Ralph Grossnickle Ecker

Ralph Grossnickle Ecker, 76, of Boyds, went to be with his Lord on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009, at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, Rockville.

Born March 2, 1933, in Baltimore, he was the son of the late Owen E. and Eva (Grossnickle) Ecker.

Mr. Ecker graduated from Frederick High School, class of 1951. He attended Bowman Technical Institute in Lancaster, Pa., and Washington Bible College and was a veteran of the United States Army.

He was owner and operator of Ecker's Clock and Watch Shop of Bethesda until July 2000.

Mr. Ecker was an active member of Berea Bible Church of Clarksburg and held many positions over the years and was pastor of a small country church in Frederick County for many years. He was a founding member of the Horological Association of Maryland, serving as president, vice president and director, was a member of the American Watch Makers -- Clock Makers Institution and a member of the British Horological Association.

His passions included being an amateur radio operator (HAM), model airplanes and he was a private licensed pilot.

He was the beloved husband of Carolyn Kline Ecker for 37 years. They were married Oct. 16, 1971.

He is also survived by sisters, Patsy Fogle and husband, Charles, of Frederick, and Helen Craig and husband, Stanley, of Hagerstown; beloved mother-in-law, Ruth N. Kline of Hagerstown; brother-in-law, Eugene Kline Sr. and wife, Jane, of Smithsburg; sister-in-law, Dorothy Kline of Williamsport; and several special nieces and nephews.

Services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, from J.L. Davis Funeral Home, Smithsburg, with Pastor John Cobb officiating. Burial will be in St. Mark's Lutheran Church Cemetery, Wolfsville. The family will receive friends from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.

Memorial donations may be made in memory of Ralph to the Montgomery County Stroke Association, P.O. Box 9343, Silver Spring, MD 20916-9343.