Harvey Carter

(written in hand of Harvey Carter in 1980)

I was born on a small farm at Meriden, Kansas in March of 1927.  There were two half-sisters, a sister and two brothers.  I was a very fortunate young man as I basically had four mothers and two fathers when I was a young boy.  We were not wealthy with money but we had a very secure life as family was always the center of our life.  We were taught in no uncertain terms what was expected of us and this was never questioned or doubted.  I had a very limited formal religious training, but my Mother had a very complete back ground and was the type of person that passed this training on to her children.  From the time of my first memories this training was a part of her everyday life.   We were never in doubt as to what was expected of us; a Christian life was the only way she would accept.

When I was approximately 15 years old the brother next to me was lost in an airplane accident in the service.  About nine months later my father also passed away.  We were farming about 500 acres besides our horses, cattle, and dairy cows.  We also had hay and pasture land that wasn’t farmed.  A 15-year-old boy and an elderly hired man, my mother and myself continued to farm until we were able to have a farm sale and moved to Chanute, Ks where I finished high school in 1945.

I had joined the Army Air Corp in 1944 and was called as soon as I had enough credits to graduate.  I was stationed in Mississippi, Colorado, and Nevada before going overseas in 1945.  I spent most of 1945, 1946 and part of 1947 in the Philippines or SW Pacific Islands.  I returned to the United States in 1947 where I was stationed for a short time at Salina, Ks until I was separated.

I enrolled in a trade school in KC in 1947, completed training (as a pipe fitter) and went to work at the Muehlbach Hotel.  I was recalled during the Korean Conflict and lived in North Carolina, and Louisiana during this time.  I really liked both NC and LA very much.  This has always been a thought in the back of my mind; it would be nice to live there some day.

After completing my service 1951 I returned to my same job at the hotel.  I changed jobs in 1952 to go to Bendix Corporation.  I worked six years as a refrigeration service fitter before changing over to Supervision of Maintenance.  I held that position for 32 years.

I have three children by my former marriage to Mary (Koenitzer); son, Michael and daughters, Janette and Katherine.

My grandmother and grandfather were decedents of Irish immigrants that were asked to leave England because of religious convictions.  My grandmother was living in South Carolina during the Civil War and moved to Illinois by covered wagon when she was approximately 7 years old.  They were married when Grandmother was 15 years old.  They had 10 children and came to Kansas in approximately 1875.  My father’s father fought in the Civil War and was living in Kansas before then.  They were rumored to have come to Kansas from Kentucky or Virginia originally.  It is believed they came from Scotland.  My father “ran for a farm in Oklahoma when they opened the Indian Nation up to homesteaders in 1898. (The Cherokee Strip).  He never lived on this farm as his older brother had gone in as a Sooner and my dad took his farm in Kansas in trade.

Since Bea and I have been married in 1973 I am quite certain this has been the finest part of my life.  We have a very happy life together, playing, praying and fishing together.  We have our home, yard, garden and dog to enjoy.

(written in hand of Harvey Carter in 1980)

Harvey W. Carter born 3/2/1927 in Meriden, Kansas of parents George and Mae (Hemphill) Carter.  He was the youngest of six siblings.  He attended both Meriden and Chanute High Schools graduating in 1945.  He enlisted in the Army Air Corp at age 17 (World War II) in 1944 – 1947 serving as a gunman and radio operator.  He later served in the Korean Conflict in Engineering Communications outfit, being released in 1951.  He was employed by the Bendix Honeywell Corporation for 33 years retiring as Heating and Cooling Environmental Supervisor.

He was married in 1947 to Mary Koenitzer for 22 years.  Three children came from this union; Michael Carter (Sue), Janette Brady (Jerry) and Katherine Carter.  In 1973 he married his second wife, Beatrice (Sveen).  They enjoyed life together for 42 years until her death in 2015.  During their time together, they traveled to all the continents except Antarctica resulting in over 50 photo albums detailing their excursions.  Harvey also continued to fish, and hunt quail & pheasant with many friends from church and work.  In his later years he spent most of his time reading books.  It was not unusual for him to read 2 or 3 novels in a week.

Harvey was very active in his church throughout his adult life.  He attended Sunday School, helped at church camps and missions and oversaw many maintenance issues in both the St. Mark’s Methodist Church in his early days and at the Lutheran Church later on.  He believed that if you tried to follow the rules, most things would go well in your life. He maintained a mostly positive attitude overcoming many health issues from cancer to heart to diabetes.  He sometimes came across as a grumpy old man, but the personnel at the care facility all seemed to love him seeing through that to the warm loving man he really was. The family often referred to him as the Energizer Bunny as he seemed to always bounce back.  He was never one to complain about most anything.  When asked, “How are you today?”; regardless of what was going on, he would reply, “I’m fine.”  He looked forward to all the visits he received from friends, clergy and especially his favorite niece, Doris.  He didn’t like to tell people goodbye, he instead would bid them to “Be Good’.

Harvey Carter passed peacefully from his Earthly journey on Sunday June 17, 2018 at the age of 91 with family by his side.  He was preceded in death by his parents, Sisters; Fern, Mildred & Rachael, and brothers Russell and Robert.  Visitation will be held on Friday, June 22, 2018 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM at the Overland Park Lutheran Church, 7810 W 79th St, Overland Park, KS 66204.  Graveside Service will be at the Meriden Cemetery Saturday, June 23rd, 2018 at 9:30 AM and then a Celebration of Life will be held at the Overland Park Lutheran Church from 11:30 -12:30, followed by Harvey’s favorite repast, fried chicken dinner for friends and family.

Donations are requested to the Johnson County Library Home Connect Services and the Overland Park Lutheran Church.