Carl Frederick Obenauf

Carl Frederick Obenauf, a resident of The Colonnades in Charlottesville, VA, died on January 10th a little over two weeks prior to his 98th birthday. Born in Garfield, New Jersey, Mr. Obenauf is the son of the late Anna Emma Recke Obenauf and Frederick Paul Obenauf and the brother of Gladys Obenauf Diezel of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. He was predeceased by his wife of over 65 years, Marjorie Brown Cottingham Obenauf, whom he met during their freshman year at The Ohio State University (OSU) in Columbus. Mr. Obenauf received his Bachelor of Science degree in June 1943 from OSU and shortly thereafter his orders to report to the Northwestern University (Chicago) Naval Midshipmen’s School. After Midshipmen’s School, he was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Naval Reserve in late October with orders to report to the United States Navy Bomb Disposal School, American University (Washington, D.C.). Mr. Obenauf recorded the history of one man’s military experience in the Pacific following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in his book History of Service United States Navy during World War II published in 2004. He reported for duty in New Caledonia on Friday, March 13, 1944 as the Bomb Disposal Officer on the U.S.S. Yorktown CV-10 aircraft carrier, the second vessel to carry that name as the first was sunk during the Battle of Midway. Since reporting on that day, Mr. Obenauf always considered Friday the 13th to be his lucky day as he lived to see the Japanese surrender. Carl and Marjorie married in November 1945 when he returned from service in the Pacific. During Carl’s working years they made Chicago and Beloit, WI their home and spent vacations at the Cottingham family cottage on South Bass Island (Put-in-Bay, OH) in the Western Basin of Lake Erie. In retirement, the Obenaufs moved to Columbus, OH and then Port Clinton, OH with frequent time at Put-in-Bay. Finally, they summered at Put-in-Bay and wintered in Charlottesville, Virginia. Mr. Obenauf became a member of the U.S.S. Yorktown CV-10 Association at its inception in 1948. On Columbus Day weekend 1975, the ship U.S.S. Yorktown CV-10 was dedicated as an official part of the Patriots Point floating museum just outside Charleston, SC. The U.S.S. Yorktown CV-10 Association has always been an integral part of the ship, and Mr. Obenauf served in many capacities including a number of years as Association president and chairman of the board. He also had more than 60 years of involvement with The American Legion. Mr. Obenauf wrote a book documenting the history of the Beatrice Foods Company Special Products Division, from which he retired as president in June 1983. His book The Building of an Industry: The History of the Convenience Food Industry details his professional journey. During his years with Beatrice, business travel took him throughout 48 of the United States, Canada and most countries in Western Europe. Mr. Obenauf was a pioneer in the development of special powders utilizing the spray dehydration process and the adaptation of these powders to new product concepts. He was a member of the Institute of Food Technology, American Society of Bakery Engineers and American Association of Cereal Chemists (also chairman of its Midwestern Section). Ingredients he helped develop continue to this day to make food preparation easier for all who cook for themselves and their families. For instance, think mac and cheese, flavored potato chips, banana bread and chocolate cake. During his years with Beatrice Foods, Mr. Obenauf was elected to the Beatrice Foods Company President’s Honor Club and received the Beatrice President’s Club Award. His retirement many years ago marked 31 years of service at the company. A fervent Ohio State University Buckeye since first stepping on the Columbus campus, Mr. Obenauf received several honors from his alma mater over the years including the Distinguished Alumni Award of the OSU College of Agriculture Alumni Association and the Distinguished Benefactor Award of the OSU Department of Food Science and Nutrition. Most recently he was a 2018 inductee into the Ohio State University Department of Food Science and Technology Hall of Distinction, which recognizes graduates and friends of the Department who have made significant contributions to the food science and technology profession. In part, his plaque hanging in the Hall of Distinction reads: “Carl spent the vast majority of his business career with the Beatrice Foods Company with responsibilities for sales and marketing of special products. He eventually retired as President of the Special Products Division of Beatrice. He was instrumental in the burgeoning industry involving dried food products for not only Beatrice but also other food companies.” Carl and Marjorie established the Carl F. and Marjorie Cottingham Obenauf Agricultural Merit Scholarship at The Ohio State University. They are both members of the OSU President’s Club. The Obenaufs are survived by their daughter Linda Obenauf Porterfield (H. William Porterfield, M.D.) of Charlottesville, VA and son Carl D. Obenauf, M.D. (Sherry Stuart Obenauf) of Rio Verde, AZ. Carl and Marjorie’s family tree also includes seven grandchildren, sixteen great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren as well as Mr. Obenauf’s sister, Gladys Diezel, and her family: Linda and Bill have five children, W. Scott Porterfield, Esq. (spouse Susie Griffith and three children); Jeffrey L. Porterfield (five children and two grandchildren); Wendy Porterfield Modjeski (spouse Ron Modjeski, two children and one grandchild); Todd B. Porterfield, PhD. (partner Benoit Bolduc, PhD.); Marli Jacobson Porterfield Kerrigan, Esq. (spouse Jack Kerrigan, Esq. and five children). Carl and Sherry have two daughters, Erin Obenauf and Laura Obenauf, and one grandchild. Mr. Obenauf’s sister Gladys and her late husband Albert Diezel have two sons, Glenn Diezel (spouse Colleen Diezel and two children) and Gregg Diezel (spouse Lisa Diezel and two children). With Mr. Obenauf’s death, another member of the Greatest Generation is gone but definitely not forgotten. In his 2018 Christmas Letter, Mr. Obenauf wrote regarding his entrance into the OSU Department of Food Science and Technology Hall of Distinction: “I am definitely an old guy, so this recognition really makes me smile.” The Obenauf/Porterfield/Diezel family will hold a “Celebration of Life” for Carl F. Obenauf later this spring. Special thanks go to The Colonnades Assisted Living staff who caringly tended to Mr. Obenauf’s needs during his last days.