Our much beloved husband, father, son,
brother and master chef of Deshima
began his eternal journey.
Lander is not here but everywhere.
Lander is not now but always.
Valentina & Tosca Zabalza Beñaran
Iñaki, Ana & Maialen Zabalza Beñaran
Adelbert & Wieke Nelissen
Horriah, Marco, Paloma, Mariko, Kenzo, Jasmijn, Jos
Kimiko, Limar, Gideon, Asako, Koji, Rosanne
In Memoriam Lander Zabalza Beñaran, Capitan Sarraceno
The passing of Lander brought to us many mails and letters of love and friendship. We were touched and consoled by all these warm words and thank you from our heart for that. Many friends started spiritual practices aimed at helping Lander make the transition into his new life, based on the teachings of Michio Kushi and also Buddhist praying. Let’s continue chanting and visualizing light and love to guide Lander on his journey.
Lander was born on the 25th of July 1979 in Tolosa, Bask country in Spain, where his parents and his sister still live.
From age fifteen he started to be interested in macrobiotics. His passion developed into teaching macrobiotic cooking for his friends. His other passion was music; he was an enthusiastic drummer and participated in a rock band.
In the year 2003 Lander came for the first time to Amsterdam to study at the Art of Life School of the Kushi Institute. He always felt strongly connected with people with an idealistic dream of creating a better world. His dedication to macrobiotics expressed itself in cooking. He became the Chef of Deshima, the central person in the restaurant.
He married Valentina in 2007 and was a loving and playful father for Tosca from short after she was born.
Lander is especially remembered for his warmth and generosity. He touched many people’s hearts, and stomachs not to forget. As a Chef of Deshima he brought new inspiration into the cooking, a touch of Spanish, the hand of a master.
During the several Summer Conferences, that he was the chef cook, he influenced very positively his co-workers and others. The biggest applause the last evening of the Summer Conference was always for Lander and his team.
Lander loved giving cooking classes. He was not a man of many words, although he mastered English and Dutch during his stay in Amsterdam. He communicated with tastes and was most happy when the participants loved his dishes and went home after a class with new understanding of the macrobiotic way.
In Amsterdam Lander developed another passion. He started to collect and rebuild very old (some times antique) bicycles. And with a group of fellow bicycle fans he made tours in the countryside on those beautiful bicycles, attracting much attention. But only with nice weather, Lander didn’t like rain. In that sense he stayed very Spanish, Holland was difficult for him, although he liked swimming in the cold North Sea very much.
Lander will be deeply missed. May his spirit and dream of creating a world of enduring health and peace continue to guide us.
