G. F. &#8220FRITZ” KALMBACH

G. F. &#8220Fritz” Kalmbach, 76, died in an airplane accident in the scenic wilderness near Fort St. John in British Columbia on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2005.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, Oct. 29 at 1 p.m. at Sacred Heart Church on Bogard Road in Wasilla. A reception will follow immediately.

Mr. Kalmbach was born and raised in Grand Rapids, Mich. He graduated from Michigan State University in 1952 and came to Alaska to serve in the U.S. Army at Fort Richardson. Shortly after discharge from the Army, he homesteaded near Wasilla, on Kalmbach Lake. He worked in mining, and in the early 1960s began exploring for gold at the Fern Mine in Hatcher Pass.

As a self-employed contractor he worked on many projects around the state. He also owned and operated Sand Lake Aggregate, a gravel business in south Anchorage.

His family wrote, &#8220Fritz enjoyed developing property. Throughout his life he developed several subdivisions in Anchorage and the Mat-Su. He continued land developing until the time of his death. Fritz was an energetic, dynamic man. He will always be remembered as a great father who was always there whenever he was needed.”

His wife, Maria Victoria, fondly remembers her husband as a loving and caring man with lots of dreams and a mind full of projects, who made her life very happy and interesting. One of his favorite quotes from the writings of R. McCann was, ‘Through fear of taking risks in life, I've missed a lot of fun. The only things that I regret are those I haven't done.'

Mr. Kalmbach was preceded in death by his son, Kurt Kalmbach. He leaves behind his wife, Maria Victoria Kalmbach; two sons, John Bryce and Kyle Kalmbach of Wasilla; four daughters, Kathryn van der Gugten of Switzerland, Kim Robinson of Palmer, Barbara Smith of Wasilla and Karen Holt of Talkeetna; brother, David Kalmbach of Pennsylvania; four sons-in-law, Peter van der Gugten, Andy Robinson, Paul Smith and Rob Holt, and eight grandchildren, Karin Tobler, Andreas van der Gugten, Keri and Kristopher Kalmbach, Atali and Arianna Smith, Elias Holt and Reece Robinson.