Carl F. REITZ

REITZ, Carl F. - of Grand Blanc, formerly of Cocoa, Florida and Alpena, Michigan age 91, died June 13, 2009. He was born 16 May 1918 to Frederick P. and Betty (Ammann) Reitz in Bingen, Germany, immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1923 and lived in Michigan from 1927 until retirement to Florida in 1997. He served in the U.S. Army from 1941 to 1946 as an officer in the Transportation Corps in England, France and Germany. After his discharge, he worked as an accountant in Detroit and in 1952, became a partner in M.P. Rosenthaler & Co., in Alpena, which later became C.F. Reitz & Co. He was a Trustee of the Besser Foundation and a Director of Panel Processing, Inc. both of Alpena, Michigan. He also served on the board of the Alpena General Hospital, and was a Trustee of the Council of Michigan Foundations. Through his work there, he helped found the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan. He was an active Rotarian in Alpena and Florida, and maintained a membership in the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants, as well as the Elf Khurafe Shrine Temple and the Masons. He and his wife were among the Founders of the Brevard Zoo in Melbourne, Florida. He is survived by daughter Ann (Khalil) Saab of Fenton and grandchildren, Elisabeth, Mark and Ghassan, daughter, Martha (Michael) Thorp and grandchildren Autumn Chicory and Noah Dodge, son, Frederick (Wendy) and grand son, Karl. He is also survived by his two sisters, Elizabeth Thomson and Geraldine Taylor and her children, Robert and Lynn. His wife Jane Ann Gerry Reitz preceded her in death in 2002 In lieu of flowers memorial gifts may be made to the Besser Museum Fund at the Community Foundation of Northeastern Michigan, P.O. Box 495, Alpena, MI 49707, or United Way of Genesee County, 328 S. Saginaw St., Flint, MI 48502. A memorial service will be held at a later date at Great Lakes National Cemetery. Arrangements by Sharp Funeral Homes, Fenton Chapel, 1000 W. Silver Lake Rd., Fenton. Friends may share an online tribute on the obituaries page of www.sharpfuneralhomes.com.