Edwin Fred Knipstein Jr.

Throughout his long, rich life, Edwin Knipstein, Jr. exemplified the virtues of hard work and devotion to family. Never one to sit still, he was a craftsman who, even in his youth, enjoyed working with his hands. Ed worked on many large building projects in his youth and built his own home after his marriage, but his greatest work and the true foundation of his life was the large extended family he built with his loving wife, Daisy.

As The Roaring Twenties wound down in 1928, the nation was still caught up in the social and technological innovations that characterized the period after the end of World War I. Many things we take for granted were just emerging: automobiles were becoming increasingly affordable and more common; the rise of radio introduced new forms of mass entertainment and led to the birth of networks that we still know today, and Mickey Mouse made his first appearance in the Steamboat Willie cartoon. It was in this time of rapid change that Edwin Fred, Sr. and his wife Viola (Miller) Knipstein welcomed the birth of their son Edwin Jr. on June 8, 1928.

Ed grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana with his brothers Fred, Ralph and Paul, and sisters Thelma and Ilene. From a young age, he learned the value of hard work and demonstrated the industriousness that would become a hallmark of his life. At the age of thirteen, he was already using the money from two paper routes and weekend work selling newspapers outside the Clugston and Hoosier Hotels in Fort Wayne to pay his room and board. When he wasnt working, Ed enjoyed staying active, fishing and swimming at his grandparents lake house in Rome City. Ed attended Central High School in Fort Wayne. Following the example of his father, Ed attended four years of carpenters school every Monday and eventually joined the carpenters union. As a carpenter, he learned the skills he would use throughout his life working on a number of large building projects such as the Veterans Hospital, War Memorial Coliseum, as well as some churches and schools, but Eds main passion was building homes.

As a young man he worked as a Carpenter for a general building contractor for six years. While working as a carpenter on a project at GE, Ed would take his lunch break outside of a building where Daisy Hansen was working, and she would say hi to him through the window. One day while Daisy was at Shriners Lake walking down to the beach, she ran into Ed and from there the rest is history. Ed and Daisy married on April 24, 1948 at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne. Within a year, the young couple moved out of Fort Wayne and up to the lake. It was here that Ed would build the home in which he and Daisy would build their own family. With help from Daisy, Ed spent several years building the house. He began by tearing down a former dance hall he had purchased and floating the lumber across the lake to the site where he had hand dug and poured the foundation for their future home. The family lived in the home as it was being completed, and in 1976, Ed and Daisy remodeled the home to its current state.

Ed and Daisy raised four children in this home: Sue, Sally, Edwin Alan, and Charles, and the family would sometimes travel to visit Daisys family in Chicago, or go to Lake George for a week where they shared a cabin with Eds baby brother, Fred.

Ed would eventually leave the construction work full time and drove for Bhrens Oil Company in Churubusco for 13 years, he was a bulk plant attendant in Columbia City for National Oil and Gas Co. of Bluffton for 7 years and worked with Heckmans National Serv-All in Columbia City for over 25 years, retiring in 1990. He also drove a school bus for ten years for Thorncreek Center where many students knew him as Mr. Ed, the best bus driver you could have!

When he wasnt working, Ed wasnt one to sit around watching TV. He enjoyed spending time out in his garage and was always on the lookout for the next project to occupy his time, whether it was building screens to cover the garage door in the summertime, decorating the garage for Christmas parties, or replacing burnt out bulbs in the Christmas lights in the middle of July! Despite his appetite for work, Ed also enjoyed playing games with his friends and family. He enjoyed bowling, golf, and playing pool, but really loved playing Aggravation and card games with his family.

Ed was a great father and grandfather, and through 67 years of marriage, a loving, devoted husband. Each morning Ed would take care of the breakfast dishes, and in the evenings he and Daisy would wash the supper dishes together. He would play Poker and Michigan Rummy with family and friends, but every day he and Daisy would play Gin and whenever they werent bowling on the weekends, they would have card nights.

The foundation of Ed and Daisys family was tested when the unexpected passing of their son, Dr. Edwin Alan Knipstein, on December 19, 2015, changed their lives forever, and Eds passing will be felt just as deeply. Ed was a hard worker, with a gentle soul. He leaves behind a legacy of love and will never be forgotten.

Edwin Mr. Ed Knipstein Jr, 87, of Columbia City, Ind., passed away Tuesday, January 19, 2016 at Millers Merry Manor Inc., Columbia City. He was a member of Grace Lutheran Church. Survivors include his loving wife of 66 years, Daisy Knipstein; children, Sue (Steven) Method of Fort Wayne; Sally (Douglas) Gasaway of Columbia City and Charles (Victoria) Knipstein of Auburn; daughter-in-law, Lorraine Knipstein of Lubbox, TX; 12 grandchildren; and 16 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents; son, Dr. Edwin Alan Knipstein on December 19, 2015; brothers, Fred, Ralph and Paul Knipstein; sisters, Thelma Bledsoe and Ilene Boyd; and an infant grandson, Brian J. Knipstein.

Visitation will be held on Saturday, January 23, 2016 from 9 to 10:45 a.m. at DeMoney-Grimes, a Life Story Funeral Home, 600 Countryside Drive, Columbia City with a funeral service starting at 11 a.m. Burial will follow at St. Matthews Cemetery. Pastor Matthew Converse will be officiating. Memorial gifts may be given in Eds memory to Grace Lutheran Church. To read Eds life story or to send his family condolences, visit www.demoneygrimes.com .