Kuriger, Alfred

Alfred Kuriger, 93, died Thursday, Jan. 7, 2010, at the Monticello Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Funeral services will be held 11:30 Monday morning, Jan. 11, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Monticello. Interment: Sacred Heart Cemetery, with military honors. Father Keith Birch will officiate at the services. Friends and family may call at Goettsch Funeral Home, Monticello, from 9 until 11 Monday morning.

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Surviving are his brother-in-law, Kenneth Schwendinger, Monticello; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his two wives, Margaret and Gladys; seven brothers, Ralph, Karl, Louis, Clarence, Bernard, Norbert and Lawrence; and three sisters, Mildred Berry, Genevieve Muller and Rosalene Schwendinger.

Alfred T. Kuriger was born May 3, 1916, in Muscatine, Iowa. He was the son of Henry and Lucy Rohrbach Kuriger. He received his education at Sacred Heart Catholic School in Monticello. Alfred enlisted in the United States Navy in 1937. He served on the air craft carrier USS Lexington four of his seven years in the Navy. Alfred was stationed in Savannah, Ga., during the latter part of his military service. Here he met and married Margaret Down. After completion of his time in the Navy he returned to Monticello and worked for Kuriger Brothers Plumbing. They returned to Savannah, Ga., where he operated a service station for a brief period and then began a long career as a postal carrier working for the United States Post Office. On June 19, 1982, Alfred married Gladys Denmark in Savannah. She preceded him in death in 2001. In March 2007, Alfred returned to Monticello, where he resided at the Monticello Nursing and Rehabilitation Center until his death.

Alfred was a 4th Degree member of Knights of Columbus. He enjoyed playing bridge, loved music, had a pilot's license and built two airplanes in his spare time. Although Alfred was not blessed with his own children, they always held a special place in his heart.