Raye Eugene Klopfenstein, Jr., was born October 31, 1946, to Raye Klopfenstein Sr. and Betty Drain Klopfenstein of Portage, Ohio. The family will accept visitors starting at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, July 15, 2017 at Dunn Funeral Home, located in the Historical District of Bowling Green at 408 West Wooster Street with private service to follow at 11:00 a.m. Because Raye’s many friends and colleagues live in Michigan, a memorial service will be held in Michigan at Faith Lutheran Church, 50600 Shelby Rd., Shelby Twp. MI 48317 in the near future. Details will follow on this site.
Raye enjoyed his childhood there so much that upon retirement from Utica Community Schools in 2004, he wanted to return to his roots and bought the Klopfenstein farmhouse in order to restore it. His father’s work took them to Michigan in 10th grade, and he graduated from Ferndale High School in 1964. He attended Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, where he met his wife Emily Gross Klopfenstein. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the School of Education in 1969. Raye went on to earn his Master of Arts in Education from Michigan State University in 1979.
Raye and Emily, also a teacher, were married on November 24, 1967. Raye began his career with Utica Community Schools and settled in Shelby Township, Michigan where he taught fifth and sixth grade. In 1977 he became a media center teacher and was instrumental in bringing computer education to the school system. Thanks to a grant acquired from the Abrams Foundation, Raye started a special science and technology program based on space exploration. It was called Project INSPIRE and hundreds of students, along with their parents, participated.
His life was made complete by the addition of his children, William Raye Klopfenstein born December 7, 1971, and Marie Irene Klopfenstein born June 24, 1978. From his example, they developed self-reliance, a love of learning and compassion. Raye had many talents. His love of model railroading started at an early age. He would build layouts for his train collection. Also, classic cars were a big part of his life. He enjoyed the time he spent restoring dozens of cars and sharing the hobby with his son. Raye was active with the Ford and Mercury Restorer’s Club and served 2 terms as the club’s president. Another passion of Raye’s was researching the genealogy of his ancestors. He became a member of the Sons of the American Revolution after documenting his heritage as a descendent of Ariel Bradley who was a young spy for General Washington. He was a charter member of the Oaks Chapter of the SAR. His research led to some family travel in Europe where he traced his Klopfenstein roots back to the 1500s.
One of Raye’s lesser known talents was his artistic ability to paint in oils. He painted landscapes and more recently some scenes from travel and the Klopfenstein farmland. Many summers were spent camping out west with Emily and eventually with William and Marie. His love of nature led him to buy a summer cabin on a lake in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan where he enjoyed fishing with his father who also bought a cottage nearby. Raye and Emily became members of Faith Lutheran Church in Shelby Township and enjoyed serving the congregation in various capacities. The church and its congregation held a special place in his heart to his last day. He loved animals and had many special canine and feline companions through the years. We hope they were there to welcome him home. He suffered with lupus for many years but remained as active as possible in spite of it. Raye’s passing was unexpected and sudden. He and Emily were to leave the next day for a genealogical trip east.
Left to honor his memory are his beloved wife Emily and children, William (Lori Bosanko Klopfenstein) and Marie (Christoph Schiessl), and grandchildren Nathan, Megan, Eric and step-granddaughter, Tabitha Adkins. Raye is predeceased by his parents, to whom he was a loving son, and his parents-in-law, to whom his love for Emily reassured them that their only child would be well cared for. Raye, our love for you is now etched in our hearts forever.
