Helmut Albert "Al" Duebbert, known in the United States as "Al," was born Thursday, November 19, 1927, the elder of two boys born to Josef and Anna Maria Duebbert in Neuss, Germany, located along the Rhine River in north eastern Germany.

Conscribed into the German military before his 14th birthday, he was honorably discharged out of the German Luftwaffe by a Captain in the US Army at 17, on May 29, 1945, after a long walk home from Italy, on frostbitten feet. After turning down several attempts by the US government to serve in the US military service, he later attended Cologne Polytechnik University, ultimately completing his Masters in Mechanical and Agricultural Engineering.

Albert went to work as an engineer for International Harvester in Cologne, Germany, where a girl from his hometown, Hilde P. Kux, working in the secretarial pool, caught his eye. Both were eager to build a new life in the Unites States, so Albert moved to the Chicago, Illinois area in the mid 1950's, followed by Hilde in early June 1956. They married on June 12, 1956 in a simple ceremony by a priest, Father Haggerty, who went on to become a lifelong friend. Despite having a photographer at the wedding, they had no pictures to reminisce with, as the photographer forgot to take off the lens cap. This took 40 years to remedy, at a huge vow renewal service and party their five children surprised them with in 1996.

Shortly after their first child was born, they relocated to Alton, IL, where he worked as a project engineer for Olin in the East Alton Winchester Western facility and later, also the Olin Brass plant. Five more children, three girls and two boys, one of whom died shortly after birth, followed, so the house on Coronado Drive was a busy home.

After a full career with Olin, Albert went on to work as an engineer at Fleming Corporation in St. Louis, MO for more than a decade. That job took him to projects across the country, where he met fascinating people and explored more of the country.

Albert and Hilde were known for the pride they took in their children, home, education and German heritage. Albert was also well known for being a hunting and firearm enthusiast, something he shared with his children, both at the Olin gun range and on various hunting excursions, and with many friends. The downstairs workshop also doubled as the family shooting range, and apples, squirrels and blackbirds were not safe in the back yard.

Albert also was a wiz at home repair/remodel and woodworking. He designed and made all of the tables, desks, wall shelves and bookcases in their home, as well as built out the lower level of their Alton home. When one of his children would call with some small repair or home problem, his response always seemed to start with "just grab a spare piece of wood . . . "

Photography was another passion, and the slide shows of various travels in Germany, family outings to a variety of different sites and across the country were an annual tradition within the family, and tolerated by a few good friends! Family always seemed to be posing for a family portrait, often with little notice, so slippers and mussed hair abounded in photos of our younger family.

As they contemplated retirement in the mid 1990's, they considered buying property where Albert could continue to indulge in his love of hunting. That led them to Monroe County, Wisconsin and the little towns of Elroy, where they bought a farm that includes many wooded acres for hunting. They built a home on the property, with a huge workshop for his woodworking, revamped the existing farmhouse into a bed and breakfast, and moved there full-time after Hilde retired from SIUE in 1996. Located an hour north west of the main Dell Country, they loved the social aspects of small town living and the flow of guests through Sunburst Haus B&B. Many guests became good friends and returned year after year.

Albert was preceded in death by his beloved wife Hilde, who passed away October 16, 2003 after a battle with lung and brain cancer. Surprisingly, he became quite the Betty Crocker on his own, teaching himself how to can applesauce and pickles, and a big soup maker, using produce from the huge garden he and Hilde had always planted. Of course, his idea of still viable produce and his children's idea on such were often in conflict!

After battling dementia for the past five years, Albert peacefully slipped away the morning of Thursday, February 25, 2016. We Duebbert children, while mourning his loss from our lives, are comforted knowing that he is reunited with his true love and no longer dealing with the many struggles of advancing dementia. We are incredibly proud of our father, who he was, what he made of himself, and will continue to live supported by the love and pride he and Mom had for us, always.

Surviving are Albert's five children: Ingrid E. Duebbert of Houston, Texas; Victoria M. Duebbert (Michael) Collard of Plymouth, WI; Ronald R. Duebbert of Belleville, IL; Maria M. Duebbert of Edwardsville, IL; and Monica Duebbert of Saginaw Twp, MI. He also is survived by five grandchildren: Victoria's three children, Marissa Collard, Cameron Collard and Lucas Collard, all of WI; and Maria's two children, Jordan Balke of Miami, FL and Tyler Duebbert of Edwardsville, IL.

A memorial visitation in Albert's honor will be held from 4 pm to 8 pm, Thursday, March 3, 2016 at Wolfersberger Funeral Home, 102 W. Washington, O'Fallon, IL 62269.

In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested in Albert's honor to the Alzheimer's Association (www.alz.org) and will be accepted at the funeral home.