Helmut Erich Kister

Age 84, of Oakwood, passed away peacefully on Saturday, September 18, 2021, at Hospice of Dayton. He was born November 20, 1936, in Eichenzell, Germany, to the late Emil and Elisabeth Kister. In 1954, at the age of 17, he immigrated to Tipp City, Ohio, with his parents and with his 4 siblings Paul (Joyce) Kister, Trudy (Victor) Sarabia, Ernst (Susan) Kister, and Beatrix (Bob) Kister, all of whom survive him. He became a US Citizen in 1959.

Helmut leaves behind his beloved wife of 55 years, Patricia (Pat) Kister, his brother-in-law, Charles (Sun Cha) Reed, numerous nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

Helmut was fiercely proud of his 3 sons, Erich (Erin) Kister, Gregory (Karin) Kister and Michael (Darlene) Kister, his grandsons Nickolas (Brenda) Kister and Jordan Kister, and his great-granddaughters, Mia Lee Kister and Camila Lee Kister.

Helmut began working in Tipp City at the AO Smith Company, but decided he wanted a better long term future for his family. He attended Sinclair Community College, graduating with an Associate of Applied Science degree. He founded his own brokerage, Three Star Realty in the mid-70’s. During his real estate career, Helmut was one of the early participants in the revitalization of the Oregon District. Helmut and his family lovingly restored several homes in the district, and enjoyed touring the community in his later years. In the early 80’s he transitioned his professional focus to Insurance and Investments where he served his clients until his retirement in 1996.

Helmut was extremely proud of his German heritage. He was a life-long member of the German Club Edelweiss and was President of the club for more than 10 years. He was the driving force behind the construction of the “new” clubhouse in 1974. As President of Edelweiss, he was instrumental in the Club hosting numerous soccer tournaments, bringing in teams from the surrounding states as well as teams from Germany.

Soccer was his passion. In his youth, he played for FC Britannia in his hometown of Eichenzell, and he faithfully followed his favorite team, Bayern München, throughout his life. He thoroughly enjoyed the time he spent coaching St Anthony CYO soccer and other youth soccer leagues throughout the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. He delighted in sharing his love for the beautiful game with a new generation. After immigrating to the US, Helmut played on the Edelweiss soccer team and later the Edelweiss Old Timers team. The highlight of his career was being chosen to try out for the United States Soccer team in 1958.

In 1978 the Edelweiss Old Timers team toured Germany. The team visited the home towns of several Edelweiss players, participating in matches against the local Old Timer teams. The highlight of the trip was attending the Oktoberfest as a guest of the city of Augsburg, Dayton’s Sister City. During their stay, the Edelweiss team played in the famous Rosenau Stadium in Augsburg, against an all-star team of former German National Team players. The friendly game was attended by Dignitaries and guests including then Dayton Mayor, James McGee and Hans Breuer, the Oberbürgermeister of Augsburg.

In 1974, Helmut was one of the founding members of the International Festival (now known as the Dayton World A’fair) and was Chairman of Deutschland, the organization that coordinated the activities of the 3 Dayton-area German clubs for the Festival.

He was a member of the Dayton Liederkranz-Turnerverein Club and for many years was a singer in the Liederkranz Men’s Choir, participating in and helping to host regional concerts and Sängerfests. In 2005 he helped to arrange a tour to Germany for the Liederkranz Choir to sing with numerous German Choirs, in various venues around the country.

In 2003 a German Singing Society flag was brought to Dayton Liederkranz. The flag had apparently been brought home by a US military person after WWII. The flag’s owners asked Liederkranz to see if they could arrange to have the flag returned to the Saengerkranz Waldau/Wiedersbach in Waldau, Germany. Helmut and Lois Lynch, Dayton Liederkranz Music Director, volunteered to make the journey to Waldau to return this precious artifact. The whole town welcomed them with parades, dinners and ceremonies, thereby establishing a friendship between the two singing societies. In 2005, Waldau was one of the places the Dayton Liederkranz Choir sang during their tour of Germany.

Helmut loved cooking and was the Kitchen Manager for Liederkranz for a number of years, creating special themed dinners and memorable meals.

Helmut enjoyed collecting beer steins and was a member of Stein Collectors International (SCI) and former President of the Western Ohio Stein Jaegers, a club devoted to beer stein and German culture enthusiasts. He brought in speakers from around the country to present interesting and informative talks on steins and German drinking vessels.

Helmut and Pat loved to travel to new places, meeting people and making new friends along the way. They especially enjoyed their trips to China, Russia, and South America with friends from Dayton, but most of all they loved returning to his beloved Germany, especially his hometown of Eichenzell, spending many happy hours there with friends and family.

Helmut has been described in many ways including “unique” and “dynamic”. Mostly, he was passionate about life and love and extremely loyal to the people, causes, and communities he cared deeply about. He will be missed by many.

Helmut’s life will be celebrated at Tobias Funeral Home, 5471 Far Hills Ave., Dayton, on Friday October 8th. Visitation will be at 11:00am, with the funeral at noon, followed by a luncheon gathering of family and friends at Tobias. The family requests that masks be worn. There will be a private burial service on Saturday at David’s Cemetery. In lieu of flowers or gifts, donations can be made to Hospice of Dayton.