Unexpectedly, too soon, and with great sadness we have had to say goodbye to our colleague Simon Palser who passed away on 20^th October 2024. Simon was a fresh and welcome face in the purely technical world of Aeronautical Engineering - as a non-techie he brought a personal touch that complemented us techies. A teacher of communication, Simon helped our students develop the skills they needed to build relationships - understanding that good communication doesn't always come naturally to technicians.

As internationalisation coordinator for the Aeronautical Engineering programme, he had a keen involvement in our international student community. A Briton in the Netherlands, he understood what it was like to live in another country, with a different culture and a foreign language, and so he drew on his own experience to make his international students feel at home when far away from family and friends. That made him particularly well-liked among this cohort, but the Dutch students were also very fond of him. Simon felt personally responsible for the well-being of all his students, and for him their success meant getting to the finish line regardless of who they were or any difficulties they had to overcome in the process - he walked beside them every step of the way.

Each year Simon was Master of Ceremonies for the students’ graduation, and he conducted this in his own unique way laced with his very British sense of humour. Many Aeronautical Engineering alumni and their families will remember his performance at that special moment in their lives, and without him this event will never be the same again.

Simon was also Master of Ceremonies for the entire programme - on trips abroad with colleagues to visit programme partners or to establish new partnerships, it was Simon who made sure everything went according to plan. Where we, his colleagues, dived straight into the engineering content it was Simon, with his charm, élan and sense of interpersonal relationships who made sure we achieved our goals. He managed the whole process so naturally that he was often mistaken for the Director! 

He liked to call himself 'Inholland Man’ and, in August of this year, he had been working here - and at its predecessors - for 25 years: as a lecturer; as chairman of the examination board; as internationalisation coordinator and, in recent years, as a member of the HMR. After starting in Rotterdam, he worked at various locations until he landed with us in Delft about 10 years ago. 

In Simon, we found a wonderful colleague from the non-technical side. He could be persistent and did not always make things easy, because he had only one goal: to provide good education and an environment where all our students felt at home. 

The international community found today at Inholland Delft is really to Simon’s credit - he brought numerous different cultures together and created a place where everyone is allowed to be who they are. The enrichment that this has engendered in so many lives deserves our thanks.

For us it is still barely comprehensible that Simon will no longer walk in the door or stand next to our desks with a story, a joke or an interesting question. But in our minds Simon will, in his own unique way, forever remain the Master of Ceremonies of our programme.

Should you feel the need to talk about Simon or express your sympathy, please avail of the following resources:
From 22nd of October and onwards, room 2.83 has been set up in Delft in memory of Simon. Furthermore, you can contact Antoine Gerritse (06 15279902) or Antoine.Gerritse@inholland.nl, should you have any further questions.