Grandpa Heinz

Kind, considerate, sweet, hard-working, sharp minded and sharp dresser, humble, grateful, joyful, serving, dedicated, witty, funny, full of fun little sayings, gentle, encourager, infectious smile, lover of Snickers ice cream bars...How do you put into words how special a person is to you? It seems the impossible task. I'm so thankful for the years we had him in our life and he will always have a place in my heart.

"Heinz. Like the ketchup." That was his go-to saying when telling people his name.

He still had a pretty thick German accent, so it made everything he said a little more fun and distinct in our minds. My uncles do pretty awesome "Heinz" impressions.

As I read over the few notes I have saved, I'm always amazed at how he just felt so appreciative of what he had and the life he had.

I was around six when Grandpa came into our family. He married into a fully-grown family, including, at the time, roughly seven grandchildren. One of my favorite pictures is of him putting his head into the kiddie pool in the backyard. :) He never had children of his own, so that kind-of made him a unique type of grandpa.

He was an "acts of kindness" kind of guy. He taught me how to ride my bike without training wheels when visiting one Easter. He brought us donuts every single morning when we visited Wisconsin in the summer. He always filled my Grandma's car with gas. He would do anything for her, and that extended to her family.

He ate bread, butter and honey every morning for breakfast and lived to the age of 92.
He will be dearly missed.