Alfred E. Stubelt

Alfred “Curly” Stubelt, 82, formerly of Benton Harbor, passed away, Sunday, April 26, 2009 at The Willows in St. Joseph. A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11:00 A.M. Friday at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, Colfax & Kline Ave., Benton Harbor with Rev. Martin Weigand & Rev. Richard Hennig officiating. Burial will follow at North Shore Memory Gardens in Coloma with graveside military rites conducted by Coloma American Legion #362, VFW #1137 of Benton Harbor and VFW Post #6803 of Watervliet. Friends may call from 5:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. Thursday at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home, St. Joseph. Memorials may be made to St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, Michigan Lutheran High School or Hospice at Home. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Mr. Stubelt was born May 7, 1926 in Benton Harbor to Ernest & Amolie (Kern) Stubelt. He served his country in the US Army during WWII, serving as an Honor Guard to General MacArthur. On November 25, 1949 Alfred married the former Thelma Burkett at St. Matthew’s. He was employed at Whirlpool Corp for thirty-eight years, retiring in 1986, and served as the pitcher for the Whirlpool Baseball Team. He also farmed a small grape vineyard on Meadowbrook Rd. in Bainbridge Township for fifty-five years until 2008. Curly was a member of St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church were he served in various capacities. His church was a very important part of his life. He and Thelma enjoyed traveling, visiting many countries around the world. They also enjoyed the winters spent in Lake Wales, Florida. Curly was a quiet, caring man with a keen sense of humor. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him. Curly is survived by his wife Thelma; his son Thomas Stubelt of Kalamazoo; two daughters-Amy (Mike) Brenner of Eau Claire, Joan (Len) Veine of Coloma; six grandchildren-Kate (Chris) Sam, Joseph (Alexis) Stubelt, Elizabeth (Joseph) Eggert, Matthew Veine, Stefanie Brenner, Samantha Veine; four great-grandchildren-Alexandra & Sydney Sam, Jonah & Ethan Eggert; his sister Ethel (Alex) Katona of Zion, IL; and his brother Ewald Stubelt of Stevensville. He was preceded in death by his grandson Jay Brenner on April 18, 2007, by three brothers-Arthur, Walter, & Gerhard Stubelt, and by two sisters-Angela Garrett and Adelgunde Mellinger.