- Date Of Birth: April 13, 1926
- Date Of Death: August 8, 2014
- State: Georgia
Edward (Ed) Dirk Johannes Baars, 88, of Newnan, Georgia passed away on Friday, August 8, at his home in Wesley Woods. Mr. Baars was born in Arnhem, the Netherlands on April 13, 1926. During the war in Holland, Ed learned to fix clocks which helped the family survive through that period. Following World War II, he earned a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from Delft University of Technology. In September of 1955 he married the love of his life, Wiepkje Danckaerts, after a long courtship. In late 1963, he and his family immigrated to the United States, setting down roots in Rye, New York. He and his wife later moved to South Windsor, CT in 1999 and then Newnan, Georgia in May of 2012. The most important thing in Mr. Baars’ life was providing for his family. He worked tirelessly for 40 years at Philips Electronics, working his way from engineer to president of a key Philips subsidiary. His responsibilities ranged from setting up the first TV stations in Australia to introducing a platform that was a precursor to the personal computer. All this he did with passion and dedication to provide the best life he could for his wife, children, and grandchildren. After retiring from Philips in 1991, he enjoyed traveling with his wife, family, and friends, which included a number of voyages aboard the Holland America Line cruise ships. He is survived by his children, Carla, Dirk and Robert and grandchildren Andrea, Kristen, Brian, and Connor.
