On Tuesday 16 January, Rita Vanpoucke passed away. Rita was the wife of Paul Thermote, founder of the Waregem company TVH. She stood at the cradle of the international company. The dismay at the unexpected passing is high, both amongst the family, the management as well as the colleagues.

Together with her husband Paul Thermote, and Paul Vanhalst, she stood at the cradle of Thermote & Vanhalst in 1969, the company that later grew into the current global player TVH. Rita was the first HR manager for the company and laid the foundation of the present-day internal company values. She also passed on her sense of entrepreneurship to her daughters Ann and Els Thermote.

Last summer, Paul and Rita celebrated their golden wedding anniversary, one of the many family gatherings Rita organised so beautifully. Rita's life was inextricably linked to the growth of TVH, without her the company wouldn't be where it is now.

The funeral will take place on Saturday 20 January in the deanery church on the market square in Waregem (Belgium).