Kenneth George Kuhlman

Kenneth George Kuhlman was born July 9, 1933 at home on his family farm to George and Freda Kuhlman and sister Alice. The dictionary defines family as a group of individuals related by blood, marriage, or adoption. However, fate intervened and though we are not a family by blood, a bond was created so strong and binding Kenneth George as a member of our family by heart.

My brothers, sister and I would like to share a few stories of how Kenneth George impacted our lives over the years:

Becky: When I first met K.G. (Kenneth George) many, many years ago at his farm, he taught me how to milk cows, avoid kicks and how to make a cat smile. Learning to milk cows and avoid kicks was easy, making cats smile was a bit trickier. Pretend you are ignoring the cats. When you have the teet primed and ready for milking, aim the teet in the cats direction, squeeze; instant smile!

Time marches on… The blizzard of 1978.

My mom was snowed in and stranded in Toledo. She had worked that day and gone to the grocery when the storm hit. We were snowed in and stranded in the country; we had no groceries. Mom called K.G. and told him what had happened and asked if he would bring us some food. My mom called me and told me that K.G. was on his way down the road and to go out and wait for him. I climbed the highest snow drift in the middle of the road and waited. The wind was blistering cold. It was sleeting/snowing, you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. In the distance, I saw a shadow coming down the road. It was K.G. on his tractor. The snow was near the tops of his tires. When he reached me, he handed me bags of groceries. I asked if he wanted to come in and warm up; he said no. He had to get back to his dad at the farm. He turned his tractor around and followed the tracks back he had just made. Kenneth George saved our family.

Steve: Kenny was a quiet man with a unique sense of humor. Kenny was my first mentor and will be greatly missed. May peace be with you.

Joe: Kenny always had a sense of humor and the patience of a saint. When we were kids, I came flying down the path on my tractor with extended axles and punctured the tire on another tractor and shot calcium chloride all over Steve. We thought Kenny was going to kill us, but he just stood there and laughed and said not to worry about it, they were old anyway.

Lori: When I think of Gth (Kenny) I think of a strong man, with a good heart. He always thought of others before himself. He ran the family farm for many years and was like a father, and a boss to all the kids around there. You would have thought all of us would have driven him crazy; instead, he put us to work and stayed patient through all of our mistakes. My most heartfelt memory, was when I had this bull named Jeffrey; he was my best friend. He might have been a bull, but he was very gentle with me. I went to the farm everyday to pat him, made him beautiful flower necklaces until I realized he was eating them! I loved Jeffrey for years! One day, my mom said that Jeffrey escaped his pen and was gone! I couldn’t believe it because he would never leave me. So one day, we sat down at the dinner table and I was tattling on my brother Steve, when all of a sudden he asks me how I like the roast mom made. I said it was real good. He said, that’s Jeffrey! I was devastated. Later, I went out to the barn to see what Kenny was doing and he said he was sorry about Jeffrey, but that is life on the farm. He explained it to me, then he said, see that cow over there, she’s going to have a baby cow and the baby wont be able to walk or do anything for itself at first and is going to need a good friend. I felt better.

I’ve known Kenny since I was 7 years old. He’s never had any children of his own, but it just goes to show, anyone can be a father, but not everyone can be a dad.

Kenny is survived by his nephew, Larry Knepper; second cousins, Lisa Fork, Bill Verbryke; friends/family, Rebecca Drayton, Stephen Drayton, Loretta Martin, Joseph Drayton. He was preceded in death by his parents, George and Freda Kuhlman; sister, Alice (Dale) Knepper; nephew, Richard Knepper.

Burial will be handled privately. A Graveside Memorial Service will take place at Toledo Memorial Park on Saturday, May 20, 2023, at 11 a.m. A luncheon will follow. A special thank you to Rossford EMS, Flower Hospital and Ebeid Hospice Residence for their care. Condolences can be sent at walkerfuneralhomes.com.