Kenneth Gene Brecht – dedicated husband, father, grandfather and friend – went home to Jesus peacefully on February 12, 2024 in Venice, Florida.
His family will miss his big presence in their lives but rejoice knowing he is in peace and resting as the good and faithful servant he was.
Ken was born the youngest of two children to Virgil and Dorothy Brecht in Leipsic, Ohio on November 14, 1935. Ken and his sister Joan grew up just outside of town with their parents where they spent their early years living and working on the family farm.
Ken met his wife Charlene (Rikard) at Leipsic High School where they both attended school. They married on June 3, 1956 in Belmore, Ohio surrounded by family and friends. Ken and Charlene settled in Weston, Ohio building their first home and raising their three girls, Rhonda, Cheryl and Michele. He was an active member and leader in their community and church.
Ken, along with his business partner and friend, Gerald Smith, built two thriving businesses in Weston: Lawndale Mobile Home Plaza and Weston Poultry Farm. Ken was known to work sunrise to sundown six days a week, often in frigid temperatures and blowing snow. He still found the time to attend his daughters’ school activities and take them on yearly vacations: camping trips often in the back of an egg delivery truck, road trips to the beach and extended tours out West.
Ken, an avid sports fan, was a diehard Otsego High School supporter attending his girls’ and grandson’s sporting events. But his true love was college basketball. For 10 years, Ken and Charlene were season ticket holders to all Bowling Green State University basketball games. The couple checked off two big Bucket List items by attending a Duke University basketball game at the infamous Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. And in 2016, Ken and Charlene fulfilled the ultimate college basketball dream: tickets to the Final Four in Houston, Texas.
Ken and Charlene called Ohio their home for over 60 years. In 2004, they escaped the cold Midwest weather retiring to sunny Venice, Florida. They continued their love of travel exploring places like New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, the Caribbean and several European countries. In the later years, Ken spent quiet days at home in Venice with Charlene, meeting up for dinner with friends, watching sunsets at the beach, and attending church services at Emmanuel Lutheran Church. Every morning without fail, he and Charlene would have breakfast at their favorite spot, Peach’s Restaurant, where he would order “The #3”: scrambled eggs, home fries, bacon with a side of toast and a cup of coffee.
Ken’s memory will continue through his loving wife, Charlene; his three girls, Rhonda Hanson of Angola, Indiana, Cheryl Asmus and her husband Jim of Haskins, Ohio, and Michele Adams and her husband Philippe of Raleigh, North Carolina; his seven grandsons, Joe (Erin) and Jason (Megan) Asmus, Michael (Shelby) and Sean (Anna) Hanson, and Andrew, Ryan and AlexAdams; and his sister, Joan (Doyle) Schey. Ken was also blessed with eight great-grandchildren plus one on the way in May.
A visitation will be held at Farley’s Funeral Home in Venice on Friday, February 16, 2024, beginning at 3 p.m., with a funeral service immediately following at 4 p.m. A Celebration of Life service will be held in Ohio at a later date.
The family appreciates your support during this difficult time and asks that, in lieu of flowers, you consider making a donation to Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Venice, Florida.
To share a memory or send a condolence visit www.farleyfuneralhome.com.
