MILLBURY, Ohio — Dale Kaiser of Millbury, a retired hardware industry veteran who enjoyed fishing on Lake Erie, died Tuesday at Mercy St. Charles Hospital, Oregon. He was 81.
Mr. Kaiser had developed several medical problems, but heart failure was likely the immediate cause of his death, said his wife, Sandra.
Mr. Kaiser retired in 1999 as vice president of merchandising for Bostwick-Braun Co. in Toledo after nine years of service. He previously worked for 40 years for the George Worthington Co. in Mentor, Ohio, where had risen through the ranks from a warehouse worker to a vice president, his wife said.
“Work was very, very important to him,” said Mrs. Kaiser, his wife of 21 years. “He was dedicated to his work, he was dedicated to the company he worked for, and he was dedicated to his employees.
“As a husband he was wonderful and kind, and he let me have my way all the time,” she said. “In the family, we called him our gentle giant. He was the love of my life.”
Mr. Kaiser was born July 11, 1932, in Ashtabula, Ohio. He started working for George Worthington soon after graduating from Ashtabula High School in 1950. He married Sandra Kearney in 1992 in Toledo.
In retirement, Mr. Kaiser enjoyed fishing Lake Erie on his boat, Cloud Nine, out of Vermilion, Ohio, and watching sports on television, especially football games, in which he was partial to the Cleveland Browns.
He also liked to spend time with his six cats and a dog, a seven-year-old Australian cattle dog named India, who is also a certified rescue dog, his wife said.
Mr. Kaiser attended St. Peter's United Church of Christ, Millbury, where his wife was a member.
Surviving are his wife, Sandra Kaiser; daughters, Diane Downie and Valeria Rzeszotnarski; sons, David Kaiser and Jeff Kaiser; stepson, Lee Kearney; sister, Lou Tripepi; nine grandchildren; a great-granddaughter, and two step-grandchildren.
Visitation will begin at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Eggleston, Meinert & Pavley Funeral Home, 1111 Woodville Rd., Millbury, where a memorial service will start at 7 p.m.
The family requests tributes to the American Heart Association, St. Peter's United Church of Christ Playground Fund, or the Wood County Humane Society.
Contact Mike Sigov at: sigov@theblade.com, 419-724-6089, or on Twitter @mikesigovblade.
First Published August 31, 2013, 4:00 a.m.
