Kay Mierendorff

Kay "Ky" Mierendorff

Naples, FL

Kay "Ky" Mierendorff, 66, of Naples, FL, passed away peacefully on Octo ber 10, 2012 at the NCH Clinic in North Naples. He was surrounded by his family and friends after a short battle with cancer.

Ky is survived by his two sons, Mark and Niels Mierendorff; his brother, Oliver Mierendorff; and his wife, Huanhuan Li.

Born on June 3, 1946 in Berlin, Germany to the late Erich and Marieanne Mierendorff, Ky grew up in post World War II West Berlin, Germany and finished high school in 1964. He started working in management, where he also meet his first wife, Antje Mierendorff. The couple got married in Berlin in 1967 and had their first son Mark, and three years later Niels Mierendorff.

In the 1970s, Kay was involved in freeing nearly a thousand families that were oppressed by the East German government and were unable to leave East Germany. Ky was the leader and founder of an organized human smuggling ring which helped families, as well as scientists and doctors, to escape the confinements of the East German Communist regime.

After retiring from this organization the Mierendorff family moved north of Hamburg, Germany in 1977, where Ky and his wife, Antje opened a large restaurant and later, Europe's first night club inside a restored out of service "Lockheed Super Constellation," a passenger aircraft. A fire three years later destroyed the airplane, and the couple sold their restaurant and moved with the family to a small Bavarian town south of Munich, Germany, where they had purchased two hotels.

After a complete renovation of the newly purchased buildings, a failed assassination attempt by the East German government in the form of a letter bomb, nearly cost him and his wife their lives.

After a long recovery from his injuries, the family sold their properties and moved to Naples, FL in 1983 where they opened a new company by the name of Naples Tile Inc., a tile and marble installation company that specialized in residential and commercial sales and installation. Setting new standards in the industry, Naples Tile Inc. was involved in numerous large scale projects throughout Collier and Lee counties and helped shape the future of this area.

In 1994, Ky opened a new company by the name of Tile-Eze Inc. in Naples, FL, and once again he was on his way, setting new standards and ideas in the tile and marble industry by introducing to hundreds of companies nation wide new methods of installations and machinery.

In 1997, Ky's wife and long time business partner, Antje Mierendorff, passed away. Ky remarried in 2006, to Huanhuan Li, his now widowed wife.

Some of Ky's achievements are the introduction of the tile industry's first laser leveling system, the "Fein" dustless grout remover, automatic grout clean up machinery, "Keil" facade anchoring systems and many more products. He also appeared in numerous biographies and documentaries in Germany regarding the Cold War Era and his involvement in the cause of freedom for oppressed people in the east. A book is currently in the works and will be released in Germany sometime next year.

Ky was a man that would never sit still. He was an achiever and self made business man. He loved this country and became a proud citizen in 1995. He was a private pilot and loved going boating and fishing whenever he could. He was loved by everyone who met him, and has many friends that will truly miss this great man.

A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, November 10th at 11:00 a.m. at Fuller Funeral Home, 1625 Pine Ridge Road, Naples, FL 34109. The service will continue at Naples Memorial Gardens, 586 111th Avenue North, Naples, FL 34108, where Ky will be laid to rest.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Cancer Society.