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Carlton Lionel Dietsch, born on November 18, 1932, in rural Edgerton, Ohio, left this earthly world at almost 88 years of age to be with our Lord, Jesus Christ, in Heaven on November 6, 2020.
He is survived by his wife, Christine, and their two daughters, Coleen Dietsch and Cairon Dietsch. He was so happy to be a grandfather to Alexa and Brynne Dietsch-Jones (Chicago) and John Carlton and Lisbeth Dietsch-Krubl (Athens). Also surviving are two sisters, Charlotte (James) Free and Janice Bartlett, and one brother, Lamar Dietsch. He was preceded in death by his parents and one brother, Lavon Dietsch.
Carlton had a full life. He was raised on a farm in Blakeslee, Ohio, until about the second grade and then Edgerton, graduating from high school there. He was a star baseball player on the Edgerton team, hitting home runs to win the game. Milking cows gave him his massively powerful hands, the more to greet someone with a handshake or a hug (after all he was half Hug) and pat them on the back. Doing chores every day, before and after school, helped him build a strong work ethic. Attending grade school in both Blakeslee and Edgerton, taught by the nuns, gave him a keen sense of discipline and, with a strong Catholic family and two uncles who were priests (Fathers Fritz and Edward Hug), helped build a deep faith in God and in the Church.
After graduation in the class of 1950, Uncle Sam called him to the Army, where he spent almost two years in Alaska protecting the U.S. Territory from the Russian front during the Korean War. After the service, a stint helping to build the turnpike and running a backhoe and earth mover for his Uncle Ben Flegal, he cast his gaze to the skies: he wanted to fly!
So, he packed his car, put some cash in his pocket, and drove to Washington D.C., where he landed a job with American Airlines, working at the airport. When he heard about a new European airline coming to the Baltimore/Washington area, this guy with a deep German heritage convinced the new Italian Alitalia Airlines in Baltimore to hire him as their manager. It was hard to say Alitalia with an Edgerton accent!
Through his work, he traveled to Rome, Italy, 33 times and many other countries, found the woman he fell in love with and asked to marry him 20,000 feet in the air on the way to Portugal. He had two daughters and decided it was time to come home to Edgerton. He bought a farm, built a house for his parents, and bought a house for his little family in the Riverbend, where he lived for 45 years.
In those 45 years, he had a very full life. He got his Associate’s in Applied Science in Civil Engineering and Construction, then a B.S. in Marketing and went on to get his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Management and Personnel from The University of Toledo. He even taught part-time as a Business Instructor at Defiance College.
He was quite active in the community of Edgerton. He played the role of “Happy the Clown” for the PTO Mini Carnivals for years and was the best Village Santa Claus ever! He helped with the Knights of Columbus Friday Fish Fry’s, was the Grand Knight for several years, and was a 4th Degree Knight of Columbus. He also ran the local annual Red Cross Blood Mobile for many years, was President of the Edgerton Rotary Club, chaired the Foreign Exchange student program, served on Village Council, and was the administrator for the HUD program for Edgerton.
He was one very busy guy! He loved life. He loved his family. He loved Edgerton.
“Il mondo e tanto bello” (the world is beautiful) was his motto, along with God Bless America. He would sing this at supper every night at Bickford of Scioto Memory Care as if it was a blessing before the meal and gradually all of the residents would join in; it was great!
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, services will be private. But . . . when the pandemic is over, you can bet there will be a celebration of this man’s life.
Many thanks to all of the staff at Bickford of Scioto who have cared for him for the past two years. I cannot say enough good about their Memory Care and to the Capital City Hospice who dedicated themselves to him around the clock in his waning days as he waited to leave this earthly world.
Memorials may be given in his name to:
St. Mary Church, 133 Bement Street, Edgerton, Ohio 43517
St. Margaret of Cortona, 1600 N. Hague Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43204-1606
Bickford of Scioto, 3500 Riverside Drive, Upper Arlington, Ohio 43221