Cees Fichtmuller (15 Jul 1942 - 4 May 2026)

In loving memory of Cees Fichtmuller who sadly passed away on 4th May 2026, aged 83.

Cees was born in Leeuwarden, Holland, on 15th July 1942. He was the third child and eldest son in the family, with three younger brothers. Tragically, one of his brothers died at a very young age as a direct result of the difficult conditions in Holland in the years immediately following the war.

Life improved for the family when Cees’s father became Headteacher of a boys’ school, where his mother also taught languages. Cees remembered this as a happy period of his childhood, although his mischievous behaviour at school often proved quite a challenge for both his parents.

At the age of 16, Cees joined the Dutch Navy to complete his military service as a signaller. During this time, he developed a lifelong love of engines and engineering. After leaving the Navy, he worked in Walton-on-Thames with the Sea Scouts before moving to Buckmore Park in Chatham, where he met his future wife, Jacqueline (“Jackie”).

Cees and Jackie married in 1973 and began their married life in a house aptly named The Little House in Buckmore Park. Following the birth of their first daughter, Joanna, in 1974, the family moved to the Church Houses in Rusthall, where Cees began working for the Maidstone & District Bus Company, repairing and maintaining buses. Nicholas was born in 1975, and shortly before the birth of Hayley in 1978, the family moved to Erskine Park Road, also in Rusthall. In 1979, Robert was born, completing the family. Tragically, Robert died of SIDS in January 1980.

Following the privatisation of the bus company, Cees owned and ran a garage for car repair before finally becoming a taxi driver, owning his own taxi company prior to retirement. Over the years, the family also lived in Pembury and Cees and Jackie later moved to Paddock Wood after retirement.

Cees was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather to Salma and Ali. He will be remembered for his cheeky sense of humour, the many cars he drove, and above all, his kindness and thoughtfulness towards others. He cared deeply about all those in his life (even at the end) and we will greatly miss him.

A funeral service will be held on Wednesday 10th June at 11:30am at Tunbridge Wells Crematorium, followed by a gathering to celebrate Cees’s life at The John Brunt in Paddock Wood.

In keeping with Cees’s wishes, family and friends are asked to wear bright colours rather than black — he was particularly fond of yellow and orange

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Hospice in the Weald.