Mary Ratz

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/138950357
• Name: Mary Kaufman
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-39422
• Residence: 1881, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical Association
• Residence: 1891, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Residence: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Hall of Fame - Waterloo Region: Bef 2012, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Charity work

Notes:

Mary Eidt Ratz was born December 14, 1856, the first of five daughters and eight sons born to Christine Eidt and Henry Ratz. Henry Ratz owned and operated a sawmill at Gads Hill, north of Stratford. He had been born during the voyage of his parents to Canada in 1828, from Hessen, Germany. When his parents arrived in Waterloo County his father, Valentine Ratz, opened a blacksmith's shop in Waterloo and his mother, Anna Gertrude, contributed to the family income by knitting items of clothing to sell to her neighbours. The first small family sawmill was opened at St. Jacobs, and then a larger mill at Gads Hill which in time was operated by Henry. As the oldest of Henry and Christine Ratz's large family, independent and practical Mary played an active role in the family business, tromping around the bush to mark the trees to be felled by the men with saws. She was also, like her four sisters, actively employed in the household: the employees at the sawmill usually boarded at the Ratz home, and there were sometimes as many as 20 men to be fed in addition to the many family members.

In 1869, a young man named Jacob Kaufman became one of Henry Ratz's sawyers, living like most of the other workers at the sawmill - in the Ratz family home. Jacob had been born in 1847 to John Kaufman and Annie Stroh Kaufman; John had emigrated from Elbire, Germany to New York some 15 years earlier, and after three years there had moved to New Hamburg where he bought a small farm; Annie arrived from Germany in 1842. Eight years after Jacob Kaufman came to work for Henry Ratz - in March of 1877, when Mary was 20 - Jacob and Mary were married. Shortly after their marriage, Mary and Jacob moved to Berlin, where Jacob established the first of many enterprises to bear his name, this one in co-operation with his father-in-law: the Ratz & Kaufman Planing Mill. Mary and Jacob's first home in the city was half of a yellow frame house situated where the large Kaufman factory at 410 King Street West was later built. During those first years in Berlin, when Jacob was establishing his business and money was tight, Mary provided room and board in their home for workers at the mill.


Woman of Waterloo County edited by Ruth Russell

Mary married Jacob S. Kaufman 5 Mar 1877, North Easthope Twp., Perth Co., Ontario, Canada. Jacob (son of Joseph Joseph Kaufman and Anna Stroh) was born 1847, , Germany; died 20 Apr 1920, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-68741

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-137021
• Residence: 1881, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical Association

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/10126905
• Occupation: Japenese and International YWCA administrator and philanthopist
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-39423
• Residence: 1891, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Occupation: 1901, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Student
• Residence: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Hall of Fame - Waterloo Region: Bef 2012, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-91809

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/138950881
• Interesting: charity, story, medical
• Name: A. R. Kaufman
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-39424
• Residence: 1891, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Occupation: 1901, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Student
• Occupation: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Manufacturer
• Residence: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Occupation: 1921, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Rubber Manufacturer
• Residence: 1921, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Hall of Fame - Waterloo Region: Bef 2012, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; industrialist and philanthropist

Notes:

Alvin Ratz Kaufman

Kitchener industrialist and family-planning pioneer, died Thursday, at his home at 516 Woolwich St., Waterloo. He was 93. Controversy and criticism had swirled around much of his business and civic career, but he remained undaunted. He remained an austere, almost aloof figure, both loved for his good works and hated for his unbending stand against unions. His philanthropy extended to the City of Kitchener, the K-W, YMCA, the YWCA and his church. During his 40 years as a member of the Kitchener parks board, he donated to the city one major park, Kaufman and two small parks, Hillside and Huron. He gave both time and money to the YMCA and the YWCA and is credited with contributing most of the money for the two downtown Kitchener Y buildings. In 1968, Kaufman and his family donated a 41/2 acre site for the Waterloo Family Y on Lincoln Road. Kaufman was a member of Kitchener's Zion United Church where he was superintendent of the junior Sunday school for 20 years and chairman of the church music committee. One of Kaufman's more publicized claims to fame was his breaking of a violent 71/2-week-long strike of unionized employees during the summer of 1960. When the strike ended, Kaufman announced that strikers would not find work when they returned. It wasn't the first walkout at his plant. In 1937, a United Rubber Workers (URW) strike against Kaufman collapsed after two weeks, but the industrialist kept the plant closed for four weeks after it ended. The URW was granted bargaining rights in 1945 and for many years was not able to win a contract despite a series of organizing attempts.

Kaufman was a pioneer in planned parenthood, which he always regarded as his greatest philanthropic work. His interest in family planning was aroused by the Depression. His company had to discharge employees, many of whom had large families and pleaded for personal help. The company nurse, at his suggestion, recommended sterilization for the more desperate cases and the use of contraceptives to others. Request for family planning advice soon came from across Canada, resulting in the establishment in 1931 of the Parents Information Bureau Ltd., which still operates. Kaufman spent almost $1 million promoting birth control, both on this continent and in the Far East, and also sponsored experimental clinics in India. In 1931, he hired 75 women across Canada as social workers and offered through them free birth control information and contraceptives at cost. These activities were challenged unsuccessfully under the obscenity provisions of the Criminal Code in a celebrated court case in 1936. Kaufman was chairman of the Kitchener planning board for 39 years and also the first chairman of the K-W suburban planning board.

His father, Jacob, was one of the originators of the rubber industry in Kitchener. He had interests in both the Berlin Rubber Co. and Merchants Rubber Co., forerunners of Uniroyal Ltd. He ran the family company for more than 50 years until 1965 when he turned over the presidency to his son, William. In 1965, he was selected the eighth Citizen of the Year by the K-W Junior Chamber of Commerce and in 1973, the Waterloo county board of education named a Kitchener school after him. For many years, he was president of Superior Box Co. Ltd., now part of Domtar, and was a director of Kaufman Furniture Co., Collingwood, which he organized in 1947. Following the death of his first wife, the former Jean Helen Hutton, in 1971, Kaufman established the A.R. Kaufman Charitable Foundation. The residues of both his and her estates will go to the foundation to be devoted to charitable activities. His second wife, the former Mrs. C. Elspeth (Beth) Hall, died suddenly in 1972, after only five months of marriage. His third wife, Ruth, the former Mrs. Paul Samson, lives at a nursing home in Massachusetts. Also surviving are one brother, two sisters, one son and two daughters. The funeral will be conducted at Zion Church Sunday at 3 p.m.

Kitchener-Waterloo Record 2 Feb 1979 pg 1

Alvin married Jane Helen "Jean" Hutton 12 Aug 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. Jane (daughter of John Hutton and Sarah Ann Powell) was born 25 Oct 1886, Port Elgin, Saugeen Twp., Bruce Co., Ontario, Canada; died 6 May 1971, RR2, Waterloo, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried 8 May 1971, Woodland Cem., Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Alvin — Charlotte Elspeth "Beth" Hall. Charlotte was born 9 Oct 1912; died 30 Aug 1972; was buried , Woodland Cem., Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Alvin — Ruth. Ruth was born CA 1900; died Yes, date unknown. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-326567
• Residence: 1891, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/216516503
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-39425
• Occupation: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Manufacturer
• Residence: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Occupation: 1921, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Merchant, Lumber
• Residence: 1921, 21 Ellen St. W. Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Residence: 1921, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Zion Evangelical

Milton — Edith D. Oetzel. Edith (daughter of Jacob Oetzel and Augusta Schlegel) was born 26 Feb 1889, Waterloo City, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 9 Jan 1980; was buried , Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name: Edna Mary Louise "Mary" Augustine
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-39426
• Residence: 1911, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical
• Residence: 1921, 22 Margaret Ave., Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Residence: 1921, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Zion Evangelical

Edna — Albert William Augustine. Albert (son of Albert Benjamin Augustine and Caroline Margaret Barbara "Barbara" Breithaupt) was born 26 Oct 1890, Racine, Racine, Wisconsin, USA; died 1972. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-297631
• Residence: 1921, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-297632
• Residence: 1921, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Evangelical

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-68740

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/216516512
• Name: Edmund J. Kaufman
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-324872
• Residence: 1921, 21 Ellen St. W. Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Residence: 1921, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Zion Evangelical

Notes:

KAUFMAN, Jacob Edmund

April 18, 1916 - October 20, 2012

On Saturday evening, October 20, 2012, Edmund Kaufman retired after 96-1/2 years of dedication to his family and community. Born at home in Waterloo on April 18, 1916. Predeceased by his wife Jean (McFarlane) Kaufman (1977).

Survived by his children Susan Kaufman (Ron Wilson) of Tucson, Arizona and James Kaufman (Susan Blair) of Guelph; granddaughters Rachel Kaufman Behling and Jennifer Stitt; great-granddaughter Bronte Mae Behling; siblings Carl (Eleanor), Mary Eleanor Merritt (Tom, deceased) and Bob (Bette); sister-in-law Margaret McFarlane (Nashville); many nieces and nephews whom he loved dearly.

Edmund was a WWII veteran, a former owner of Kaufman Lumber Ltd. and, until his death, owned and still worked at Schlichter's Ltd. In 2010, he was honoured by the City of Kitchener along with five other community businesses that had reached milestones in the community.

Edmund was a long-term member of the KW Sales and Ad Club and St. John Ambulance, earning Commander of the Order of St. John (1983). Among his many philanthropic endeavours, modelled after his late parents, Milton and Edith (Oetzel) Kaufman, and grandparents, Jacob and Mary (Ratz) Kaufman, he was proud to mentor the recent creation of The Kaufman Arts Studio.

The Kaufman family gratefully thanks their extended family, friends and Schlichter's staff for their love and support. Special thanks to the staff of Victoria Place for their tender care of Edmund. In lieu of flowers, contributions to the St. John Ambulance, 519-579-6285, www.kwsja.ca; The Working Centre, 519-743-1151, www.theworkingcentre. org; or favourite charity will be appreciated.

Please take a moment to share the essence of "Papa", https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=eVtr7N1TH7g. Cremation has taken place. A reception to honour, celebrate and remember Edmund's life will be held at Ratz-Bechtel Family Centre from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 27, 2012.

_________________

Edmund Kaufman: a man who never gave up

Edmund Kaufman of Kitchener

David Hill recalls the standard response from Edmund Kaufman when he was asked to shuttle a customer after dropping off their car at Schlichter's automotive repair on Queen Street South.

"He'd rub his hands with glee, he'd get all excited because it would be an opportunity for him to talk to people," said David, who worked for Edmund for two decades and came to know the generous, amiable gentleman who became like a mentor. Ask David about Edmund and the superlatives come in a never ending stream: caring spirit, very patient, true gentleman, honourable, compassionate, cared about people and their problems.

"Those were qualities I really appreciated," said David.

Edmund purchased the auto repair/small engine repair shop in 1988 after the owner, Doug Schlichter fell ill and Edmund couldn't bear to see the employees lose their jobs. Edmund was in his 70s at the time.

Edmund admitted to a Record columnist that he "doesn't know the meaning of retirement" and added, "The only thing that bugs me is that I can't go up the stairs two steps at a time any more."

As a businessperson, Edmund thrived. He was always the first in the shop, arriving at 6:30 a.m. and reading at least two newspapers before his staff arrived. Armed with current information, Edmund inevitably wanted to discuss politics or anything pertaining to his beloved community. David said if you really wanted to get him going, just mention the light rail transit proposal. "He hated it."

Edmund was all about practicality. When his businesses were successful, he put the profits back into the business and never spent money needlessly. He was frugal yet generous, donating money for community betterment, handing over cash to people in need and, as one story goes, he purchased groceries for a poor, young mother.

At the shop, Edmund didn't sit around acting like a big shot, even though he owned the place. He wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty, even if it meant scrubbing toilets or cleaning up a goopy mess in the shop and he eagerly embraced change and new technology.

Long time friend Doug Jamieson said that as a businessperson, Edmund was "a doer" a man who didn't want to waste time in meetings when action could solve a problem. If he saw a pop can or piece of paper on the sidewalk, Edmund stooped to pick it up.

Edmund was born the eldest of four children and his father was the brother of well-known Kitchener industrialist, A.R. Kaufman. His aunt Emma Kaufman was a missionary, known for helping establish a YWCA in Japan, a country where he lived for one year while finishing Grade 13.

Returning to Canada, the teenage Edmund started university in Toronto but wasn't happy. Daughter Susan Kaufman said her dad just wanted to work in the family business, Kaufman Lumber where his father, Milton was president. Back at home, happily ensconced in the family fold, Edmund would soon face a three-year interruption plus a major upheaval in his career.

First, Edmund was recruited into the army where he served in Canada, from 1943 to 1946, moving from base to base, looking after supplies. Luckily, his wife Jean, a nurse originally from Ottawa, was able to come with him, always finding nursing jobs near the base and once, as a private duty nurse to famous Canadian painter, Emily Carr.

His children joke that the couple's first fight was because they had to carry everything they owned in two duffel bags and at one point, Jean insisted she needed her egg beater. There was no room. Susan believes her mother likely won that argument.

After serving his time in the army, Edmund and Jean returned to Kitchener though in 1962, he decided to sell his shares to his brother. The two business persons apparently had very different views on how to run the operation.

Edmund, never one to give up, turned his attention to property management and residential development in Cambridge. He owned the building occupied by Schlichter's, a company which was started by Ray Schlichter in 1930, so to him it must have seemed logical to take over the business when Ray's son Doug fell ill. Susan grins slightly when recalling her father making the decision. He was already several years past when most people retire but there was no point arguing.

She remembers her dad as rather hard-nosed when she was younger, a man who provided well for Susan and her brother Jim, but not one to be extravagant. She said he was always coming home and telling his family he had a new idea, often about marketing some gadget like the coin-operated camera film dispenser or the lever that allowed taxi drivers to shut passenger doors from inside the vehicle. Not all these ideas were successful.

Jim, who lives in Guelph, said his dad was "very handy, he could fix about anything."

Edmund's obsession with work never faltered, decade after decade. "My dad never took a vacation," she said, noting how, having a visit meant she had to travel from her home in Arizona.

When Jean died in 1977, Edmund soldiered on alone, living independently in the house he had shared with his wife on Glasgow Street. He still lived there, driving to work every day, right up until he died.

Though Edmund fought against the limitations of age, he did make one request of his family: don't send him to a home where they will make him do crafts.

Even into his 90s, Edmund had not lost his sense of humour.

vhill@therecord.com

Published in WATERLOO REGION RECORD, Oct 29, 2012

https://www.therecord.com/life/edmund-kaufman-a-man-who-never-gave-up/article_df89fa9b-1e97-5ff8-a21e-39cd62c80057.html

Jacob — Jean McFarlane. Jean was born 1920; died 1977. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name: Carl Kaufman
• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-231624

Notes:

KAUFMAN, M. Carl B.A.Sc., P. Eng.

The family of Carl Kaufman is sad to announce his sudden, but peaceful death on Monday, May 6, 2013, in his 91st year.

He will always be remembered by his wife, Eleanor, and his children, Allan, John, Ross and Mary and their families. He is also survived by his sister Mary Eleanor Merritt and his brother Bob Kaufman. Carl was predeceased by his brother, Edmund Kaufman, in 2012.

Carl was born in Kitchener and lived most of his life in the Waterloo Region. After graduating from the University of Toronto, he returned to the area to work with his father and brothers at Kaufman Lumber Ltd. for 15 years. He followed this with 11 years of teaching science at WCI. After this, he completed the Canadian Securities Course and worked for 20 years at local investment dealers.

Carl was a member of the Plan Politae Y's Men's Club, the K-W Sales and Advertising Club, and the Waterloo Men's Probus Club. Always interested in his community, he served on the Regional Landfill Advisory Committee and the Clair Lake Community Advisory Committee. His concern for his neighbourhood, government fiscal policies, and waste management problems were subjects for his frequent letters to the editor and phone calls.

A celebration of life for Carl will be held at the Knox Presbyterian Church, 50 Erb St. W., Waterloo, on Saturday, May 11, 2013 commencing at 11:00 a.m. with a tribute to follow at 12 noon. Rev. Bruce Sweet officiating. Reception to follow. Condolences for the family and donations to The Working Centre may be arranged through the funeral home at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.

Obituary of M. Carl Kaufman | Erb & Good Funeral Home (2023). Available at: https://erbgood.com/tribute/details/8514/M-Kaufman/obituary.html#content-start (Accessed: 15 September 2023).

Milton — Eleanor J. Davis. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-231626

Notes:

KAUFMAN, Robert Robert Walter Kaufman "Bob", at 89 years of age, passed away peacefully on Saturday, November 15, 2014, while holding his wife's, of 66 years, hand.

Bob was born on February 13, 1926 in Preston, Ontario to Walter [should read Milton] and Edith Kaufman. Bob was the middle child of four - his two brothers, Edmond and Carl, and his sister, Mary Eleanor.

He was a highly considerate and loving man, who was known for his wit, sarcastic sense of humour, and his full bodied, almost silent, chuckles. Throughout his life he had a number of passions; from his time in the Canadian Navy, to the family owned and operated Kaufman Lumber Company, the horse shows he judged, and the Sherwood Inn that he and his wife owned together in Muskoka, Ontario.

He met his Sweetheart, Elizabeth "Bette" Churchill Kaufman, during the summer of 1946 at a dance on the beach in Port Elgin, Ontario at the age of 20. They were married on November 13, 1948 at St. George's United Church.

Married for 66 years, Bette and Bob raised their 4 beloved children, Robert, MaryJane, Peter and David.

With a real zest for life, Bob Kaufman loved drinking his morning coffee out on the patio, going for drives, walking his dogs, reading, eating peanuts, telling jokes, writing love letters to his wife, collecting walking sticks, and visiting Nova Scotia (his wife's place of birth)… just to name a few. He was preceded in death by his parents Milton and Edith Kaufman, his two brothers, Carl Kaufman and Edmund Kaufman, and his daughter, MaryJane Kaufman Riddel.

He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Elizabeth Churchill Kaufman, their children and their spouses: Robert John and Karen (Chapeskie) Kaufman, Peter Kaufman and Karen Fox, and David and Christine Kaufman. His grandchildren: Jennifer Kaufman, Ashley Kaufman, Allison Kaufman, Nicolas Kaufman and Jake Kaufman. And his sister, Mary Eleanor Kaufman Merritt.

All are welcomed to join the Kaufman family for refreshments in a celebration of Bob Kaufman's wonderful life at the Sole Restaurant located at 83 Erb Street West, Waterloo from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 20th.

The Kaufman family would like to extend their gratitude for the outpouring of love and support they have received from an overwhelming amount of dear friends and family during this time.

Robert Kaufman Obituary - Kitchener, ON (2023). Available at: https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/kitchener-on/robert-kaufman-6199969 (Accessed: 15 September 2023).

Robert married Elizabeth "Bette" Churchill [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: Waterloo-44573