Carl Kempka

1939 - 2019

Carl Stanley Kempka, 80, of Washington, North Carolina, died on July 8th, 2019, at his home.

Born on March 29, 1939, Carl was the son of the late Carl J. and Elinor Surovy Kempka, of Berwyn, Ill., and the

husband of Louise Wagner Kempka, a native of Hamburg.

Born in Chicago and reared in Berwyn, Carl graduated from Fenwick High School in Oak Park, Ill., in 1955.

From 1956 to 1960, he served in the United States Air Force in both the U.S. and Korea.

In 1965, he graduated from the Illinois Institute of

Technology in Chicago with a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering. He pursued his MBA from the

University of Chicago, receiving his degree in 1981.

Carl's work career began with Sylvania Electronic

Systems in Massachusetts, and locations in the western U.S., working on Minuteman missile installations. He joined the Cook Electric Company in 1966 and three years later went to work for the Chicago Transit Authority as a testing engineer.

After moving to N.J. in 1984, Carl worked for the Newark Beth Israel Medical Center for six years and then joined NACCO Materials Handling Corporation as a pricing

analyst in Flemington, N.J. When the firm closed the N.J. facility, he and his wife were transferred to Greenville, N.C., from where they retired in 2005.

Carl was fortunate in being able to travel to many

different places in this country and abroad. His first trip to Europe was in 1970 on a mountain climbing vacation, where he climbed both Mount Blanc and the Matterhorn. His lifelong love of the mountains had him return many times to Grand Teton National Park, where he learned climbing and where, later, he did some backpacking trips with his wife. Other travel took him on both short and

extended trips in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Mexico,

Australia, New Zealand and Central and South America.

Carl's great love was classical music, both orchestral and operatic. Whenever possible in his travels, he would enjoy performances in world famous concert halls and opera houses. His favorites remained the Chicago Symphony

Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera.

Carl was predeceased by beloved nephew, Thomas L. Straka; niece, Tammy L. Straka; his sister, Nancy Kempka Straka and her husband, Peter; and his brother and sister-in-law, Glenn and Gloria Wagner. Besides his wife, he is survived by six nieces and two nephews and their families.

Memorial services will be held Wednesday, July 17, 2019, at 10:30 a.m., from Leibensperger Funeral Homes Inc., 65 S. 4th Street Hamburg, PA 19526 (off-street parking in rear). Burial will follow in St. John's Cemetery, Hamburg. A

visitation will be held from 10:00 to 10:30 a.m., in the

funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, a donation in memory of Carl may be made to St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, 99 Church St., Hamburg, PA 19526. For online condolences, please visit www.leibenspergerfuneralhomes.com.