Mathieu Tielemans, of North Wales, returned to Our Lord on January 26, 2015. He was 87.
Born in Antwerp, Belgium to the late Albert and Rosa Tielemans. “Matt” lived through the WWII occupation and bombing of Antwerp, and lost his older brother, a member of the Belgian underground, in the conflict. This time in his life had a lasting affect on his practical, frugal lifestyle, and tireless work ethic.
He married Paula Berghmans in 1952. The young couple ran a record store before Mathieu made the decision to follow his sister Julienne to America.
Mathieu arrived stateside in 1959 and settled in Philadelphia; Paula arrived in 1960. He moved his family to North Wales in 1966.
A self-employed Dental Technician, Mathieu was the exclusive US importer and distributor for CEKA Dental Attachments. Known as “Mr. CEKA,” he travelled the world lecturing and marketing these products. He lived and worked out of his home on Hunter Lane for 48 years.
Mathieu was a firm, but caring employer, unafraid to hire someone with a troubled past. He also lectured about his profession at local prisons.
Mathieu was an avid auction goer, assembling admired collections of stamps, Flemish paintings, Classic firearms and beer steins. He loved all music, and always upgraded to the newest audio technology. Photography and film were also great passions, and the resulting collection of still photos, home movies, and videos, are a direct result of his relentless documentation of his family’s journey through life. He loved yard work and animals, maintaining a meticulous garden and opening his home to many pets and injured wildlife.
He was a devoted parishioner of St. Stanislaus Catholic Church where he was appointed an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion. In retirement, caring for St. Stanislaus’ homebound parishioners became his primary calling. He made frequent visits to their homes and organized the Sunday communion distribution. He was a member of the original class of Permanent Deacons for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, and was ordained in May 1987.
Mathieu was preceded in death by his brother Francois Tielemans and sister Julienne Leonardo.
Mathieu is survived by his wife Paula, his children Albert Tielemans, husband of Amy; Christina Willett, wife of George; Eric Tielemans, husband of Dana. He was blessed with 7 grandchildren Rebecca, Aaron, Morgan, Alexander, Eric Jr., Lacey, and Nathan.
There will be a viewing on Tuesday, Evening February 3 from 7-9pm, at St. Stanislaus Church, 51 Lansdale Ave., Lansdale, PA. 19446 and again Wednesday, Morning, February 4 from 9-10:30am also at Church followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 AM. Interment St. Stanislaus Cemetery
In lieu of flowers the family asks that you very simply DO something for someone else that isn’t expecting it. Mathieu was at his best and happiest when he was DOING something, and it was often to help out someone in need of a helping hand.
Dear Paula and family,
I was very sad to hear that my best friend Matthieu passed away. He was promoting and selling our products in the US for a long time. I did appreciate him a lot for his efforts doing so. Also now we’ll never forget him. Both of us down here, me and Erik, who helps me with my mails, have it difficult to express what we feel in these sad times. I will remember him as the man he was, when we worked together and during our travels all over the world to promote the CEKA products. I appreciated a lot his work ethics, loyalty and friendship towards me. As you know we had the same age. I wish you all much strength in these sad days of your life.
Arthur and Erik
Dear family of Mathieu Tielemans:
I was sorry to hear that you lost your husband and father in death. Losing a loved one in death is one of the hardest things that any of us will ever deal with. I wanted to share my condolences. I would like to share a Bible thought that is found at Revelation chapter 21 and verses 3 and 4 where it says: “With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them.And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes,and death will be no more,neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” This scripture makes it very clear that God does not want us to grow old, sick and die because he promises to wipe out those very things as you can see in those verses. God’s purpose is to restore the dead to life by means of a resurrection to a paradise earth, where sickness and death will be no more. You have the hope to see your daughter in God’s new world where he will be in perfect health. That is something we all can look forward to because death affects us all. I hope this brief Bible message has brought you a measure of comfort in this difficult time.
She Grear