Hoede de naam op

Circa 1820’s- Just north of Udenhout and East of Waalwijk the dinner bell rang. Hans called his family to the table. The special meal of bone in pot roast, mashed potatoes, carrots, and applesauce was to celebrate Peters last meal with his family.
Peter had received a scholarship for agriculture in Amsterdam, specifically onion farming. No one in the town of Drunen knew of anybody who had gone to school in Amsterdam, let alone a Van Drunen. Scholarships were usually reserved for the connected families in Tiburg or Etten. A recognized family name pulled a lot of weight in these schools. Peter knew he would be representing his family and asked his father for advice. Hans slowly finished chewing his carrots, the grit between his teeth reminding him that they came from the garden out back. For a second the table was eerily quiet. Hans folded his hands that held up his chin, looked Peter in the eye, and said, “hoede de naam op”.
TRUE STORY
Few homes had central air conditioning in 1967. This fact weighed in on Wayne and Elmer’s decision to go into the heating business. Van Drunen Heating was born. They started with very little money and equipment. When jobs presented themselves they always accepted the challenge and found a way to get them accomplished.
One time Elmer and Wayne needed special tools that they did not have for a job that they sold. Rob Van Drunen, the onion farmer, lived on the west side of town. He would have the tools they needed, but could they use them? They asked and Rob said that that would be fine. When the job was done, they returned the tools, and the brothers stood before Rob, asking what they owed him. Rob said “You owe me no money.” Then he paused for a moment, looked them in the eyes, and said “There is one thing that you can do- keep the name up”.
So would we for one day want to change places with Bill (one of our former presidents), Kobe on the court, or Napoleon Bonaparte? No! For we have higher standards than that. As for earthly mentors we will follow men the likes of Rob, Grandpa, and Elmer. We are Van Drunens and we must remember hoede de naam op.
Mr. Keith