Bodo H. Henkel

Bodo Henkel, 71, of Stevensville, passed away Sunday, March 2, 2008 at his home surrounded by his loving wife, children, and grandchildren. A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11:00 A.M. Thursday at Trinity Lutheran Church, 619 Market St., St. Joseph. Burial will follow at Riverview Cemetery. Friends may call from 5:00 until 8:00 P.M. Wednesday at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph. Memorials may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church, The VanAndel Institute for Cancer Research or to Hospice at Home. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Mr. Henkel was born April 9, 1936 in Kassel, Germany to Karl & Emilie (Dietrich) Henkel. He moved to St. Joseph from Germany in September of 1957 and took a job at Modern Plastics Corp. On July 25, 1959, Bodo married the former Ursula Piontek at Trinity Lutheran Church, before serving his country in the US Army where he was stationed in Korea. Upon his return from the service, he took a job at Kaywood Corp. until he was hired at Modern Plastics as a Financial Controller, where he worked until his retirement in January of 2001. “Bo” as he was known to many, led an active life. He was a member of the Man to Man Prostate Cancer Survivor group. He was a 50 year member of the St. Joseph Kickers Club where he had been a tenacious soccer player and respected coach for many years. Bodo served as Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and most recently Chairman of the Board. Bo also coached soccer in the CAN-AMER Games, as well as other various leagues in the area . He was a former member of South Shore Racquet Club where he and his partner, Steve Silcox, won many championships. In his spare time, Bodo enjoyed the outdoors. He spent many hours landscaping and gardening around the house, and taking photos of Lake Michigan and the South Pier Lighthouse. He was particularly fascinated with boats and ships. Bodo was fond of his many travels across the US and throughout Europe with his wife, children and most recently, his oldest granddaughter. He also enjoyed a good mystery novel and a variety of music. Bodo never met a stranger. He could relate to young and old alike with his warm smile, wit and charm. He made everyone feel comfortable with his presence no matter what the situation might be. He was known as a problem solver, always willing to help. Bo’s grandchildren were the light of his life. He could often be seen at one of their sporting activities, throwing ball in the yard or collecting Indian beads on the beach. In addition to his loving wife, Ursula, Bodo is survived by his mother Emilie Schoenebeck of Marburg, Germany; his son Kirk (Hope McCluskey) Henkel of Stevensville; two daughters-Debra (Brian) Akins of St. Joseph, Anissa (Greg Peddie) DeSanctis of St. Joseph; four grandchildren-Alicia, Joshua, & Sean Akins, Avery DeSanctis; his aunt Dorothea Dutlof of Benton Harbor; and three cousins-Gabriele (Tom) Blank of Coloma, Lutz (Sharifeh) Zils of Frankfort, Germany, Brigitte (Rainer) Hofmann of Solms, Germany. He was preceded in death by his father Karl Henkel in 1979, his step-father Kurt Schoenebeck , his brother Gerd Henkel in 1994, his son Mark Henkel in 1995, his son-in-law Dustin DeSanctis in 1999, and his uncle Gottfried Dutlof in 2006.