Karl R. Stemmler

Karl R. Stemmler, age 89, a resident of Dracut and formerly of Tewksbury, passed away on April 23, 2024 at the High Pointe House in Haverhill after a courageous battle with brain cancer. He was the beloved husband of Sigrid (Burmann) Stemmler, with whom he shared over 64 years of marriage. She predeceased him by 16 days.

Karl was born on November 6, 1934, in Frankfurt, Germany to the late Alfred Stemmler and Johanna (Henz) Stemmler. He grew up in the small village of Merzhausen and was educated there and in Frankfurt. He immigrated to the United States in 1956; served in the United States Army National Guard, stationed out of Ft. Dix, NJ and was honorably discharged in 1963 having attained the rank of Sergeant.  He became a US citizen in 1968. He met his wife Sigrid, who had also immigrated from Germany, in the United States, and they married in May 1959.

Karl had many hobbies and talents, chief among them was photography. He always had his camera ready to capture each family gathering, special occasion, vacation, or the flora and fauna of his frequent walks in the woods. Karl was also an exceptional sailor. He built his first sailboat one winter in the basement of his Tewksbury home, a small Sunfish. Years later he bought a 25 ft MacGregor sailboat, which he lovingly maintained and harbored at Kettle Cove Marina on Sebago Lake, ME. For years he and Sigrid would sail the big lake with friends and family enjoying the Maine summers. In any given November he could frequently be found hunting in the Maine woods; his last hunting trip was with his son to Jackman, ME in celebration of his 84th birthday. In his later years he took up oil painting; his family were the lucky recipients of many of his beautiful creations. In retirement Karl and his wife spent many happy winters in Bradenton, FL where he served on their condo association board.

Prior to his retirement Karl was employed by Air, INC in Franklin, MA as a Sales Engineer for 27 years; his first job in the US was as a machinist at International Shoe Machine Corporation in Brighton, MA where he worked for 16 years. He was a dedicated family man, always present, putting his wife, children, and grandchildren first.

He is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, Martina Witts and her husband Bruce Witts of Naples, ME; a son and daughter-in-law Mark Stemmler and his wife Marcia Stemmler of Haverhill, MA; five grandchildren, Justin Witts of Nashua, NH, Caroline Witts of West Hollywood, CA, Bridget Stemmler, Kirsten Stemmler, Gretchen Stemmler all of Somerville, MA; his brother Heinz Stemmler of Wilmington, MA; his sister Irene (Stemmler) Moses of Merzhausen, Germany and many nieces and nephews in the US and Germany. In addition to his wife and parents, he was predeceased by his brothers Helmut Stemmler, Rudolf Stemmler and his sister Hildegard (Stemmler) Schuettrumph.

A memorial service will be held for both Karl and Sigrid on what would have been their 65th wedding anniversary, on Thursday, May 16th  at 10 AM at Trinity Lutheran Church, 170 Old Westford, RD, Chelmsford, MA. In lieu of flowers, a gift in Karl and Sigrid’s name may be made to Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Karl R. Stemmler, please visit our floral store.