KALMA M. KOENIG
Jesus Christ had Kalma Marie (Wittmeier) Koenig’s mansion ready the evening of June 2, when she fell asleep at age 96 at Laurenwood Nursing Home, Duncanville, TX. Kally was born when Calvin Coolidge was President of the United States on March 23, 1926, on a farm just west of Avon. She was christened in Trinity German Presbyterian Church in Avon. Kally was fifth of eleven children born to Christ J. and Rosella (Fischer) Wittmeier. She attended Mawhinney Country School through eighth grade and graduated Avon High School in 1944. She was the last surviving member of her graduating class. Kalma’s family lived through the Great Depression, dust storms, grasshoppers, drought, and poverty, but they emerged with farm and family intact. All eleven children survived. The family never missed church. Kally was a devoted follower of Jesus from childhood. Kalma and sister, Lorine, often sang special duets for church services, including “O That Will Be Glory for Me.”
After graduation, Kalma worked in Yankton, as bookkeeper at K&K Stores. She met Ernest Roy Koenig of Yankton, and they married in Avon November 21, 1947. First child, Ronald Lee, was born 9-27-1948. When Ernie graduated from the University of SD, he took a job at General Electric in Richland, WA. Kally also worked for GE where she won an award in the early 1950s for streamlining the purchasing department. The move to Richland commenced an odyssey that transferred the Koenigs around the country, living in ten states and twenty-two homes. Kally joked that they were trying to outrun bill collectors. This last move to heaven was the only move she ever looked forward to. Ernie died in California in 1981, and Kally never remarried. Kally’s employer transferred her to Minneapolis, where she retired from Delta Airlines and returned to California. Daughter Carol Ann, born in Richland 12-09-1953, had married and settled in Texas. In early 2012 Kalma and son Ron moved to Texas and lastly to Cedar Hill in December 2021. Sadly, Carol died 08-18-2018 in Dallas, TX, of congestive heart failure.
For a farm girl who grew up in overalls, Kalma had a sense of color, style, and natural talent that belied her background. She dreamed of becoming a teacher but could not afford college. She enjoyed Garden Club, and wrote poems, short stories, and even two TV screenplays for “I Love Lucy” for fun. Her experiences included travel on every continent but Antarctica and being the first woman ever admitted into the offices of Lloyds of London.
One sister and brother survive Kally, Gudrun Kay (Wittmeier) Schoenrogge, 82, of Saint Francis, KS, and Clayton James Wittmeier, 91, of Avon, SD. Wittmeier siblings LeVerne, Eileen, Genevieve, Lorine, John Delbert, Russell, Eugene, and Sheila all preceded Kally in death. Son Ronald L. Koenig of Cedar Hill, TX, granddaughter Shannon M. Anderson (daughter of Carol Ann (Koenig) Anderson) and her husband Ronald Brown of Denton, TX, and numerous nieces and nephews remain.
Kalma’s memorial service was in her home church, Hillcrest Baptist, in Cedar Hill, TX, on Monday, June 6, followed by a final memorial service later in the week in South Dakota on Friday, June 10, at First Baptist Church, Avon, with Rev. Bill Van Gerpen officiating. Interment will be in Trinity Presbyterian Cemetery, Avon, with Peters Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.