Fourth Generation

103. Hilda Clara Theodora KRUMWIEDE.

Louis Albert EKHOFF (son of John EKHOFF and Clara KESLER) was born on 22 Aug 1918 in Sollitt, Illinois. He died of complications of Alzheimer's disease: metastatic cancer, on 11 Feb 2005 in Watseka, Iroquois County, Illinois.^287,288
Louis Ekhoff
WOODWORTH – Louis Albert Ekhoff, 86, of Woodworth died at 9:40 a.m. Friday (Feb. 11, 2005) at Watseka Rehab and Health Care Center, Watseka.
Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Monday at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Woodworth. The Rev. James Ritter will officiate. Burial will be in St. Paul’s Lutheran Cemetery, Woodworth.
Visitation will be from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Knapp Funeral Home, 219 W. Blaine St., Cissna Park, and from 10 to 11 a.m. Monday at the church.

Louis Ekhoff
Louis Albert Ekhoff, 86, of Woodworth, died Friday, February 11, 2005, at Watseka Rehab & Health Care Center. Services were held Monday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Woodworth, officiated by Rev. James Ritter. Burial was in St. Paul's Lutheran Cemetery in Woodworth. Knapp Funeral Home in Cissna Park was in charge of arrangements.
He was born August 22, 1918 in Sollitt, a son of John and Clara Kester Ekhoff. He farmed until 1961, had worked at Ecker Electric for several years and also at Edwin Brutlag Painting, and was a self-employed painter until he retired.
He was married to Hilda Krumwiede on March 24, 1940, in Woodworth. She survives.
Also surviving are two sons and one daughter-in-law, Wayne and Velma Ekhoff of Crescent City and Roger Ekhoff of Cissna Park; two daughters and sons-in-law, Marilyn and Bill Sanders of DeKalb, Deloris and Bill Berdes (sic) of Itisco, Indiana; 8 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by three brothers, Arnold, Martin and Erwin Ekhoff; and one sister, ethel Sturm.
Mr. Ekhoff was a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Woodworth, St. Paul's Lutheran Mens Club and the Milford Volulnteer Fire Department. He won many blue ribbons at Rockome Gardens for shucking corn and plowing with horses. He enjoyed refinishing furniture.
Memorials may be made to St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Woodworth or to Prairieview Lutheran Home in Danforth.


Louis is known for his corn-shucking ability. He competed in the annual contests at Arthur, Illinois from about 1985-2000, missing only two years, and winning blue ribbons most times. Considering that he began taking part in the competition at about age 67 and continued to age 82, this is quite an accomplishment, especially as he was competing against much younger men. In a conversation I had with him about the year 2000 competition, he described how the younger men, who had never had to shuck corn as a way to get the job done, would actually work too hard at the task, wouldn't protect their hands from the sharp edges of the shucks and wasted a lot of time in the process. Hilda Clara Theodora KRUMWIEDE and Louis Albert EKHOFF had the following children:

+311	i.	Wayne Louis EKHOFF.
+312	ii.	Marilyn Louise EKHOFF.
313	iii.	Roger Herman EKHOFF was born on 9 Dec 1946. He died of melanoma on 11 Nov 2006 in Gilman, Illinois.289,290 Roger Ekhoff -- Cissna Park Roger Herman Ekhoff, 59, of Cissna Park, died Saturday (Nov. 11, 2006) at the Gilman Nursing Pavilion. Visitation will be from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Knapp Funeral Home in Cissna Park, and from 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Woodworth, until the 11 a.m. services. Rev. James Ritter will officiate. Burial will be in St. Paul's Lutheran Cemetery, Woodworth. Memorials may be made to St. Paul's Lutheran Church of Woodworth, Iroquois Memorial Hospice, the American Cancer Society, or to the donor's choice. Mr. Ekhoff was a custodian at John Deere in Cissna Park for many years. He was born Dec. 9, 1946, in Watseka, the son of Louis A. and Hilda C. Krumwiede Ekhoff. He was a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Woodworth, where he recorded church services. He was an avid Chicago White Sox fan and enjoyed watching them win the World Series. He also enjoyed fishing and playing the card game Pepper. Surviving are his mother of Watseka; one brother and sister-in-law, Wayne and Velma Ekhoff of Crescent City; two sisters and brothers-in-law, Marilyn and Bill Sanders of De Kalb, Deloris and Bill Gerdes of Otisco, Ind.; three nieces and five nephews; and 10 great-nieces and great-nephews. His father is deceased.
+314	iv.	Deloris Hilda EKHOFF.