A Full Life

Grandpa Herman passed away in his sleep on Friday, April 29, 2022 in Portland, Oregon. He was 97 (and would have been 98 in June). Herman lived a long and full life on his own terms. He was a gentle soul and a kind man.  He shared our home in Seattle for 12 years. 

I'm posting a portion of his obituary here to honor his life and to also draw closed a unique chapter of my own journey.

Born in 1924 in Hepburn, Saskatchewan, Canada, Herman Kneller grew up on a homestead with his family, where they lived until 1939 when they moved to Vernon, British Columbia. After leaving school in the 10th grade, he went on to teach himself many things – from business to building. He picked fruit in the Okanagan region of southern BC, worked in sawmills, and owned several sawmills of his own over the years. At age 45, he married and became a contractor. He and his new wife, Esther, welcomed their only child, Byron, soon thereafter. After several years, he began a career as a Seventh-day Adventist minister and moved to Smithers in northern BC, where he pastored four churches in a district spanning 250 miles. He built a church building in Smithers, doing nearly all the work himself.

In the 1980s, the family moved to Merritt, BC, where he again built a church -- in this case renovating an older building - and pastored the congregation until 2009. While a pastor, he continued building houses as a side gig. He and his son built many houses together during the summers. Herman finished his last house in 2009, when he was 83 years old, and built more than 20 homes in all. In addition, he took great pride in writing a newspaper column on spiritual things for many years in the Merritt Herald, and in recording morning devotional thoughts for the local radio station. Herman lived in Merritt for 26 years, until he moved to Seattle in November 2010 to live with his son and family.

When he moved to Seattle and was no longer building houses, he took up a new hobby -- walking and making friends. For many years he walked about five miles each day. He made many friends on his walks, including neighbors as far south as 75th Ave NW. Many years, he celebrated his June birthday with the help of neighborhood friends and walking buddies. Only after suffering a significant fall in February 2020 did he limit his walks to the Manor. Into his late 90s, he still walked more than a mile each day.

Herman lived in Seattle until December 2021, when he moved to a Seventh-day Adventist assisted living center in Portland, Oregon. He especially enjoyed the send-off visits of many neighborhood friends before he moved. He was happy in Portland, and not surprisingly, made many new friends during the short time he was there.

He is survived by his son, Byron Kneller; daughter in law Amy Worrell-Kneller; and grandson, Wyatt Kneller, of Seattle, Washington; his sisters Venona Hovland (98), of Salmon Arm, BC, and Lenora Kerr (91) of Armstrong, BC, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife, Esther Kandt Kneller (1996), and siblings Reuben Kneller, Dan Kneller, and Caroline Kneller. His ashes will be buried on a hillside overlooking Merritt, BC.  A service is not planned.