Rudy Günter Kirrmaier

December 8, 1939 – March 22, 2019

 

Rudy Günter Kirrmaier was born on December 8, 1939 to Elsa (nee Gelz) and Gustav Wendelin Kirrmaier in the small town of Hockenheim, Germany. He was the oldest of four children.

As a child, Rudy loved to play outdoors and get into mischief with his friends. After eight years of school, his first job had him filling beer bottles and delivering them to masons on the job site. That’s when his love of beer first began!

In 1954 Rudy immigrated to Edmonton, AB with his mother and siblings, where they joined his stepfather, Willy Becker, who had left a year earlier. He spoke almost no English, had to lie about his age to get a job, and then became an apprentice electrician at age 16. He went to trade school and worked as an electrician until he retired in 1998.

Rudy met Hilde (1938-2017) in 1960 when she began singing in the German choir his mother had founded. They married on December 9, 1961, and had 3 daughters: Erika (1962), Ingrid (1964), and Heidi (1966). Rudy and Hilde were members of various German clubs in Edmonton and continued singing in different choirs throughout their lives. In 1969 they started dancing, and subsequently spearheaded and led the Bavarian Schuhplattlers of Edmonton for 18 years.

Rudy loved the peacefulness of being in nature, especially fly fishing and camping, and always enjoyed building and making things for the family. Together Rudy and Hilde built their first dream home in Edmonton in 1974. In 1999 they moved to Kimberley, BC and built their second dream home, this time in the mountains where they had always enjoyed spending their time. Grandsons Ranek (1992) and Kalev (1999) visited often.

As Rudy did not wish to have a large or formal service, a drop-in ‘happy hour’ for close friends and immediate family is being held at his house on Saturday, March 30 from 2-4 pm.