Jan J. Tigchelaar, M.D.

Jan J. Tigchelaar, M.D., 89, resident of Milford, NH, died on September 21, 2015 at the Community Hospice House, Merrimack, NH. He was born on August 31, 1926 in Kimswerd, The Netherlands. As a teenager he witnessed the occupation of The Netherlands by Germany in May 1940 and the liberation by allied forces in May 1945. After high school he was drafted in the Royal Dutch Army and served from 1948 to 1951. He attended the Medical School of the University of Groningen in The Netherlands. He received his medical degree in 1957 and became a licensed physician in 1959. He came to the United States in 1961 and became a citizen. He was licensed to practice in the United States in 1962. He then served a residency in Anesthesiology at St. Francis Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, served there as an anesthesiologist and then came to Milford in 1965, and established a family practice. He retired in August 1998. Dr. Tigchelaar served Milford and surroundings as what now would be called an old fashioned practitioner. He practiced solo, was available day and night and made house calls, and enjoyed every day of it. In his birth country, he was a noted athlete. He was an oarsman. He was the National champion double sculls, and won the Head of the River Amstel for single sculls in record time. He was the first person in Milford to ride a 10-speed bicycle and participated in a parade in Milford on a unicycle. He was an active skier, learned how to fly aircraft, both sail planes and powered craft. Since 1971, he lived with his beloved companion, Raine Carson. Funeral services are private. Burial will be in North Yard Cemetery, Milford. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the Town of Milford, for the benefit of Milford Welfare Department, 1 Union Square, Milford, NH 03055 or Home Health & Hospice Care, Community Hospice House, Attn: Development, 7 Executive Park Drive, Merrimack, NH 03054.