Wise words from Heinie will live on …
TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
Elroy Lemke, known affectionately as “Heinie” to most for the last 80+ years, died on Saturday morning, March 12, 2022, at the age of 98, just weeks shy of his 99th birthday. Heinie was one of Lincoln County’s last World War II veterans and was the “Last man standing” from F Battery 120th Field Artillery, 32nd Division, Pacific Theatre, World War II – the last man living who had joined the unit, trained with it, and deployed into the South Pacific to fight with the unit.
As a radio operator and lineman, Heinie was on the front lines of World War II in the South Pacific and in New Guinea, and saw the horrific side of man’s inhumanity to man. He seldom spoke of the horrors that he saw, and then in only general terms, but after receiving a VFW Post 1638 Auxiliary Quilt of Honor on Jan. 6, 2022, and being lovingly wrapped in its warmth, then sleeping beneath it, he told Cheryl Coyer, one of the quilt’s makers, that it helped him heal from those war memories. “I don’t have nightmares no more,” he told her. That quilt was so much more than fabric, thread, and batting.
“I joined the Army,” Heinie said, “The best thing I ever did.”
It was his ticket out of farming – both the family farm and his work on neighboring farms since his teen years. He made no secret of the fact that farming was “nothin’ but work” and he didn’t miss that lifestyle one bit.
When asked his favorite part of growing up on a farm as a child, Heinie laughed out loud. “There was no favorite memory with that,” he said. “The only good thing was my trapeze up in the barn. That was the best!” His childhood dream, Heinie said, was to be a trapeze artist in the circus.
While he never did achieve that dream, he found a career doing one of the next best things: climbing poles and trees and anything that would stand still, first stringing lines in the Army and later working for Wisconsin Public Service, where he worked for 39 years. He had no fear of heights and was still climbing the windmill at the Lincoln County Sports Club (which he maintained) at the age of 92.
Heinie often spoke with pride of serving his country, of his work bringing electricity to people’s homes, of his work for Crime Stoppers in Merrill (he came to be known as “Mr. Crime Stopper” locally), of his passion for crafting things with wood (furniture, crosses, the patch board case at the Northwoods Veterans Post, a table at the Lincoln County Sports Club, and so much more), and of the people in his life. He was an encourager. He told people how he felt about them and that they were doing a good job, and not just once, but every chance he got. He wanted people to know they were loved and encouraged.
Last summer, at age 98, Heinie flew in a Boeing Stearman biplane, the same aircraft used to train many military aviators in the late 1930’s and early 1940’s, as part of the Dream Flights program to honor military veterans. Though he had never flown in the military – trains and a boat were his transportation in the service, he said, recalling the 28-day trip on a ship from California to South Australia in the Army – he absolutely loved that flight. Immediately after he climbed out of the biplane, he pronounced it, “Wonderful! I just think it’s wonderful! … Flying was just as smooth as can be.”
In his 98 years, Heinie did many things, but the thing he did best was to be a friend. He talked with people. He helped people.
When asked to impart some of his years of wisdom in a recent interview, such as advice he would give newlyweds, he said, “They should love each other. And help each other. Absolutely help each other. I’m a great believer in that.”
Some of the last words I ever heard him speak were: “You should always help people. You should always do something free to help others.” Heinie believed in giving, whether it be of time or money or just doing something for someone, without expecting anything in return. He believed in encouraging words. And he believe helping was the answer to everything – the best marital advice, the best advice for parents and kids alike, and the best way to build a community. “Help each other. That’s what you need. You really do need that,” he said. “Everybody needs help.”
Wouldn’t the world be a better place if everyone followed that advice? Certainly Heinie’s world was a wonderful place to be, with a wonderful life well-lived. He knew it, he said it, and he shared it – with everyone he connected with, and that was pretty much everyone he met.
“I’m just a happy man, that’s all,” Heinie said. And his words were genuine, as evidenced by his ready laughter and good-natured demeanor whenever anyone saw him or spoke with him.
He took the time to talk to everyone, and everyone who took the time to talk with him in return, came away with a story and fell under his trance of joyfulness. It was infectious, and a blessing.
How does one summarize such a life, and all the stories, and all that he did, and the lives that he touched?
Perhaps it is best said in his own very recent words, said with joy and his ever-present laughter: “I’m really so thankful. I have a good life. I really do.” Heinie said. “I don’t have a thing to complain about. My God, I couldn’t ask for a better life!”