Mr. Arthur Thomas Wunderle's Obituary
Arthur Thomas Wunderle, 81 died Tuesday, December 11, 2018 surrounded peacefully by his family.
Art was born on July 23, 1937 in Cleveland, Ohio. He attended Holy Name High School and Fenn College, now Cleveland State University, majoring in engineering.
It was his cherry red 1957 Chevrolet that caught the eye of of the love of his life, Margaret, when she asked him for a ride in it. They married in 1959 and have been inseparable for the last 59 years. When she had a stroke on Christmas Day, 2017, he made sure that he did not miss a day to be with her through her rehabilitation. Theirs was a love story beyond words.
Art was a jack of all trades. He could build, fix, or engineer anything. His standard answer for anything was “ I’ll make it out of wood.” Much to Marge’s dismay- he built his own Scamp biplane in the basement of their Cleveland home and even took flying lessons to take to the sky himself. It wasn’t until that cold January day years ago when he lost oil pressure and sank the plane in Tampa Bay. As the plane hit the water he said “if I die in this plane, Margie will kill me”. He then took to the ground and built his own 1932 Ford Roadster. This time he took Marge right along side him, a scarf covering her head of course….just like old times. He took this car to many car shows and won some awards. Proudly wearing the same t-shirt- “Flatheads Forever”.
Art worked as a industrial Arts teacher at Collinwood high School. He then worked as a heavy duty mechanic both in Cleveland Ohio, earning the rank of Master Technician. One day, a wrench froze in his hand and he decided it was time to move to Florida. His talents with Chevrolet and his attention to detail and hard work once earned him the use of a Chevy Corvette for just one year. It was in that car that he received his only speeding ticket.
He worked as a vocational instructor for PTEC and eventually retired as an educator from TECO energy.
Art could crochet, knit, and sew. He spent many hours making pillows for the Mended Hearts Society. Art too- had quite the mended heart.
When he wasn’t puttering in the garage, sawing, hammering, or fixing- you’d find him in front of his giant TV and surround sound- caught up in old movies. Black and White, subtitles, actors no one knew- Art could quote them all. And watched the same ones over and over. His DVD collection was more vast than some Blockbuster stores. Everyone knew what he was watching. The volume control was the only thing he and Marge ever argued about.
When it came to kids- Art was the father everyone should have. He always had enough time for homework help, to build your science project, or just listen. No one had more patience than he did. But his biggest accomplishment was being a grandfather. Bumpa, Poppa, Bump, or whatever you wanted to call him- when those grandkids called, they were first.
Travel? Well Art never traveled with his kids…except to Disney. He is a fan of all things Disney and took many trips with the grandkids. We had to stay until the park closed. How he loved that Electric Light Parade.
One day he and Marge decided to join Art’s sister and her husband, John and Dorothy Poe, on a cruise to Alaska. That was the beginning of many cruises and adventures. The group ventured to Panama, Hawaii, Ireland, New York, New England, all the Caribbean. Dad had to buy his own tux for the amount of formal nights they attended. And if nothing on the menu suited him, there was always Fettucine Alfredo.
No one wants to say goodbye to Art, he was a dad to everyone. He was the husband every girl should have. No one knows what to do now- dad had all the answers. And we can’t fix our hearts.
What’s your fondest memory of Arthur?
What’s a lesson you learned from Arthur?
Share a story where Arthur's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Arthur you’ll never forget.
How did Arthur make you smile?