Ernst “Ernie” Dupper was born along with his identical twin brother, Victor, on September 13th, 1925 in Wigoda, a small village in the Ukraine. During his early childhood his parents were sent to Siberia by Stalin and he was raised by his aunt, Philipena. When he was 16, he served as an interpreter in the German Army during World War II on the Russian Front. He ended up in Germany after the war, where he met Ursula John. It was love at first sight, as Ernie always said, and they quickly became engaged. Ernie then traveled to Saskatchewan, Canada. After he settled in, Ernie sent for Ursula, and they were married in 1951. For eight years Ernie worked the railroad and during that time they had Ed, Manny, and Karen in quick succession. Life on the Canadian Prairie was very difficult, with scorching summers and freezing winters. In 1959 he moved his family to the Queen Anne Hill area of Seattle. At that time, Ed was 7 years of age, Manny was 6 and Karen was a baby of two. Ernie quickly found a job as a carpenter, which developed into his primary occupation, and became a useful hobby in his later years. Ernie loved to spend his free time working on and remodeling his son’s homes. Frequently when he traveled, instead of an extra suitcase, he would take his toolbox. Ernie deeply loved his family- his children, grand-children and great grand-children. He also loved to garden and negotiated with his neighbors to work their gardens in exchange for a share of the produce. Once he farmed four extremely productive vegetable gardens at the same time! If you knew Ernie, you shared his vegetables, especially his beloved tomatoes! In addition to his love of gardening and family, he enjoyed looking at his old photos and telling their history. After losing Ursula and Karen, Ernie lived alone in his house with the help of family and a caregiver until he suffered a stroke. He then lived for a year in an Adult Family Home until his passing. Ernie is survived by his two sons and their wives- Ed and Kathy, Manny and Margy, seven grandchildren, and eight great Grand-children.
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