Martin Kletke

Funeral services for Martin Walter Kletke will be 4:00 p.m. Saturday, August 23, 2008, at the Zion Lutheran Church with Pastor Mark Bersche officiating. Interment will be in the Zion Lutheran Cemetery under the direction of Marshall Funeral Home of Alva. There will be a visitation with the family from 1:30 at the funeral home. Martin Walter Kletke, son of the late Oscar and Emma (Wamhoff) Kletke, was born July 2, 1914, on the family farm 1 « miles east of Alva, Oklahoma, and passed away August 20, 2008, at Jefferson City, Missouri, at the age of 94 years. Martin attended school at Triumph School which was near where he was born. He graduated from Northwestern High School in 1933. On October 13, 1940 he married the great love of his life, Mildred Brunken. After their marriage they made their home on the same family farm where Martin was raised. Martin loved farming and raising cattle and was a faithful steward of the gifts that God gave to him. His consistently kind and fair interactions with people in the farming and business community in Alva gained him the respect of all those who came into contact with him. His honesty and ethical behaviors were legion throughout the Alva community. He retired from farming in 1999 and moved with Mildred to The Homestead in Alva, where they lived for five years before moving to the Heisinger Lutheran Home in Jefferson City, Missouri, in 2004. Martin was baptized, confirmed, and a lifetime member of the Alva Zion Lutheran Church and participated on many boards and committees at the church. He loved Zion Lutheran Church and his Lord with a quiet passion that was an inspiration to his family and many others. Although Martin was a man of few words, he found ways to let each member of his family know how much he loved them and treasured them in a very special way. His kind and appreciative spirit engendered much kindness and affection from the many people who helped to care for him during the four years that he was at Heisinger Lutheran Home. Besides his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Roland Kletke of Alva. Martin is survived by his wife, Mildred, of Jefferson City, Missouri; three children and their spouses, Darrel and Meg Kletke of Stillwater, Oklahoma, Janice and Gary Sonnenberg of Jefferson City, Missouri, Phillip and Linda Kletke of Chicago, Illinois; seven grandchildren and their spouses, Lyn and Al Putnam of Stillwater, Oklahoma, Deana and Bill Wright of Edmond, Oklahoma, Martin and Paige Sonnenberg of Valparaiso, Indiana, Bryan Hedrick and Gayle Ely of Newcastle, Oklahoma, Marc and Angela Kletke of Moore, Oklahoma, Doug and Jenn Sonnenberg of Columbia, Missouri, and Laura Hedrick of Stillwater, Oklahoma; twelve great grandchildren; two sisters-in-law, Mickey Kletke of Alva, Oklahoma, and Evelyn Brunken of Vian, Oklahoma; many nephews and nieces; and other relatives and friends. Memorial contributions may be made to the Alva Zion Lutheran Church or the organization of the donor?s choice.

Martin Kletke

July 2, 1914 - August 21, 2008