Dr. Maarten Nieuwenhuizen, known lovingly to many as “Doctor N” or “Doctor Maarten,” passed away at home on November 9, 2023, surrounded by his loving family, a month and a day after his 96th birthday.
Maarten was born on October 8, 1927, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, to Annaatje de Jong and Jacob Nieuwenhuizen, a homemaker and merchant marine.
Maarten was a loving husband, father and opa. He is survived by his wife Farah (née Eghrari) Nieuwenhuizen with whom he had hoped to celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary on the 14th of December this year. He and Farah had four children: Patricia (husband Gregg), Tina (husband Michel), Linda (husband Michael), and Tim (wife Lisa); and six grandchildren Gabrielle (husband Maxime), Jeremy, Max, Lola (husband Tyler), Madison, and Lindsey; and one great-grandson Olivier.
A true Renaissance man, Maarten had vast knowledge in many subjects, including language, culture, science, politics, music and medicine, and was referred to as “The Original Google” by his children and grandchildren. He served as a math, physics, and language tutor to them, even setting up video conferencing in the early 2000s to tutor his French grandchildren. Like a good Dutchman, he loved skating, bicycling, and swimming and made sure the next generations followed suit. He was fiercely proud of his grandchildren, cheering them on at many sports matches, music concerts and productions, earning him the title of “Best Opa.”
Maarten began his education in Amsterdam; his high school years coincided with the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II. After WWII, he began medical studies at the University of Amsterdam, and in the last years of his medical training, he studied at the Rotterdam Clinical Medical School. In 1953, he graduated from medical school, after which, he served two years in the Royal Nederlands Army Medical Corps.
In 1956, Maarten left the Netherlands for the United States for his medical internship at Saint Elizabeth Hospital in Covington, Kentucky. In 1957, he entered the Psychiatric Residency Program in St. Louis, Missouri. It was here that chance brought him to meet Farah when her brother Massoud, a friend and medical colleague, fell ill. Farah came to Massoud’s bedside, met Maarten, and it was love at first sight. Maarten and Farah were married on December 14, 1958.
In 1960, Maarten, Farah and their daughter Patricia, moved to Canada, for a position at the University Hospital in Saskatoon. He was later appointed as Assistant Superintendent of Yorkton Mental Health Center. During this period, he also became a licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada. In 1963, he became board-certified as a specialist in Psychiatry by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
1964 brought Maarten and family, now with two more daughters Tina, and Linda, back to St. Louis, where he was appointed as a director of Outpatient Services at the Missouri State Hospital. In 1969 Maarten was appointed as Superintendent of the Mid-Missouri Mental Health Center in Columbia, Missouri. That year, he was also board-certified in Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. 1969 also brought U.S. citizenship for Maarten and family. In 1970 they welcomed their son Tim, completing their family.
Maarten’s other professional accomplishments include the development of two Mental Health Centers: one in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada, and one in Columbia, Missouri. He served as the first President of the Central Missouri Psychiatric Society, a District Branch of the American Psychiatric Association (APA). He was on the board of directors of the Transitional Housing Agency. He served as Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Maarten was awarded the title of Distinguished Life Fellow of the APA. He was in private practice for 14 years. As a member of the Boone County Medical Society, Maarten was honored to receive a 50-year pin for providing medical services to the community at large.
Maarten was an accomplished classical pianist who played Chopin, Satie, and Beethoven, among others. He and Farah were avid supporters of the arts, attending countless concerts and art exhibitions. He loved languages and was fluent in English, Dutch, German, French, and Spanish, and enjoyed learning conversational phrases in other languages when traveling. He and Farah traveled extensively throughout the United States, Europe, South America, New Zealand, Australia, Morocco, China, and Japan.
Maarten will be missed by his family, friends, colleagues, and those whose lives he touched through his work. We will always carry his memory in our hearts.
A celebration of life will be held Tuesday November 14, 2023 at the Memorial Funeral Home, 1217 Business Loop 70 West, Columbia MO 65202. Visitation 10am; Ceremony 11am. Burial will be private for the family.
Memorial donations may be made to the APA Foundation (psychiatry.org) and The Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri (sharefoodbringhope.org)
Posted online on November 10, 2023
Published in Columbia Daily Tribune
