Keith Zorger

Keith Zorger, 93, of Spencerville, went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, on June 15, 2020, to join his beloved wife, Donna Zorger, and his son Bruce Zorger (wife Patricia, children Danielle). God said, “I need a man who will wake before dawn, work the fields, and shear the sheep; a man with biceps as strong as a giant’s with a heart gentle enough to calm a crying child;a man with the ability to fix any engine, train any dog, and catch any fish.” Keith Zorger, a husband, father, farmer, retired American Hoist and Derreck factory-worker, and member of Leo United Methodist, was a quiet, simple man whose tackle box of life was filled with 93 years of memories. As his wife of 70 years put it, he rarely started the conversation, but he would contribute and you’d remember he had been there. Keith was born on April 3, 1927 in Columbia City, Indiana to (Emmanuel) Dewey Zorger and Bessie (Stouder) Zorger. Keith is predeceased by his siblings Lavern, Norman, Marvin, Lyle and Jerry. Leading by example, never accepting excuses and working until the job was done, and the fishing was good are just a few of the attributes his four children, ten grandchildren, sixteen great - grandchildren, one surviving sibling and a multitude of extended family and friends will think upon when they remember Keith. At sixteen, Keith tried his hand as an entrepreneur. He planted popcorn. He watched it grow. He shelled it. Packaged it. Then, walked miles into town, and sold 100 pounds to a restaurant owner. “It was the first time working was my idea,” Keith said. “I got to keep all the money. I liked that. Nothing was going to just land at our feet. None of us kids just sat around.” Whether it was his fight against rheumatic fever in high school that kept him from the war or his diagnoses of type 1 diabetes in 1978, Keith never let his life be defined by the bad news, but instead by the good. On April 30, 1949, Keith and Donna were married in a private ceremony in Columbia City, Indiana, at Grace Lutheran Church. “Our years together have been very satisfying and rewarding,” Donna wrote in her 2011 autobiography. “ Keith is survived by his children and grandchildren: Lester (wife Cynthia, children Josh, Jason, Jennifer); Dennis (wife Terez, children Anthony and Andrew); Ann (husband Steve, children Aubrey and Abigail); and Jane (husband Daniel, children Daniel and Katie); sibling Jean (Zorger) Auld, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. In 1981, Keith and Donna originally built The Golden Pond as a place Keith could go to fish. It later became a meeting place for a family; a place where you went to escape from the challenges of the world; a place where good fellowship anxiously awaited your return. Today, it marks a landscape where others have stood before you; where stories are shared and a legacy is spoken. Nine years ago, Donna wrote that life was good, and there was nowhere else she would rather be than working with Keith on the farm. For those of us who loved him, we will never forget him. We will always feel him at the water’s edge of The Golden Pond, and for us, there’s nowhere else we’d rather be. Private family services are being held. A Celebration of Keith's Life will be planned for a later date. Burial will be at Leo Cemetery, Leo. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Leo United Methodist Church. For online condolences, please visit www.hockemeyermillerfh.com.