COLUMBUS

Fritz Kiel, 78, of Columbus, died peacefully Monday, May 22, 2017, in Indianapolis.

Born Sept. 27, 1938, in Columbus, he was the son of Herbert and Julana Kiel, both of whom preceded him in death. In 1959, he married Sylvia Smith Kiel, and together they had four children.

He graduated from Columbus High School in 1956 and attended Purdue University.

Fritz retired as president of Repp and Mundt Construction Co. in 2009 after 50 years of employment. He was involved in the construction of many of Columbus’ architecturally renowned buildings, including North Christian Church, Columbus Fire Station One and Northside Middle School.

He loved spending time with friends and family, and he especially enjoyed attending his children and grandchildren’s sporting events. He loved NASCAR and IndyCar racing; he attended more than 40 Indianapolis 500s.

He collected die cast cars, airplanes and cranes. He was a member of First United Methodist Church.

Other survivors beside his wife of 57 years include children, Kip (Aleta) Kiel, Pat (Becky) Kiel and Jenny (Scott) Hollinger; grandchildren, Brittany (Peter) Davis, Taylor (Gurpartap) Gill, Craig, Brandon, Drew, Dusty and Gunner Kiel, Madison, Morgan and Mia Hollinger, and Jessica and Brittany DeHart; nine great-grandchildren; and a sister, Shari Kohne.

Besides his parents, he was preceded in death by his son, Blair.

The funeral service will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Barkes, Weaver and Glick Funeral Home with the Rev. Howard Boles officiating. Burial will be at Riverview Cemetery in Seymour.

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday and from 9 a.m. until time of service Friday.

Memorials may be made to the Neurosurgery Foundation at Goodman Campbell or St. Vincent Hospice.

Condolences and special memories may be shared with the Kiel family and a video tribute may be viewed at barkesweaverglick.com.