Delbert was the kind of guy that would happily help anyone that needed it and do it with a laugh or a joke along the way.
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Delbert passed away peacefully on Monday July 10, 2023. He was born on January 23, 1952 in Plain City, Ohio to Monroe and Lizzie Ann (Mullet) Kurtz. He was the youngest of 10 children; 6 girls and 4 boys. His family attended the Amish Church, then the Bethesda Beachy Church growing up. He married his childhood sweetheart, Esther Marie Gingerich, in 1970. They went on to have six children: Tony, Dawnita, Benjy, Christopher (who lived only 2 days), Almanzo, and Hanz. They raised their family in Ohio, until 1989 when they decided to move to Oregon to be closer to Delbert’s brother Paul, and have lived here in the area ever since.
Delbert was very athletic his whole life, and excelled at a lot of things. He was the shortstop for his high school team when he was in the 7th grade. He was quite good at such things as tractor pulls, golf, target bow shooting, softball (he hit cross handed in softball and golf) and lots and lots of volleyball. He had collected many trophies for playing on teams and some were from coaching a high school team in Ohio. He was also an avid bow hunter starting in the 70’s, before it was cool. He shared that hobby with his sons and grandchildren. He shot countless deer, elk, rabbits, squirrels, groundhogs, fox and many other animals with a bow.
He worked as a carpenter most of his adult life. Delbert and Esther even owned a bakery for a short while. She trained him to be quite the fantastic baker. He was known (since her death in 2011) of making her recipe of cinnamon rolls for many people. It was part of his healing process and something that kept him busy after she was gone. Delbert would show up to work, the church, his bank or wherever else he could think of with packages of cinnamon rolls that he handed out to people.
Something that was a great memory for Delbert’s was his trip to Indonesia that he took with Tony and some of Esthers family to help his nephew Aldine and wife Rosanna set up their house in the jungle where they would be living as missionaries.
Delbert was a great Dad and Grandpa, and loved spending time with his kids and grandchildren. He passed on his love of sports, competitiveness and his carpentry skills onto his family.
Delbert remarried Sara June Stutzman, in 2013, and gained a whole other family in the process.
Delbert is survived by his wife: Sara June; his children: Tony & Sara Kurtz, Dawnita & DJ Nealon, Benjy & JJ Kurtz, Almanzo Kurtz, and Hanz & Michelle Kurtz; siblings: Sara, Rosa, Manny, Mary; grandchildren: Clara, Josie, Brandon, Addy, Ryan, Maslin, Wes, Elias, Emmanuel, Justin, Marissa, Katie, Chris; and his great grandson:Nolan. He is also survived by his six stepchildren: Duane & Kim Miller, Linda & Rod York, Bonnie & Dan Carpenter, Loren & Stephanie Miller, Wendell & Marta Miller, Annalise & David Torres; 18 step grandchildren; 1 step great-grandchild. He is preceded in death by his first wife: Esther Marie Gingerich; son: Christopher Keith; and his parents: Monroe & Lizzie Ann Kurtz; ; siblings: Andy, Barbara, Esther, Bertha & Paul.
A viewing will be 4:00 – 6:00 Sunday July 16th, at Sweet Home Funeral Chapel. Funeral service will be Monday 11:00 am July 17th at Community Chapel 42250 Ames Creek Rd, Sweet Home. Burial will follow at Gilliland Cemetery. Sweet Home Funeral Chapel is handling arrangements. www.sweethomefuneral.com.
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Delbert was as honest as the day is long, never hesitating to indict even himself to be honest.  He loved people and was always so accepting of the new person in the room. He usually had a smile on his face and was great at getting a laugh out of most anyone.  When discussing siblings in a conversation, he would often say, “Did you know that I was almost a twin?  If there had just been one more.” 😃