Dr. Ernest John Kemnitz, Jr.

Class of 1948

E.J. was born in 1930 in Hobbs, NM, to E.J. Sr. and Hilda Kemnitz. At the age of 9, he moved with his family to Perry, where he grew up. At Perry High School, during his lunch breaks, he and a friend would sometimes run downtown to a pool hall to play pool. He was known in the family for loving to play games. When his older sister beat him at horseshoes, he practiced daily until he could beat her.

After E.J. graduated from PHS, he earned a bachelor’s degree in botany at the University of Oklahoma. While in college, he met Liselotte Schroeder, who was from Germany, pursuing her master’s degree. They were married in 1953. At that point, E.J. enlisted in the Army, and during that time they had their first son, Hanno.

After serving in the Army, the family moved to Schuyler, Nebraska, where E.J. taught high school. He received a master’s degree in South Dakota. In 1959, the couple’s twin sons, Detlef and Dirk, were born.

The family moved to Omaha, NE, where E.J. took a professorship to teach chemistry at the University of Nebraska-Omaha in 1962. Eventually, he earned a doctorate from the university. One thing he was proud of was creating a mnemonic device to aid the students in memorizing the periodic table. His students loved and respected him, and always said so in his semester evaluations. He worked at UNO until he “retired” in 1997, he thought! However, he found he was not quite ready for retirement, so he taught at the Methodist Nursing School for a few years. Ultimately, he quit teaching completely when he was 80 years old.

E.J. and Liselotte were charter members at King of Kings Lutheran Church. They enjoyed gardening, and for many summers worked five acres of farmland outside Omaha, growing lots of cucumbers, strawberries, and corn. They did this not only for themselves, but also sold to neighbors and friends. It was a family affair, so even the grandchildren worked and learned about the blessings of gardening.

E.J. reenlisted part time with the National Guard as a teacher for 20 years. In addition, he volunteered at the Garden of Hope in Omaha and became a Master Gardener. He also played Scrabble from a nursing home via computer with his family in Houston. His love of games doubtless made him the popular professor he was. E.J. died at age 94 in 2025, preceded by his wife, son Hanno, his parents and two sisters, Ethel Thompson and Rosie Kemnitz.