Resident of the Month

Karl Heinz was born on February 22, 1937 in Ochtrup, Germany. He is the oldest of 6 children. Life was difficult being a young child during WWII living in an area that was bombed and straffing was frequent. Even after the war ended, they were still hungry, discriminated against and bullied because they were not Catholic. He worked hard in school, always getting top marks and also learned to play the trumpet. He enjoyed playing in a local band with other musicians. After completing his apprenticeship in tool and die making, he decided to move to the USA where there would be more opportunities to find work. At 18 years of age he boarded a ship and sailed to America. His local band members and friends played and paraded him all the way to the train station.
He moved in with his Uncle in Union, NJ and began looking for work. Not knowing any English, he walked all over looking for the word “tool”. Eventually he came upon a business where someone spoke German. He was buddied up with a man who spoke no German, but later they became best, life-long friends. His brother, cousin and sister soon immigrated to the area as well. There were many German groups in the area and some held weekly dances. That is where he met his wife, Luise. They married in 1961 and moved into a house in East Hanover, NJ in 1964.
While living there they had 2 children, Susan and Steven. Karl also earned a degree in Engineering from NJIT, graduating at the top of the class. He worked hard every day and was a valued employee. He invented and created many things. Unfortunately, the companies got the patents! Karl enjoyed vacationing in the NY mountains and on the beaches of Florida. After the children moved out Karl and Luise traveled the world taking at least 10 cruises. They also enjoyed spending time with their 4 grandchildren, playing Scrabble and watching Family Feud.