Obit: Benzman, Erwin #2 (? - 1924)

Contact: R. Lipprandt
Email: bob@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: Baehr, Benzman, Blank, Bremmer, Brown, Denzin, Dubi, Ellingson, Fitzlof, Glock, Haderlein, Held, Hoffmann, Janke, Jenks, Juremeyer, Kallien, Kieper, Kloster, Kollepp, Laack, Lindner, Lotzer, Lundahl, Nixdorf, Piehler, Schauer, Schmidt, Schupsky, Von Gemmington, Westphal, Woemper, Zell, Zillman

----Sources: The Curtiss Advance (Curtiss, Clark Co., Wisconsin), Wednesday, December 8, 1924

Benzman, Erwin (? - ? 30 Nov 1924*)

ERWIN BENZMAN LAID TO REST FRIDAY

The entire community, including many person fro other places assembled here Friday afternoon to pay their last respects to Erwin, beloved son of Mr. a d Mrs. Paul Benzman. The funeral was the largest ever held in Milan. Only half of the people present were able to get inside of the church.

All businesses were closed during the services. The floral offerings were many and beautiful, and various bequest amounting to $27.00 were given for mission work in honor of the deceased all showing the high esteem in which he was held.

The pall-bearers were: Alfred Schmidt, Frank Haderlein, W. Brown, Ernest Schauer, Benno Juremeyer and Eldred Ellingson. The honorary pall-bearers were; Herbert Brown of Fort Collins, Colo., Henry Lotzer, Milan and Arvin Ellingson, Wausau. Flower bearers were Henriette Glock, Henriette Zell, Elsie Denzin, Minnie Westphal, Arnold Kallien and Galen Schmidt. Both pall-bearers and flower bearers were either school mates or members of the Milan Band (of which Erwin was a member) or very intimate companions. The remains were laid to rest on the Lutheran Cemetery, North of Milan.

The funeral sermon was delivered by Rev. W. Piehler who had chosen for his text psalms 73, 23 and 24. He spoke very effective and comforting words to the mourners and spoke to the audience of the uncertainty of life and the great necessity of being ready when the Reaper whose name is Death comes to summon others.

Following the sermon, a short address was given by Prof. I. J. Kloster, Dean of the Commercial Dept. of St. John’s College, who had accompanied the remains home. The address is as follows:

"Dear Friends, especially Dear Mother, Father, Brother and Grandfather of the departed."

"In God’s Infinite wisdom it has pleased Him to led your loved one through the valley of the shadow of death, and we firmly believe that the almighty and gracious Shepherd has led him gently into the fold of Heaven above. On that memorable day for St. John’s College, the 30th day of November, when all was in readiness for a great service of rejoicing, namely the corner stone laying of the beautiful administration building, the soul of our beloved student winged its flight to the throne of our Creator.

It is needless for me to say that when this word went out a deep gloom fell upon the entire assembly and the corner stone laying of that building became a memorial service as well in fond memory of a student who was held in high esteem by facility and student alike. This my deep mourning friends, should a a beautiful thought for you to carry with you through life. If God should one day permit you to see that beautiful building or when you see pictures of it, it will impress upon your mind the fact that his edifice be the chief corner stone of which Jesus Christ, is in a special sense a memorial of your departed.

A record of his death is included with other documents in that stone as was expressed in the theme of the address on that occasion, the chief corner stone of the church is Jesus Christ, hence also of a Christian College. We know that the departed built his life upon that firm foundation.

Some times the thought comes to Christians, which death comes suddenly and unexpectedly, that we could **** text missing from copy, continued in next paragraph ****

Asleep in Jesus! O for me may such a blissful refuge be; Securely shall my ashes lie, Waiting the summons from on high."

As we have been able to find out, those from out of town to attend the funeral were: Prof. F. Kloster, Winfield, Kan., Prof. Jenks, Abbotsford, Rev. M. Piehler, Athens, Rev. Keiper, Dorchester, Rev. Von Gemmington, Medford, Mrs. Pauline Bremmer and Family, Summit Lake, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Lindner and son Arthur, Mrs. And Mrs. Wm. Benzman and Mrs. Ed Zillman of Colby, Fred Woempner and family, Mrs. Franz Fitzlof and family, Mrs. Arthur Baehr, Albert Nixdorf and family. G. Nixdorf, Mrs. Janke, Mr. and Mrs. Kollepp and Mr. and Mrs. Gus Laack of Dorchester, Chris Held and Mr. and Mrs. Sam Dubi of Athens, Mrs. H. Bland and daughter Catherine of Unity, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Hoffman, Misses Mary and Emma Ellingson, Dora and Lizzie Lundahl of Abbotsford, Mrs. And Mrs. Mike Schupsky, Hawkins, Mr. and Mrs. Arvin Ellingston of Wausau and Eldred Ellingston of Madison.

*Note: 30 November (as a death date) retrieved from the sermon of Prof. I. J. Kloster, Dean of the Commercial Department, St. John’s College.