Kenneth Eugene Brinkman

Born in Charles City on May 31, 1940, Ken was the youngest of nine children born to Fred and Isabel (Hoffert) Brinkman. He graduated from Greene High School in 1958 and attended Wartburg College. He farmed near Packard for 50 years and sold DeKalb seed for 34 years before retiring to Fort Myers Beach, Florida.

On July 25, 1959, Ken married Beverly Bauman, beginning a partnership that would last nearly 67 years. They were true partners in every sense of the word — raising a family, farming the land, building the seed business, and exploring the world together whenever they had the opportunity.

Ken was a lifelong member of St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Greene, where he served on the church council and as Sunday School superintendent. He served on the Greene School Board for 15 years, was active in the Greene Music Parents organization, and also served on the Butler County Farm Bureau board and Butler County Compensation Board.

Alongside farming and raising a family, Ken and Bev shared a lifelong love of travel and camping. They visited every U.S. state and every Canadian province bordering the United States, with the Canadian Rockies and Nova Scotia among their favorite destinations. They also traveled throughout the Caribbean and through the Panama Canal. After years of wintering in Florida, they made Fort Myers Beach their permanent home in 2011, joining the Indian Creek community they had already come to know and love.

Ken enjoyed playing pool, attending dinner theater, and gathering with friends and family around the card table. He loved music and could often be found playing ragtime tunes on the piano. Some of his favorite moments were simple ones — picnics on the Sanibel Causeway watching dolphins play, sharing stories that always seemed to get better with time, and ending a good meal with dessert, especially ice cream.

Kenneth is survived by his wife, Beverly; son, James (Sally) of Fort Myers, Florida; son, Bruce (Jinko) of Funabashi, Japan; and daughter, Cindy (Chris Harlow) of Kewaskum, Wisconsin.

He is also survived by six grandchildren: Sara (Ryan) Firestone of Dublin, Ohio; Bradley (Vicky) of Theresa, New York; Jenna of Sacramento, California; Nina (Kent) Ogawa of Tokyo, Japan; Len of Tokyo, Japan; and Emi of Tokyo, Japan; four great-grandchildren, Trenton Brinkman, Emryn Firestone, Kinsley Firestone, and Reese Firestone; and sisters Esther Bose and Catherine Huber. He was preceded in death by his parents and siblings: Ray, Clarence, Darrel, Irene Sartori, Carol Ritchie, and Ruth Duncan.

Those who knew Ken will remember his honesty, sense of humor, gift for storytelling, generosity to neighbors, and unwavering work ethic. Above all, they will remember a man who found joy in his faith, his family, his friends, and the adventures he shared with Bev throughout nearly 67 years of marriage.

Memorials may be sent to St. Peter’s Lutheran Church at 324 E. Traer St., Greene, IA 50636 or National Cremation & Burial Society at 3453 Hancock Bridge Pkwy, N Ft Myers, FL 33903.