Obituary of Erich Tlaker

Erich Tlaker of Baldwinsville, NY died Wednesday, November 19th 2014 at the age of 86 surrounded by members of his loving family. Born in Graz, Austria April 18th 1928, he immigrated to Canada in 1952 and joined an expedition to the remote James Bay Area, Ontario, Canada for mineral surveying. He met Jean Lefevre in 1953 at an English Ballroom dance class in Toronto, Canada and the couple married in 1957. Erich and Jean moved to Springfield, Vermont that year where Erich had been recruited to work for Fellows Gear Shaper in the area of Development and Research. He retired as Director of Engineering in 1993. A brilliant designer and mathematician, Erich developed many systems that benefited the Fellows corporation globally. Erich was active with the St. John's Masonic Lodge and was a Past Master. He was a member of the Springfield School Board and on the board of the Springfield Chamber of Commerce. He loved trees and gardening, skiing, ballroom dancing, rock and fossil collecting and mostly, his family. He was a strong advocate for education and was a constant learner. He was a problem solver and it seemed he could fix anything. He enjoyed making plans and was excited about the potential of his recently acquired 9 acres of property with large pond in Baldwinsville. He was a devoted husband and father and will be sadly missed. Erich is survived by Jean, his loving wife of 57 years; son Norman Tlaker, his wife Martha and grandson, Conrad, of West Jefferson, NC; daughter Anne Tlaker-Hall and her husband Michael of Gold Beach, OR. ; daughter Jane and husband Peter MacDonald and grandchildren Jennifer and Ryan of Baldwinsville NY and son Andrew Tlaker of Baldwinsville, NY. He is preceded in death by his three sisters: Erika (Tlaker) Bauer, Trude (Tlaker) Jug and Lotte (Tlaker) Muller. He will be missed by family currently living in Austria and Canada. A private memorial service was held Nov 26th 2014. His remains will be returned to the Tlaker Family ancestral grave site in Slovenia in the Spring of 2015.