Maria Wilhelmina Johanna Soulier (1929-2001)
Maria Wilhelmina Johanna (Mary) Soulier (1929–2001) worked from 1959 to 1965 as a nanny, and occasionally as a stewardess, on board the Holland America Line cruise ships Maasdam (IV), Nieuw Amsterdam (II), Rijndam (II) and Statendam (IV). She went on 54 voyages in total.
Apparently, she had dreamed for years of going to sea to explore the world. Which she managed: her work took her to North, Central and South America, as well as Canada, Scandinavia, Portugal and Mediterranean countries.
She was able to speak English and French thanks to this work. She put together various albums full of photos, letters and other souvenirs of her trips. She was “an elegant and respectable woman, a real Hague lady,” recalled one relative, “very good with children and very sociable.”
