Carl R. Mueller

Carl attended Franklin Schools while working the family farm on Robinson Vail Road in Franklin before entering the service. He served our country during WWII from 1943 to 1946. His initial training was on the Gulf of Mexico. He served in the Army with the Amphibious 4th Brigade, island to island from New Guinea to Japan. He was awarded an Asiatic- Pacific Theater Ribbon with 3 Bronze Stars, Philippine Liberation Ribbon with an additional Bronze Star, Good Conduct Ribbon, Meritorius Unit Award and Victory Medal. He was a lifetime member of the American Legion Post 149, Franklin and VFW Post 3809, Middletown.

After returning from the service he married Virginia “Ginny” McGuire in 1950, and they resided in Franklin until moving to Middletown in 1998. He worked at NCR in Dayton for 27 years and then at NCR Microelectronics in Miamisburg for 9 years, retiring in 1983. He then worked part-time at Marsh Supermarket in Franklin for another 10 years. Carl was an avid bowler and golfer for over 30 years.

He worked several PGA tournaments at Kings Island Golf Center. He and Ginny took many golf trips to the Carolinas. They were partners in many card tournaments, participated in Cotillion, and had a very active social life with many friends and neighbors. Carl took tremendous pride in his landscaping and loved taking care of the family home where he was a great husband, father and provider. He always had a passion for his cars, especially his 1968 Mustang Convertible.

Carl was preceded in death by his loving wife Virginia (Ginny) McGuire Mueller, his mother Ada, and brother Paul Greene. He is survived by his devoted daughter Pamela Chamberlain (Stephen Snider), granddaughter Emily Chamberlain (Steven Black) Butts, granddaughter Elizabeth Chamberlain (Trevor) Baxter, grandchildren Paul, Bo, Sammy Butts, twins Isla and Liam Baxter, brother Arthur Greene Jr., and sisters-in-law Shirley Horn and Bernice Perry.

The Family sincerely thanks the following personal caregivers for the loving care they have given Carl during the past year; Shannon, Jannette, Brooke, Diana, Shirley, Kat, and Anita. We acknowledge Kathy Wright who had a special relationship with Carl and cared for him passionately. We also thank the wonderful nurses and staff of Hospice Care of Middletown, Tammy, Heather and especially Julia Nenni for their intensive and loving care of Carl through his entire journey.

Family will receive friends for Carl on Saturday April 9, 2022 from 10:30 to 12:00, with service at 12 o’clock at Breitenbach Anderson Funeral Home at 517 South Sutphin St., Middletown, OH 45044 (513-423-9443). Entombment will be at Woodside Mausoleum.

In Lieu of flowers donations can be made to Hospice Care of Middletown at 4418 Lewis St. B, Middletown OH 45044.

Eulogy for Carl Mueller

My name is Liz, and I am the youngest of Carl’s two granddaughters. I am speaking today on behalf of my mother Pam, my sister Emily and myself, to share with you the father and grandfather that we loved so much.

Carl was born in 1923, attended Franklin schools, and helped work the family farm out on Robinson Vail Road. During the Depression, he was forced to leave school before graduating so that he could work more on the farm. Going through papers in the last few days, my mother discovered an honorary diploma that had been awarded to Carl in 2006 from Franklin High School. Not one to make a fuss or show emotion, he never mentioned this undoubtedly meaningful recognition.

His mother, Ada, and his stepfather, Art, ran the family farm, and Carl worked very hard milking the cows. There was no running water in the old farmhouse, with Ada doing her best to keep the home and tend the chickens while Art and Carl managed the cows and other crops and animals. It’s this early hard life that surely impacted my grandfather’s frugalness and his constant need to be busy and productive. It couldn’t have been easy having a stepfather who wasn’t a loving or supportive person, and this hardship was a burden Grandpa carried throughout his life. Carl was 17 when his brother Paul was born, and his second brother Junior came along while Grandpa was away in the War. Despite the age difference, they developed a brotherly bond. Though this bond was tested many times over the years, the family connection was always there.

Carl was a WWII veteran, a member of the Army’s Amphibious 4th Brigade from 1943 to 1946, serving in the Pacific. His many awards speak to his bravery and commitment to our country. Every now and then he would pull out photos and souvenirs from his time in the service and he would share stories about being stationed in the Philippines and driving the boats to transport supplies back and forth from the ships offshore. When he was in storytelling mode, it was as if these events had happened yesterday. Despite my mother’s efforts, we were unable to convince him to take the trip with Honor Flight to the WWII Memorial. Perhaps it was too overwhelming for him to consider. Just over a week ago, my family visited the Memorial during our spring break trip to DC. I took video and photos to bring back and share with Grandpa. Sitting at his bedside, I don’t know how much he was able to take in as I told him about the visit, but it’s a memory I will cherish.

Returning home from the service, he and a friend tried their luck out in California to find a job. Within a few months, his friend’s homesickness brought them back to Ohio, and soon after, Carl met his future wife, Virginia McGuire. They were married in 1950, and my mother was born in 1953. Carl and Ginny loved to go dancing and spend time with their wide circle of family and friends. My mother remembers that anytime they were out and came across a band playing, my grandfather was sure to join the dance floor.

Pam was a daddy’s girl and Carl doted on her. One night when my grandmother was working, Carl was in charge of giving Pam a bath. When she pooped in the bathtub, Carl frantically called Ginny on the phone to find out what he should do. Grandma simply told him to scoop it out and run some clean water. While Grandpa seemed to be able to fix almost anything, this, apparently, was not a problem he had come across before. Carl and Ginny played golf regularly, and Carl made sure to pass on this hobby, teaching Pam to play when she was young. Carl was so proud of my mother, and he loved to brag on her accomplishments in Junior Miss, making sure the background for Pam’s talent performance was just right. His 8mm camera was at the ready to capture Pam’s dance recitals, many of which we all enjoyed watching together one night around 10 years ago. As a family, they spent a lot of time with Ginny’s relatives, playing cards in smoke-filled rooms, staying so late, that Carl had to carry a sleeping Pam into bed. As a husband and father, Carl was a strong provider. He was always working, never one to sit and relax, always finding something to fix or take care of.

Going into my grandparents’ basement on Dana Drive was to walk directly into Carl’s world. Decorating the hand-built bar was memorabilia from Grandpa’s love of golf. I can still vividly picture the “Quiet Please” sign that he used as a volunteer Marshall at the PGA hanging on the wall just to the left of the stairs. The card table had a prominent spot in the middle of the room, while the back wall was lined with trophies, many from bowling and golf victories over the years. During the many nights Emily and I spent at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, we would often hear the laughter drifting up from the basement where our grandparents and many of their friends would be playing cards late into the night.

Carl’s work ethic built on the farm and in the service extended to his job at NCR where for worked for 36 years. I got to know my grandfather in his retirement years, though retirement was not an idle endeavor for Carl. He continued to work part-time another 10 years at Marsh grocery store. Never one to want to waste, he found a new purpose for the plastic display shelves no longer used by the store. That first three-tiered shelf he brought home made an excellent home for my Barbie collection, and soon I had three sets of shelves, with my Barbies living in the biggest dream house you can imagine. This was not just an example of his frugalness, but of his actions demonstrating that he was always thinking about his family and wanting to make things better for us.

Many days coming home from school, my grandparents would be at our house to watch my sister and me while Mom was at work. Grandpa was always on the move—checking on the furnace, working in the yard, mowing the grass, and doing a million other things that I could not have cared less about at age 10. But as an adult, I realize and appreciate all the hard work he put in to making sure things were taken care of properly. Although… I didn’t escape lawn duty completely. He instructed me on how to mow the grass, standing out in the yard directing me this way and that, making sure I did it up to his high standards.

Carl’s life was mostly family oriented. For my mother, my sister and I, memories centered around spending time at various houses of my grandmother’s sisters and brothers. Carl was always there, playing cards—did I mention he liked to play cards? —listening to the gossip. He absolutely loved visiting my sister at Smith College in Massachusetts, where they did things right and took care of their old buildings instead of tearing them down. One of the frequent mugs he used for his morning coffee bore the Vanderbilt logo, quietly, but proudly, supporting my alma mater. For more than 20 years now, my husband Trevor could always count on Carl for a thorough conversation on gas prices and the weather.

After my grandmother, Ginny, passed away nearly 20 years ago, Carl continued to stay active and socially connected at places like the VFW and American Legion. Though it was more difficult without his partner of over 50 years. More recently, he took to calling everyone Babe. The wonderful caretakers over the past year were all affectionately called by this nickname at one point or another. When he came to the Credit Union to check up on Pam, he would chat with all the ladies, and they always thought he was such a charmer. Of course, he could also be a grumpy, stubborn, old man, and yet, somehow, he could make everyone overlook this.

I am so thankful that my nephews and my own children were able to know their great-grandfather. Carl enjoyed his many trips to New York and Nashville, visiting Emily, Paul, Bo and Sammy. My daughter Isla especially loved to share with everyone that her great-grandfather was an impressive 99 years old. She and her twin brother Liam were both proud to talk about their great-grandfather during their school’s Veteran’s Day program in second grade. And, yes, Liam, there will be a 21-gun salute.

When we were going through some old pictures to prepare for this celebration today, I was struck by how life continually repeated itself. It became comical searching out the photos of Carl over the years. Nearly every picture we found in this batch was from a holiday or birthday-- him sitting in a chair, opening a present, probably a pair of slacks or nice sweater. Year after year, perhaps a different chair, certainly a different present, maybe a few new gray hairs, but he was always there. He was a steady constant in my life for the past 42 years, for my mother the past 68 years. He was there for Junior Miss pageants, dance recitals, holidays, birthdays, card games, checking the air in my tires before I drove back to college, raking the leaves, sports games, graduations. He was there for the big moments, and more importantly, for the everyday moments. We knew we were loved through his actions, if not always through words.

One final thing I would like to share. My grandfather was a remarkably healthy person, which allowed him to be stubbornly independent—and scarily driving a car—well into his 90s. As the natural aging process finally caught up with him, he had one constant support—my mother, Pam. You could not find a better daughter, and her tireless devotion to my grandfather kept him going to the age of 99. The hardships he experienced in his early life probably influenced how he could sometimes treat the one person closest to him with the least appreciation. Mom, you were the best, and you deserve the love and gratitude that I know he must have felt but could not find a way to say.

Grandpa, we love you and you will be dearly missed. You took good care of us, and now you can finally rest in peace.