Christopher Victor Kreft

Christopher Victor Kreft, age 66, of Perrysburg, Ohio, left this earth unexpectedly on November 29, 2021. Chris was a man of great character, strong convictions, and deep faith. He was known for his outgoing personality, his wicked sense of humor, and his straightforwardness. He was pragmatic, witty, compassionate, generous, honest, frugal, wise and fun. Chris is gone too soon, but left a tremendous impact on the lives of all who knew him. He was born June 14, 1955, in Toledo to the late Joseph and Dolores (Byczynski) Kreft. He attended St. Catherine’s Elementary School and graduated from Central Catholic High School in 1974. Chris was deeply committed to his family. He was a devoted husband to his wife of 40 years, Constance; a proud father of four children, Sabrina A. (Greg) Wistain, Nicholas A. (Rachael) Kreft, Michael K. (Abbey) Sachs, and Rachel L. (Brian) Bell; a beloved grandfather to, Neil, Audrey, Olivia, Eliette, Phillip, Ethan, Gabriel, Makenna, Jacob and Henry. His love for them was exceptional. His siblings, Bonnie (Robert) Boes, Jeffery (Pamela) Kreft, and Gregory (Jennifer) Kreft remain to cherish his memory. Chris developed a strong faith as an adult. He was an active member of Trinity United Methodist Church for 15 years while raising his family. After moving to Perrysburg, he joined the Waterville Community Church, eventually becoming a Board Trustee. He taught vacation Bible school, facilitated marriage classes, sang with the acapella men’s choir, and was actively involved in the Toledo Emmaus community. Most recently, he served as co-chair on the Board of Directors for The Lazarus Experience, a prison re-entry ministry. For the past few years, Chris spent a third of the year in Florida where he became an active member of the Roser Memorial Church. He frequently attended Bible study classes, helped with special capital improvement projects and special events. Regardless of location, Chris began each day with devotion to God followed by a long walk in nature. In his free time, he enjoyed riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle, firearm target practice, and recently, he took up guitar favoring music of the Beatles, Eric Clapton, most classic rock, and outlaw country. Chris loved travelling with friends and family both within the U.S. to almost every state, many national parks, and special activities like salmon fishing in Alaska, whitewater rafted on various rivers in Virginia and Colorado, and remote backpacking in upstate New York. Internationally, he drove a dog sled in Finland, had a pint of Guinness at the brewery in Ireland, raced around in rickshaws and walked on the Great Wall in China, played drinking games in Russia, and stood on the beach in Normandy, France. He also took a mission trip to the Dominican Republic as an educational consultant. Chris had two careers. The first was in manufacturing and business. Chris worked at Floating Floors and then Owens Corning in the 1980s before landing at Scottdel, LLC in Swanton where he worked his way up from foreman to President of the company. During that time, he also founded a small recycling company while earning his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Lourdes University. In 1999, he left Scottdel to pursue purposeful work with an international mission organization. This endeavor took him as far as Tajikistan to deliver medical supplies to children. He also flew children back to the U.S. for surgery. During this time, he returned to college and earned his master’s degree in 2004 in Special Education from Bowling Green State University (BGSU). In 2003, he began his career as an educator, student teaching at Anthony Wayne High School, then becoming a special education teacher at Springfield High School in 2004. He eventually earned a post-graduate Certificate in School Administration from BGSU and took a position in 2007 as Associate Principal at Washington Junior High School until he retired in 2016. His approach was an interesting mix of firm discipline, supportive encouragement, with a splash of mischief. He facilitated the “Man Up” program to mentor at-risk youth by providing a positive male role model. He was beloved by faculty, staff, and students alike. His work ethic was inspirational and exemplary. Chris had a love for history, politics, and debate. He loved the Ohio State Buckeyes and enjoyed most sports. He refereed soccer for many years while his children played. Above all, Chris found his greatest joy in spending time with his family. A small comfort in this time of sorrow is that he passed away while vacationing with his family in Tucson, Arizona. His absence will be deeply felt on this earth, but his presence in Heaven will be celebrated. Visitation will be held at Walker Funeral Home,5155 Sylvania Ave, Toledo, OH 43623, on Thursday, December 9, 2021, from 12-4 p.m. and 5-8 p.m., Funeral services will be held at Waterville Community Church at 10 a.m. on Friday: 8217 Dutch Rd, Waterville, OH 43566. The church will live stream the ceremony beginning at 9:30 a.m. You can follow the link by clicking on the Tribute Wall of this page. Interment to immediately follow at Highland Memorial Gardens: 8308 S River Rd, Waterville, OH 43566 Memorial contributions are suggested to one of the following: The Lazarus Experience: https://www.thelazarusexperience.org/ or East-West Ministries International 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 3000 Plano, TX 75075 Attn: David Blessing/Africa or Waterville Community Church: https://www.watervillecc.org/give