Dale Lee Kronenberger

Dale Lee Kronenberger was born on November 25, 1946, in Cleveland, Ohio and was the son of Clarence and Marie Kronenberger and a brother to Ron and his twin sister, Gail. He grew up in a German and Hungarian household and developed a love for eating homemade meals at an early age. His mother did all the cooking from chicken paprikash to homemade pies that would later pass down to his family to come. In Dale’s younger years he was a paper boy delivering newspapers to all his neighbors and worked at a local nursery. In his down times he loved playing and watching sports and played basketball and ran track in high school.

After high school, Dale attended Ohio State University, and this is where he final got to enjoy watching a team that would frequently win unlike his hometown favorites the Cleveland Indians and Browns. During this time was when he met his soon-to-be-wife Denise, who was going to school to become a nurse. In 1969, the two married and moved to Davenport, Iowa, where Dale went on to Palmer Chiropractic College and Denise worked as a nurse. After graduating from chiropractic school, the two moved down to Cape Coral, FL where his family had recently relocated to include his parents and sister. At that time, he opened his practice in the mid-70’s and was one of the original chiropractors in Cape Coral and this is when he a got the nickname “Doc” from his friends and patients.

“Doc” was well known in the community for providing physicals for the local high school athletes to putting on seminars for locals to learn about chiropractic. He loved people and always went out of his way to help others in need. “Doc” also enjoyed boating, fishing and having big cookouts with friends and family. He loved to cook and this is something he would later pass along to his family from his mother.

In 1978, “Doc” and Denise had a son Michael, and he became the focal point of their lives. Little Mickey loved playing sports as much as his dad did and they traveled all over to watch him play baseball and soccer. Mickey unfortunately developed a love for the Cleveland teams too and soon learned the phase, “Well there will always be next year…”. “Doc” and his family also loved to travel and went to Lake Lure, North Carlina every summer and then would travel to Cleveland to see family. This ended up becoming a family tradition that they did for over 40 years.

In 2004 “Doc’s” son Mike married Amber a high school sweetheart and they would later have two children of their own, Emma and Logan. This is when “Doc” got a new nickname “Opa” which is German for grandpa. “Opa” loved his grandkids dearly and was involved in every moment of their lives from school functions to sporting events. He would pick them up from school and then would have to take them out to eat because they were starving (of course) and later help them with their homework. But most importantly he was best known for all his stories and life lessons he taught his grandkids.

In his final days Opa was surrounded by his family, including both of his grandkids by his side holding hands. He was loved dearly by all and will surely be missed. He left the world a better place and touched so many hearts along the way. He is now with God and watching over us all just like he did his entire life here on earth.

Rest in peace, DAD.

A Memorial and Celebration of Life for Dale will be held at 12 Noon, Sunday, November 8th at Coral Ridge Funeral Home, 950 Chiquita Boulevard S., Cape Coral. The family will receive friends for a time of visitation from 11:00 am until the service time at the funeral home. Following the services around 1:00 pm Dale will be laid to rest in the Garden of Everlasting Peace. Please join us afterwards to gather with family and friends for appetizers and refreshments.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations preferred to Valerie’s House which is a local non-profit that helps young children & families heal after death of a loved one. 3551 Valerie's House Way, Fort Myers, FL 33916. There is a website where you can donate at: www.valerieshouse.org