Kenneth “Ken” Ueckert Sperber peacefully transitioned to his eternal home on February 3, 2026, surrounded by his loving family and wife of seventy-five years.
Ken was born to Ueckert and Fontella Sperber in Toledo, OH, where they raised him and his three sisters-Catherine Stanley, Wilma “Jeanie,” and Cleo Minke. He graduated from Libbey High School in 1946 and joined the Marines, serving in the South Pacific during World War II.
In July of 1948, he took a country girl, Shirley Jean Woodbury, on a blind date to Centennial Terrace where they danced under the stars to big band music. The shy city boy admitted he didn’t care for country girls, and she didn’t care much for him either. Eventually their shared love for dancing, playing cards, and going to the beach grew into a love for each other. Ken fell not just for the country girl but also for the country life. They married on June 10, 1951, and they eventually moved to Bowling Green, OH, where they built their own house and a legacy on Woodbury family farmland.
They were overjoyed to welcome three beautiful daughters-Kim, Jill, and Julie -as well as their foster-son, Chuck “Hoagie” Hudson, into their family. When he wasn’t doting on his wife, kids, and grandkids, Ken worked as an operating engineer on the railroad, ran the family farm, was an active member at Plain Congregational Church, wrote love poems to his “doll,” and became an avid pilot taking many cross-country flights with family and friends. He retired from the railroad in 1990 after forty years. He then spent his retirement years in his classic faded blue jeans farming sweetcorn and soybeans, fixing his tractors, swimming in the pond, narrowly escaping death-defying mishaps of his own making, vacationing in Venice, FL, and always, always being present for his family.
He was affectionately known as “Grampy” for the last forty-four years to his five grandchildren: Britni Lookabaugh, Bryce Steel (Lori), Mark Strickland (Lauren), Bailey Clawson (Jonas), and Brandy Scritchfield (John). In 2011, he graduated to “Gpop” with the birth of what would be his first of thirteen great-grandchildren so far: Micah, Brooke, Blaise, Jacob, Kaeden, Bria, Isaiah, Layla, Karece, Junia, Joseph, Ember, and one on the way.
He loved his wife, Shirley, above all else, and they danced together for over seventy-five years. His commitment to his marriage, faith, and family will continue to be an inspiration to his family and friends for generations to come. Adapting Ken’s own poetic words, his heart was truly “a light to guide our love into eternity.”
He is preceded in death by his infant daughter, Jill; his parents; and his siblings. He is survived by his children, Kim Strickland (Kent), Julie Steel (Bryan); seven grandchildren; thirteen great-grandchildren; and a multitude of beloved nieces, nephews, and cousins.
A Celebration of Life service will be held at Plain Congregational Church in Bowling Green, OH, at 2pm on February 28, 2026. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Plain Congregational Church in Ken’s honor.
