Dan Klem

1944 - 2023

Dan Klem

1944-2023

Dan Lee Klem, born on November 25, 1944, in Toledo, Ohio, to the late Otto and Virginia Klem, passed away at the age of 79 on December 23, 2023, in Dayton, Ohio. Dan was a graduate of DeVilbiss High School.

Dan was the loving husband of Joyce Klem for 42 years, having married on October 10, 1981. Dan was preceded in death by brother, Donald Klem (1994); and granddaughter, Jessica Dale Thompson (1992). He is survived by his elder brother, Robert (Mary Jo) Klem; children, Dennis (Laura) Smoyer, Jeffrey (Jenine) Smoyer, and Renee (Gary) Ritchie; nine grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.

After high school, Dan enlisted in the United States Air Force where he served as a Sergeant in active service from 1963 to 1967, having been stationed in Ramstein AFB Germany from 1964-1967 and Vandenberg AFB as part of the Vietnam War and member of the Special Air Service. Dan continued with the Air Force Reserve from 1967-1969 upon which he retired from service.

Following his time serving our country, Dan (known to his friends as "Danny") worked as a truck driver for TNT/USF Holland for over 30 years, retiring on April 1, 1999 as an honorary Teamster, having accomplished the feat of driving over 2 million miles accident-free.

Upon retiring, Dan and Joyce were active members at Garden Park Christian Church in Holland, Ohio.

In 2020, Dan and Joyce moved to Dayton, Ohio, to be cared for in their aging years. After years of pain and sickness, Dan was taken to Dayton Hospice on December 21, 2023, where he finally found peace on December 23, 2023.

While Dan requested no funeral service, years before he passed he shared his wish to have his favorite scripture, which often brought him comfort, be shared as a means of comfort to others and to serve as a reminder that this earth is not our home and that one day we will all be together again with Christ:

"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now, rather, we look forward to what we have not seen yet. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 and 5:1-10.