Jack Englert Sr.

On October 16, 1928, Jack was born on the farm of his parents, Emil and Lily Englert, in Sunol, Nebraska. His parents both were from large families, and Jack grew up surrounded by many uncles, aunts, and cousins. His Uncle Frank Englert owned the Lodgepole Opera House where Jack attended traveling vaudeville shows. His Uncle Bill Englert owned the saloon in Lodgepole where Jack bought candy with nickels received from his grandfather. Weekend barn dances were a common event. Many relatives came to his family's farm for Sunday dinner to enjoy the cooking of his mother. Every Saturday afternoon, Jack and his mother would go to Sidney to see the week's new cartoons, serials, and films at the movie theater. Jack developed a love for movies that would last his entire life. In the 1930s, Jack experienced the huge dust storms of the Depression years.

Jack attended the Sunol Unified School, which housed 1st grade through 12th grade in the same building. In high school, he acted in school plays and played the trumpet. Jack was a member of the largest graduating class in the history of the Sunol school--thirteen seniors.

In 1947, Jack suffered a crushed foot in a farming accident. He had a long recovery and an extended period of time on crutches. In 1947-1948, Jack attended Abilene Christian College in Texas with a friend from Nebraska. Jack and his friend lived in a trailer in the married students housing, because Jack's continued use of crutches prevented him from living in the student dormitory due to its stairs. After his freshman year, Jack returned to Nebraska. He began to work in Dalton's Men's Clothing Store in Sidney.

In 1949, Jack met the love of his life, Elaine Ochsner, who was working as the secretary of the Commandant of the Sioux Ordnance Depot located outside of Sidney. On April 29, 1951, Jack and Elaine were married in the Sidney Methodist Church. For their honeymoon, they drove the 1949 Packard of Jack's father on a road trip to Denver and Santa Fe, where Jack's sister, Virginia, and her husband lived.

At the time of his marriage, Jack was classified as 4F due to his foot injury, and therefore, was not eligible for military service. The crisis in the early phase of the Korean War led to Jack's reclassification as 1A and being drafted into the Army just two months after marrying Elaine.

Jack went through Basic Training at Ft. Lee, Virginia. He was an Expert Marksman with the M-1 rifle and the best shot in his company. Officers and Sergeants borrowed Jack's rifle for their qualifications on the shooting range, because Jack had sighted his rifle so well.

Jack traveled to Korea on the Marine Lynx, a World War II troop ship with 5,000 other soldiers. The ship sailed through a huge storm, which restricted the troops to their bunks for days. On January 1, 1952, Jack arrived in Korea. For five days, Jack lived in a camp of tents with other newly arrived soldiers awaiting assignment. Jack eventually was sent to the 929th Quartermaster Company based in the 55th Quartermaster Base Depot in Pusan. Jack received the Commendation Medal for meritorious service due to his role in preventing the South Korean government from stealing materials worth many thousands of dollars. Jack also received the Korean Service Medal with three Bronze Service Stars, the United Nations Service Medal, and a Republic of Korea Unit Citation. Jack was proud of his service in the Korean War and a Korean War Veteran hat was a standard part of his wardrobe.

After his military service, Jack returned to Sidney, Nebraska. He again worked in the men's clothing store. He also sold tickets at the Sidney Drive-In Theater, which allowed Jack and Elaine to attend movies for free.

In 1957, Jack and his family moved from Sidney to Englewood, Colorado to be near Jack's parents who had retired to Englewood after selling the family farm in 1952. Jack worked in the Parts Department of Burt Chevrolet in Englewood for nine years. After leaving Burt Chevrolet, Jack worked for twenty-five years in the regional parts warehouse of General Motors until his retirement.

In the early 1970s, Jack developed a passion for antique bottles. Jack and Elaine excavated the sites of old dumps, traveled to antique bottle shows across the country, and attended flea markets in search of antique bottles. Jack and Elaine were active members of the Antique Bottle Club of Colorado for many years. Jack won several Best of Show Blue Ribbons for his display, "Soda Splendor," in antique bottle shows in Denver, Grand Junction, and Cheyenne. Jack's interest expanded from bottles to antique oil lamps, corkscrews, tools, and many other types of antiques. The house of Jack and Elaine became a small museum overflowing with antiques, including one of the foremost collections of mid-nineteenth century soda bottles in the country.

Jack was an avid landscape photographer. Jack and Elaine took annual trips to New England for the fall foliage and an antique show. This led to them becoming honorary members of an antique bottle club in Vermont. They also greatly enjoyed annual trips to Las Vegas. In 1999, Jack and Elaine traveled to Germany with their sons to visit the land of their ancestors. In 2010, Jack took a second trip to Germany to visit his grandson, Alexander, who was attending graduate school in Heidelberg.

Jack and Elaine were devoted to their five grandchildren. They attended many games, plays, concerts, and other events of their grandchildren.

Jack is survived by his sons and their spouses (Jack Jr. and Cilla of Centennial and Tim and Paula of Mesa, Arizona), five grandchildren (Amy of Broomfield, Alexander of Princeton, New Jersey, Greg of Littleton, Philip of Morro Bay, California, and Katherine of Washington, D.C.), and two great-grandchildren (Rosa and Arthur Englert of Princeton).

A funeral service for Jack will be held Wednesday, January 11, 2023 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM at Olinger Chapel Hill Mortuary & Cemetery, 6601 South Colorado Blvd, Centennial, CO 80121. A committal service will occur Wednesday, January 11, 2023 from 12:00 PM to 12:30 PM at Ft. Logan National Cemetery, 4400 W. Kenyon Ave., Denver, CO 80236.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.olingerchapelhill.com for the Englert family.