sea at 1531 West Palmetto Park Road in Boca Raton, FL. 33316.

Published in Sun-Sentinel on March 26, 2011.