Mary Elizabeth Anthes was born in Wilmot township February 11, 1860 to parents Jacob Anthes and Magdalena Stricker. She was married September 30, 1886 to Ephraim William Willson and the couple had five children: Leslie A.; Ford Isaac; William Claremont; Norma Margaret; and Martha Bell (Marthabell). She died September 14, 1928 and is buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener.

Ephraim William Willson was born August 26, 1862 in Waterloo County, Ontario. He married Mary Elizabeth Anthes September 30, 1886 and the couple had five children: Leslie A.; Ford Isaac; William Claremont; Norma Margaret Hattin; and Martha Bell (Marthabell) Cook.. He died in September of 1950 and is buried with Mary in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener.

"Mackenzie House is a late-Georgian Greek Revival row-house located at 82 Bond Street in downtown Toronto. The house is significant for its connection to William Lyon Mackenzie, the city’s first mayor and a radical journalist and political reformer. The Bond Street residence was purchased by Mackenzie’s friends and supporters, and presented to him in 1859. Mackenzie lived at Bond Street until his death in 1861, and his family continued to reside in the house until 1871. The building was occupied by various tenants until the 1930s when it was purchased by businessman T. Wilbur Best, who established the William Lyon Mackenzie Homestead Foundation to preserve and operate the house as a public museum. In 1960 the property was deeded to the City of Toronto, and its management was transferred to the newly formed Toronto Historical Board (THB)."
The Mackenzie House was opened as a Museum on May 9, 1950.

Rev. Louis Henry Wagner was born April 11, 1857 in New York to Jacob Wagner and Margaret Hailer. After his father's death his mother re-married Daniel Biehn (Bean) and he was educated in primary school. At the age of 13 he was invited to move to Kitchener by his grandfather Jacob Hailer and his uncle Louis Breithaupt. Here he attended Berlin Central School, high school, and then apprenticed as a tanner under his uncle Louis. He later attended Northwestern College in Naperville, Illinois. In 1878 he returned to Kitchener and worked again for his uncle as a bookkeeper and salesman. In 1882 he began working as an itinerant preacher for the Evangelical Association. He married Mary Staebler (1859-1887) on May 20, 1884 and she died two weeks after giving birth to their only child, Louis. He re-married in 1889 to Sarah Lodema Moyer (1861-1941). Louis Henry would continue to preach in Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan until his death. He died in Kitchener on January 8, 1945 at the age of 87 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Leonora Laura Thusnelda Hagedorn was born January 26, 1874 to Ernst Adolph Philip and Maria Magdalena "Mary" (nee Kappler) Hagedorn. She married John Edward Thomas Vogt on September 30, 1896 in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener) and together they had three children: Charles Henry, Ernest William, and George Theodore. Vogt died May 11, 1911 from septic poisoning and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Elizabeth (Betty) Clement Stewart (1916-1977) was born to William Pope Clement and Muriel Alberta Kerr Clement in 1916 in Berlin (Kitchener). Betty won the Bishop Strachan Scholarship and was awarded a full scholarship the University of Toronto. In 1940 Betty wed alderman and investor Peter Ross Stewart (1915-1980) of West Hartford. Together they had children: Janet and Stewart. Betty died in 1977 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

James Kenneth Davidson "Kenneth" Sims was born July 12, 1904 in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario to Harvey J. Sims and Florence Katherine Roos. He married twice. First, to Lyla Patterson Hughes (date unknown) and later to Mabel Alguire Cameron of Cornwall, Ontario on June 28, 1930. He died July 29, 1970 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Janet Harvey was born ca. 1806 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. On January 2, 1823, she married John Robertson with whom she had four children, Alexander, James, John and Jane. Her husband died ca. 1832 and on June 1, 1836 she married James Sims. They emigrated to what is now Canada in 1837, settling as squatters on Queen's Bush land near Hawkesville, Ontario. Together Janet and James had four children: Janet McQueen, James Campbell Sims, Peter Harvey Sims and William Andrew Sims. Janet Harvey Sims died October 3, 1881 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Walter Valentine Siegner was born on June 5, 1897 to parents Valentine and Elizabeth Siegner. He got married to Emma Louise on June 23, 1920 with whom he had three children; John, Kathryn, Carolyn. He was the president of W.V. Siegner Lumber Co. which he organized in 1924. He served on the Kitchener Public School Board for eight years from 1934 to 1937 and then 1943 to 1948. Included was service as chairman in 1948. Siegner died August 15, 1952 and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

Emma Louise Siegner was born on July 21, 1894 to parents John Metz and Helena Schneider, their only daughter and youngest child. She married Walter Valentine Siegner on June 23, 1920 with whom she had three children; John, Kathryn and Carolyn. Siegner died in Kitchener on June 15, 1994 of pneumonia in her 100th year of life and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

Charlotte "Lottie" Mary Ahrens was born in January 12, 1885 in Berlin (later Kitchener) Ontario to parents Charles August Ahrens and Laura Emma Hirschy. She had two siblings; Frederick Hirschy and Florence Louisa. She married Stanley Shupe of Dunnville, Ontario on January 11, 1916. In the 1921 Census the couple and a son, Charles, aged 5 were living with her parents in Berlin. She died July 11, 1969 and was buried in Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener.

Lorraine Schneider Shantz was born on July 27,1910 and was the only child of Charles and Georgina Schneider. She married Lorne Rayburn Shantz and together they had two children:, Lorne Raymond and Charles Alexander. Shantz died at St. Mary's Hospital on September 12, 1993 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Lorne Raymond Shantz was born August 1, 1934 to Lorne Rayborn and Lorraine Shantz (nee) Schneider. He worked for J.M. Schneider, Inc. for 41 years. Shantz moved to Southampton, Ontario following his retirement, where he died November 25, 2009 at 75 years of age. He was buried at Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener.

Lorne Rayborn "Ray" Shantz was born March 16, 1905 in Plattsville, Ontario, the son of Jacob M. Shantz and Mary Ann Bingeman. He moved to Kitchener in 1925, where he met and married Lorraine Schneider. Shantz retired from his position as Advertising and Public Relations Manager at J.M. Schneider Inc. in 1970. He was first elected to the Kitchener Public School Board in 1946, serving as the chairman of Physical Health and Safety Committee in 1947 and as Board chairman from 1948 to 1949 and in 1953. He died January 1, 1982 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Wilhelm Christoph Schneider was born on September 30, 1867 to parents Johann Christoph and Anna Schneider. He married Emma Kennedy, with whom he had nine children: Edwin, Alvin, Walter, Alfred, Carl, Lenore, Edna, Eva, and Isabelle. In 1901 he was a farmer and then in 1911 he went into the business of tannery. He died at his Kitchener home on February 10, 1952.

Pearl Wing was born April 1898 in Shipka, Ontario, near Grand Bend. She married Emil John Henry Schneider and together they had three children: John, Ruth and Anne. She attended the Church of the Good Shepherd and was a one time member of the Women's Auxiliary. She died December 2, 1987 in St. Jacobs, Ontario and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Norman Christoph Schneider was born in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener) on December 9, 1888, the third son of John Metz and Helena Ahrens. He was an engineer and worked from 1905-1910 at Tuerk Tool and Engine company, before joining J.M. Schneider Inc. as a stationary engineer. Over the course of his time with the company he served as company vice-president, president, chairman of the board and as a director, retiring in 1976. He was married to Ethel May Lapsley with whom he had three children: Herbert John, Howard George and Brita.

Beyond his work at Schneider's he served with the 118th Battalion, during the First World War, and served as a Member of Parliament for the riding of North Waterloo from 1952-1958. He won a by-election in 1952, was re-elected in 1953 and 1956, but was defeated in 1958 by Conservative O.W. Weichel. He participated actively in community affairs, serving with the Kitchener Young Men's Club, the Red Cross, the Kitchener Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, Federated Charities, Salvation Army, Children's Aid, YWCA, University of Waterloo, St. Mary's Hospital, Doon Pioneer Village, K-W High School Board, Kitchener Citizen's Fire Prevention Committee, Waterloo Township Plowman's Association, Grand River Valley Conservation Commission, Kitchener Downtown Urban Renewal Development Committee, the Schneider Male Choir, and as a director of the Economical Mutual Insurance Co. He was a lifelong member of the Church of the Good Shepherd (Swedenborgian) and served for twenty-five years as Sunday school superintendent and member of the Board of Directors.

Schneider was an aviation enthusiast influencing the development of related amenities in the Region of Waterloo. He was involved in establishing the Kitchener-Waterloo Airport on Lexington Road in Waterloo in 1930 and assisted with the selection of the site of the Waterloo-Wellington Airport in Breslau, Ontario. He served on the airport commission from its founding in 1946 until 1971 and in 1973 the new terminal building was named in his honour. Schneider became an avid skier in his 40's and was a founding member of the Chicopee Ski Club. He also had an interest in motorcycles and automobiles resulting in the 1956 of a LeRoy car built in Kitchener in 1899, which he subsequently donated to Doon Pioneer Village. Finally, an active amateur photographer, he covered the Olympics in Berlin for The Record and in 1929 was the official movie photographer for Kitchener when the King and Queen visited the city.

He was awarded an honorary doctorate by Waterloo Lutheran University (now Wilfrid Laurier University) in 1966 and a Centennial medal in 1967 on the occasion of Canada's 100th birthday.

Schneider died August 26, 1985 at his home in Kitchener and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Johann Christoph Schneider was born in Germany, in Unteröwisheim, Baden, on August 27, 1831. His father, a farmer, was also Johann Christoph Schneider; his mother was Margarethe Elizabeth Zoller. He left Germany in 1847 when he was sixteen years old and settled in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario, where a substantial German settlement already existed. He worked as a carpenter and later as a mechanic, and by 1858 was a building contractor. He married Anna Elizabeth Metz on April 26, 1857 and started married life in a house on what is now College St. in Kitchener. Together they had seven children, of whom John Metz Schneider was the first.

In 1860 Schneider purchased a 100-acre farm in what is now the Victoria/Lawrence St. area of Kitchener, cleared the land and spent the next thirty-seven years as a farmer. He contributed to the growth of Berlin as a builder, helping to construct buildings such as the Waterloo County Court House and the Breithaupt tanneries. He was also a founding member of the Church of the New Jerusalem, a Swedenborgian congregation. He died December 20, 1900 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

John Metz Schneider was a business owner and community builder. The first child of Christoph and Anna Schneider, he was born in Berlin (later Kitchener) on February 17, 1859. He grew up on the family farm but moved into Berlin as a young man to find work in the Dominion Button Works. It was there that he met Helena Ahrens, and they were married on November 8, 1883 at the Ahrens home in Berlin, Ontario. Together they had five children: Charles Alexander, Herbert John, Norman Christoph, Frederick Henry and Emma Louise.

An accident at Dominion Button Works in 1886 kept J.M. home for an extended period. His future as the founder of a major food processing company started with his efforts at this time to support his family. He and his family began to make sausages at home and J.M. sold them, door to door, even after he returned to work at the button factory. The success of this enterprise encouraged him to become a full time butcher, and in 1890 he built his own plant and shop on Courtland Avenue in Berlin . J.M. Schneider Limited became one of the most important industries in Kitchener, known around the world, its reputation based on J.M. Schneider’s personal virtues of thrift, honesty, quality and equality.

Beyond his business pursuits, Schneider was a trustee of the Church of the Good Shepherd, sang in the choir and helped lay the cornerstone of the new church in 1935. He was a member of the Board of Trade, was an alderman in 1905-1907, sponsored radio broadcasts of the Y.M.C.A. choir, and in 1938 started the Schneider Male Chorus.

J.M. died February 23, 1942 and was entombed at Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener.

Howard George was born on February 18, 1929 to parents Norman and Ethel Schneider. He was married to Betty Louise Becker with whom he had six children with; Gregory, Pamela, Christopher, Philip, James, and Stephen. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Schneider Inc. since 1957. He was also the Director of Research and Development for the company and a member of the Technical Research Committee of the Canadian Meat Council. He died on March 28, 1988 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener.

Herbert John Schneider was born July 5, 1926 in Kitchener, Ontario to Norman and Ethel Schneider. Educated in local public schools he graduated from the Ontario Agricultural College in 1949 with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. He was married to Betty Ruppel on October 6, 1949 with whom he four children: Gretchen Ann, Eric Norman, Nancy Beth, and Michael Kurt.

Schneider joined J.M. Schneider Inc. in 1948 holding the positions of Production Supervisor and Plant Superintendent, and becoming Vice-President of Personnel and Public Relations, Vice-President and Vice Chairman of Schneider Corporation. He jointed the Board of Directors in 1952 and served as a member until 1997 when he retired as Chairman.

Over the course of his career he was Chairman of the Public Affairs and Marketing Committee of the Canadian Meat Council and a trustee of the National Institute of Nutrition. He was served as councillor for Waterloo Township, member of the Waterloo County Area Planning Board, Pine Grove Community Association, the K-W YMCA Board of Directors, the Vice-President of K-W Oktoberfest, and Chairman of the Town and Country Dinner. He has also served as President of the Board of Directors of the Church of the Good Shepherd (Swedenborgian).

Schneider died suddenly on January 29, 2006.

Helena Schneider was community builder and volunteer born in Berlin (no Kitchener) Ontario on November 1, 1859 to parents Charles Andrew Ahrens and Charlotte Henrietta Roth at the family home on Queen Street. Helena married John Metz Schneider of Berlin on November 8th, 1883. The couple had five children: Charles Alexander; Herbert John; Norman Christoph; Frederick Henry and Emma Louise. John was the founder of J.M. Schneider Limited; he began making and selling sausages around 1890 from their home after an injury prohibited him from working at his job at a button factory.

Helena was an active member of the Good Shepherd church, the Ladies Auxiliary and of the Independent Dorcas Society and the Kitchener Red Cross. She served for a number of years on the Kitchener Orphanage Board, and was active in relief work, particularly during the depression years. Helena died on November 3rd, 1944 and is entombed at Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener with her husband who died in 1942.

Heinrich Metz Schneider born on September 22, 1865 to parents Johann Christoph and Anna Schneider. He was the second of five children. He married Louisa Lehnen on June 10, 1896 with whom he has five children with; Edith, Emil, Anna, David and Alberta. He died February 23, 1951.

Georgina Allendorf was born on February 16, 1887 to parents Conrad and Magdalena Allendorf. She was the eighth of fourteen children and came from a family of wagon makers. She married Charles Alexander Schneider on October 26, 1862 with whom she had one daughter: Lorraine Katharine. Schneider died August 15,1959 in Kitchener and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Fred Paul Schneider was born in Kitchener, Ontario on March 14, 1926 to parents Frederick Henry and Ella Daniels Schneider. He attended Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate Institute, graduated in 1947 from McMaster University with a B.A., and in 1949 from the University of Toronto with a Masters of Commerce degree. He married Frances Jean Cressman on July 11, 1953 with whom he had five children: Peter Frederick, Daniel John, Anne Cecile, Margaret Ella, and Thomas Ervin.

Schneider joined J.M. Schneider Ltd. in 1949 working in Cost Accounting and went on to hold a number of positions: By-Products Manager (1961), Vice-President (1963), Executive Vice-president (1967), President (1968), Chief Executive Officer (1969) and Chairman of the Board (1970). He retired from the company in 1989 as one of the last Schneider family members to run the company, but carried on as a member of the Board of the Directors. He first joined the Board in 1952 and became Chairman in 1991, a position he held until retiring in 1992.

Over the course of his career served as president of the Canadian Meat Council and as president of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra Association, Inc. During the 1960's he was a trustee of the Board of Education, and from 1978-1984 was a Director of the Center in the Square. He was also a member of MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Association), an association which aids third world countries. An environmentalist, Schneider was also responsible for planning thousands of trees and actively supported land stewardship efforts in the region.

Schneider died at home in Wilmot Township on September 19, 2011. He was cremated and interred at Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener.

Fredrick Henry was born on August 1, 1890 in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener) to John M. and Helena Schneider. He attended public school in Berlin followed by one year at Euler's Business College, entering the family business at the age of sixteen. By 1907 he was serving as a clerk and meat cutter in the family's retail store. He would go on to become the second president of the company, a position he held from 1943 to 1963. He was also Chairman of the Board of Directors of J.M. Schneider Ltd. He organized the first sales staff and promoted the first insurance and pension plans for J.M. Schneider employees. Fredrick and his brother Norman, decided to abandon the plant their father had begun on Courtland Avenue and constructed a new plant on Courtland Avenue East.

In the community, Frederick Henry served on the Board of Directors of both the Waterloo Trust and Savings Co. and the Equitable Life Insurance of Canada. He was elected president of the Meat Packers Council of Canada three times. He served on the Municipal Council of Kitchener as well as Chairman of the Public School Board.

Schneider married Ella Eugenia Daniels on May 12, 1914 and together they had two children: Jean May and Frederick Paul. Frederick H. Schneider died November 9, 1967 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener.

Ethel May Lapsley was born in Galt, Ontario (now Cambridge) on March 31, 1894 to William Henry and Clara Sophia Lapsley. She was married to Norman Christoph, owner of J.M. Schneider’s Ltd., with whom she had three children: Herbert John, Howard George, and Brita. She was an active member of the Canadian Red Cross, volunteering with the organization for 60 years. Schneider died at Victoria Place in Kitchener on September 23, 1988 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

David Frederick was born March 25, 1907 to Heinrich Metz and Louisa Lehnen in Berlin, now Kitchener, Ontario. He was the Director and Purchasing Manager of the J.M. Schneider Ltd., for 41 years. He married Dorothy F. Kyle on December 30, 1937, with whom he had one daughter, Lynne. Schneider died February 4, 1968 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Charles Alexander Schneider was born on November 17, 1884, the first child of John Metz and Helena (nee Ahrens) Schneider. He began working with his father at a young age and worked at one point in a hardware store to gain retail experience. He was eventually named a director of the J.M. Schneiders, Ltd., where he was responsible for the management of the shipping department. "Schneider married Georgina Allendorf in 1908, and they had one daughter: Lorraine Katharine (1910-1993).

Outside of work Schneider was interested in the promotion of amateur sports. Schneider sponsored minor league baseball teams and was interested in fish and game conservation. He was a member of the Knights of Pythias and was a member of the Church of the Good Shepherd. In his later hears he became a hobby farmer with a farm “The Forest View” near Blair. He died June 24, 1945, in Kitchener, at his 51 Schneider Avenue home and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Albert Carl Schneider was born on September 26, 1877 to parents Johann Christoph and Anna Schneider. He married Emma Gerbig on February 27, 1901. Together they had four children: Clarence Carl, Maude Elizabeth, Mabel, and Florence Irene. Schneider died of pulmonary tuberculosis on August 30, 1920 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Mary was born to Abraham Bechtel Moyer and Mary Gross Moyer (nee Nash) on July 1, 1840 in Cayuga, Ontario and raised alongside her nine siblings. She was raised in a pioneer Mennonite farming family and moved throughout her childhood to Norfolk County, Lincoln County, Pelham, and Cainsville, Ontario.

Mary was also a descendant of Samuel Meyer who came to Lincoln County, Canada West in 1800.

At the age of 16, Mary acquired a position as a school teacher in the Niagara Peninsula. She eventually accepted a teaching position in Port Elgin, Ontario.

On August 6, 1863, Mary married Tobias Schantz in Port Elgin. The couple had eight children: Orpheus Moyer Schantz, Etta Lydia Mary Schantz, Sophie Emma Schantz, Austin Tobias Schantz, Franklin Abram Schantz, Arthur Benjamin Schantz, Florence Annie Catherine Schantz, and Herbert Cecil Palmer Schantz.

From 1864-1865, Mary lived in Poughkeepsie, New York while Tobias attended the Eastman National Business College. She returned to Port Elgin, Ontario in 1866 with her family.

In 1867, she stayed with her mother and brother in Campden, Ontario while her husband travelled to Missouri with his father.

Mary moved to the village of Hawkesville in Waterloo County in 1870 later to the village of Conestogo in Waterloo County in 1877 as Tobias found work in local mills.

In 1884 Mary and her family moved to Berlin, Ontario and lived in a house on Benton Street. In 1887, the family purchased two aces of land from Samuel Schneider’s farm for $1,100.00. In 1888, the family built an Italianate style home at 43 Schneider Avenue. It was the first house built on the street and cost $1,725.00 to build.

Mary died on January 28, 1935 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Franklin was born to Tobias and Mary Schantz on January 12, 1874 in Hawkesville, Waterloo County and raised alongside his seven siblings; Orpheus Moyer Schantz, Etta Lydia Mary Schantz, Sophie Emma Schantz, Austin Tobias Schantz, Arthur Benjamin Schantz, Florence Annie Catherine Schantz, and Herbert Cecil Palmer Schantz.

In 1877 Franklin and his family moved to Conestogo, Waterloo County. In 1884, Franklin and his family moved to Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario and he attended Central School.

Franklin left school at the age of thirteen. Subsequently he worked as a clerk in dry goods stores including R.D. Lang Dry Goods and the Smythe Brothers Dry Goods. Franklin continued to work for R.D. Lang Dry Goods located on King Street West for the majority of his career and was eventually promoted to Head of the home furnishings department.

Franklin’s sister Etta died from complications of childbirth in 1900. Afterwards, Franklin took care of the family, especially Etta’s infant daughter Dorothy Etta Russell (nee White). He helped to pay off the family’s debts and eventually his mother Mary deeded ownership of the house at 43 Schneider Avenue to him in 1901.

In 1908, Franklin stayed with his siblings Arthur, Austin and Florence in Alberta for several months.

In 1917 Franklin was summoned by a letter from Military District No.1 to appear under the national registration at a recruiting office. He joined the 108th Militia Battalion and trained in the local barracks in the Williams Greene and Rome Company factory on Queen Street South in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario.

Franklin joined the Waterloo Historical Society, which met in the Kitchener Public Library. Franklin was also an avid stamp collector and member of the K-W Philatelic Society. In addition, Franklin had a lifelong interest in nature. He was particularly interested in birds and often gave talks on the subjects and led nature walks.

Franklin retired from his work in the dry goods business in the 1930s but continued to work part time elsewhere. During World War II, he worked as a night watchman at a power station on Breithaupt Street. Later, he delivered accounts for the Public Utilities Commission to Kitchener homes.

Franklin served as Secretary-Treasurer of the KW Orphanage Board from 1918 to 1942. He was elected to the Kitchener Public School Board as a Trustee between 1933 and 1940.

Franklin died of stroke on October 2, 1962 at the age of 88 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Henrietta Wilhelmine Bechler was born in Germany on November 7, 1859 to Christian and Christine (nee Floetke) Behcler. She married Christian Rosekat with whom she had several children. She died May 24, 1925 in Kitchener and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Christian "Christoper" Rosekat was born on July 15, 1850 in Germany. He and his wife, Henrietta Wilhelmina Bechler (b. November 7, 1859, d. May 24, 1925) immigrated from Germany to Berlin (now Kitchener) in 1879, though it is unclear if they were already married at that time. Christian Rosekat worked as a tanner in Berlin (later Kitchener). Christian and Henrietta had nine children: Wilhelmine Henriette (Mina), William, Charles, Henry, Alfred (Frederick), Herman, Albert, Walter, and John. He died in November of 1922 at his home in Kitchener and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Wilehlmina “Minnie” Rosekat (b. March 30, 1881, d. 1947) married Ervin Owen Woelfle (b. 1878, d. 1945) on September 15, 1903 in Berlin. Minnie and Ervin had five children: Harvey, Walter, Hilda, Erma, Oscar.

Private William Rosekat (b. February 1, 1883, d. 1947) served Canada in the First World War in the 4th Battalion Reserve. Rosekat enlisted on May 31, 1918. Regimental No. 3137585. William was a machine hand and later a trimsawyer at a furniture factory.

Charles Rosekat (b. December 30, 1884, d. 1911) worked at the Kaufman Rubber Company and was involved in several athletic sports teams in Berlin. Charles married Edith “Ida” Behrend (b. 1887, d. 1952) on May 23, 1906. The couple had three children: Leona, Margaret (Theresa), and Harry.

Henry Rosekat (b. February 14, 1887, d. 1950) worked as a boot maker in Berlin.

Alfred (Frederick) Rosekat (b. May 21, 1889) worked as a rubber bootmaker in Berlin. Rosekat enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces during the First World War on April 4, 1916 and served in the 18th Battalion. Regimental No. 751623.

Herman Rosekat (b. October 25, 1891, d. 1960) worked as a tire builder in Berlin. Herman married Lorna Kumpf (b. 1899, d. 1961) on June 14, 1923. Lorna worked as a housekeeper in Berlin.

Albert Rosekat (b. March 28, 1894, d. 1946) worked as a cobbler in a shoe factory for 31 years. Rosekat enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces during the First World War on February 26, 1918. Regimental No. 3131939. He married Annie Mary Franke (b. 1897, d. 1972) on February 18, 1926. The couple had a daughter named Ruth Rosekat.

Walter Rosekat (b. September 2, 1896, d. 1957) worked as a bootmaker. Rosekat enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces during the First World War on January 7, 1918. Regimental No. 3130783. Walter married Margaret Frank (b. 1895, d. 1980 on December 18, 1926.

John Rosekat (b. September 1899) married Lydia Becker. The couple had a child named Anna Margaret Rosekat.

Christian Rosekat passed away on November 20, 1922.

Charles Rosekat was born in December 30, 1884. Charles was the son of Christian Rosekat and Henrietta Bechler. Charles worked at the Kaufman Rubber Company and was involved in several athletic sports in Berlin (later Kitchener). Rosekat played hockey in the intermediate and senior O. H. A teams of Berlin and the Berlin pros. for several years. Charles married Edith “Ida” Behrend (b. 1887, d. 1952) on May 23, 1906. The couple had three children: Leona, Margaret (Theresa), and Harry. On a trip with friends Chas. Lundgren and Lawrence Seiling in Grimsby, Charles Rosekat drowned in boating accident in Lake Ontario at the age of 26 in August of 1911. He was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery. The three Rosekat children were admitted to the St. Agatha Orphanage on Sept. 10, 1916. Margaret and Harry were discharged on August 22, 1922.

Talmon Henry Rider was an industrialist and rubber company executive in Berlin and Montreal. He was born in New Hamburg on August 10, 1878, the eldest child of Peter Rieder (1850-1936) and Emeline Merner (1857-1940). Talmon had eight siblings: Maude, Idella (Della), Elmer, Loretta, Esther, Eva, Talma (May), and Alma.

Talmon attended the Berlin High School, completing a year of school on June 1894, then going to work in his father's general store before entering business through his first job at the Berlin Gas Works. On October 1, 1906 he married Martha Melvina Anthes (1878-1971), daughter of John Schmitt Anthes (1844-1915) and Lydia Catherine Herlan (1849-1935), and they had four children (Paul, Edward Anthes, Margaret Catherine, and Helen Elizabeth). Talmon and his young family moved to Montreal in 1914 when he took up a position there.

Talmon died unexpectedly after a sudden illness on April 14, 1922 due to complications from pneumonia that affected his heart. At the time he was head of Ames-Holden McCready, Limited in Montreal, and had just started the development of the Westmount area of Kitchener into a contemporary garden suburb, inspired in part by the Westmount area in Montreal where he and his family lived. He was interred in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener. Martha and their children moved back to Kitchener soon after Talmon's death.

Peter Rieder was a merchant and an early white settler of what is today the Region of Waterloo. He was born in Perth Township July 27, 1850 to Daniel Rieder of Switzerland and Christina Goettinger Rieder of Germany. Rieder was one of eleven children which included both full siblings and half siblings born to his mother and her second husband Conrad Kabel, who she married after Daniel Rieder's death.

By 1877 Rieder was living in New Hamburg and was married to Emeline Merner Rieder, the daughter of white settlers from Switzerland and Germany. Peter was also partners in Rieder and Ruby, General Merchants of New Hamburg, possibly with Emmanual Ruby (1844-1883).

Peter and Emiline had nine children: Talmon Henry (1878), Maude Matilda (1880), Idella Rose (1882), Elmer Alfred (1884), Lauretta Elizabeth (1886), Esther Emiline (1891), Eva Sarah (1892), Mary (1896), Alma (1900).

Peter Rieder retired in 1912 and died May 31, 1936 at the age of 85. Emeline died January 17, 1940 at the age of 82.

Martha Melvina Rieder was a Canadian homemaker. She was born November 19, 1879, the fourth child of John Schmitt and Lydia Anthes. Martha went to the Central School in Berlin (later Kitchener), Ontario and attended Ontario Ladies' College in Whitby. In 1906 she married Talmon Henry Rieder and they had four children. Margaret Catherine (1906-2003), called Marnie, was a teacher; she married Elmer Paisley. Edward Anthes (1908-1966) worked at the Mutual Life Assurance Company and served as president of the company from 1959 to 1964; he married Jean Rudell. Helen Elizabeth (1911-1959), and Henry Paul (1914-[19--?]), called Paul. Martha died in 1971 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery with Talmon.

Lauretta Rieder was born October 31, 1886 in New Hamburg, the child of Peter and Emeline Merner. She died at 21 years of age of meningitis and was buried in the Rieder family plot at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Henry Paul "Paul" Rieder was a sales manager at the Waterloo Manufacturing Co. He was born in 1914 in Montreal to Talmon and Martha Rieder. He married Dorothy Scheifele in 1941 at St. John's Lutheran Church in Waterloo. Rieder died in 1991 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Emeline Rieder was born April 27, 1857 in Wilmot Township. The daughter of white settlers her father, Christian Merner, was born in Switzerland, and her mother, Elizabeth Young Merner, was born in Germany. She married Peter Rieder, a merchant and early white settler of what is today the Region of Waterloo. Together they had several children, including industrialist and rubber merchant, Talmon H. Rieder. In addition to raising a family, Rieder was active in the local evangelical association. She died January 17, 1940 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Edward Anthes Rieder was a Canadian actuary who spent the entirety of his career with Mutual Life of Canada. Born October 6, 1908 in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener), he was the second child of Talmon and Martha (nee Anthes) Rieder. He graduated with a bachelor of commerce from the University of Toronto in 1931, landing a job in the actuarial department of Mutual Life the same year. He held several roles at the company, rising through the ranks over the course of several decades. He was named assistant general manager and actuary in 1954, and vice-president and general manager in 1958. Named vice-president in 1959, he held the role until 1964 when he was elected chairman of the board.

Rieder married Jean Patricia Rudell in Kitchener, Ontario on September 26, 1936 and together they had several children.

Rieder died at the Toronto General Hospital on May 23, 1966 following a lengthy illness and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery. He was survived by his mother, wife Jean (nee Rudell, and several children.

Henry Eidt Ratz was born April 30, 1877 in the Gads Hill area of Perth County, Ontario. He was the youngest of Henry and Christina (nee Eidt) Ratz's ten children. He was the mayor of Waterloo from 1935 to 1936, in addition to numerous terms as a Waterloo city councillor and Deputry Reeve, and as Warden for the County of Waterloo. Ratz married Margaret Hill and together they had two children: Gladys Ruby and Lloyd Henry. He died in 1954 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Arthur B. Pollock was born in Linwood, Ontario on May 24, 1877. His parents, David and Barbara (nee Livingston) were both born in Scotland. He married Rachel "Racie" L. Boehmer on September 2, 1902 in Kitchener and together they had a son, Carl Arthur. Pollock founded the Pollock Manufacturing Co. in 1907, which later became Dominion Electrohome Industries, Ltd. Pollock died at home on December 16, 1951.

Marcel Pequegnat was a civil engineer in Kitchener, Ontario, who spent his professional career with the Kitchener Water Commission as superintendent and consultant. He was also involved in the Grand River Conservation Commission and the Arthur Pequegnat Clock Company.

Pequegnat was born in Berlin (now Kitchener) April 27, 1886 to clockmaker Arthur Pequegnat and his wife Hortense (nee Marchand), Marcel studied engineering at the University of Toronto. After graduating he taught at the University and worked for several summers for the Berlin City Enginneers. In 1910-1911, he surveyed land in Manitoba, and in 1913, he was appointed assistant city engineer in Berlin. In 1919, he became superintendent of the Kitchener Water Commission, holding this position until 1957 when he became a consultant until retiring in 1970. Pequegnat also served for 27 years on the Kitchener Planning Board and for 30 years on the Kitchener Suburban Roads Commission. He was president of the Arthur Pequegnat Clock Company from 1940 to 1964, though for most of that time the company was dormant, having ceased clock production by 1942.

Pequegnat was a founding member of the Grand River Conservation Commission (GRCC) when it formed in 1932 and served as vice-chairman from 1938 to 1952, chairman from 1953-1959, and chief engineer from 1962 to 1965. His period of service with the GRCC coincided with the building of the Shand, Luther, and Conestogo dams. He was also Life Member of the Engineering Institute of Canada, a charter member of the Professional Engineers of Ontario, and received their Citizenship Award in 1973. He also was awarded Life Membership in the American Waterworks Association.

Pequegnat married Nellie Elizabeth Klippert (1888-1972) December 28, 1910 and together they had three children. He died in 1988 and was buried alongside Elizabeth in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Margaret "Marnie" Catherine Anthes Paisley was a teacher born in Berlin, now Kitchener, Ontario on November 1, 1906 to Talmon and Martha Rieder. She graduated in 1929 with an arts degree from the University of Toronto, where she played women's hockey. Following graduation she spent a year working alongside Emma Razt Kaufman to expand the YWCA in Japan. She married Elmer Paisley, with whom she had two children: Mary ("Penny ") and Ian. Paisley taught at the Kitchener Collegiate Institute and Waterloo Collegiate between 1955 and 1969. She was also an active member of the United Church, serving as a Sunday school teacher and director of summer camps. Paisley died June 11, 2003 and was interred at Mount Hope Cemetery in Kitchener.

Hildegard Marsden (nee von Boetticher) was a the Dean of Women and a lecturer in the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages University of Waterloo. Marsden was born in Germany in 1920 and moved to the United States with her family. In 1941 while attending Randolph College in Virginia her family was deported back to Germany where she worked in a censoring office in Berlin. After the war Marsden worked a liaison between the German government and the Americans and British and during this time she met her future husband British officer Horace Marsden. The couple immigrated to Canada in 1951 and settled in Waterloo Region with their three children. Marsden began taking classes at Waterloo College and was the first woman in the region to return to university as a mature student with children. In 1959 she graduated with her BA from Randolph College and went to on to obtain an MA from the University of Waterloo. She was appointed a lecturer in the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages in 1965 and in 1967 she was appointed Dean of Women. Marsden died April 24, 1988 with interment at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Frederick James Thompson Maines was born in ca. 1888 in Tweed, Ontario. He married Minnie O'Hara of nearby Madoc on November 9, 1922. Maines was educated at Victoria University, Toronto and was ordained to the ministry while serving with the YMCA overseas during the WWI. After the war he served as Boys' Work secretary for the Hamilton YMCA and as general secretary of the YMCA in Hamilton and Galt. He served for five years with the YMCA War Services during WWII. He was minister of the Church of Divine Revelation in St. Catharine's, Ont. from 1930 to 1935. In 1935 he and Minnie moved to Kitchener, Ont. to pursue business interests. He died April 13, 1959.

Edith Louise Schneider MacPhail was born on April 10, 1897, the eldest child of Heinrich Metz and Louise Schneider (née Lehnen). She married Cecil Gordon "Gordon" Macphail with whom she had two daughters: Jean and Marion. MacPhail died October 4, 1955 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Hyalie Harris MacDonald was born February 15, 1895 in Wellington, Ontario. He married Edna Louise Ahrens on May 21, 1925. MacDonald died November 10, 1947 in Kitchener, Ontario and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Edith Louisa Ahrens MacDonald was born April 23, 1900 in Berlin (later Kitchener) Ontario to Henry Jacob Ahrens and Caroline Seiler. She married Hyalie Harris MacDonald May 21, 1925 in Berlin. Edith died in 1993 and was interred in Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener.

Angela M. Lang (nee Kelly) was born in October 1896 in Albany, New York. She married Reinhold Lang in the same city on September 1915 with whom she had six children. The family lived in Kitchener, where Reinhold's family operated Lang Tanning Co. Ltd, and Lang ran the Magda Lang Dress Shop. She died September 1, 1979 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

William "Bill" Hutton Kaufman was a third-generation businessman, philanthropist and community volunteer in Kitchener, Ontario. He was born on March 19, 1920 to Alvin ("A.R.") Kaufman and Jane Helen "Jean" Hutton in Kitchener, Ontario. He received his education in Kitchener and at the University of Toronto. He served as an RCAF flying instructor during WWII, and after the war ran Kaufman Furniture in Collingwood, Ontario. He succeeded his father as president of Kaufman Rubber Co. Ltd. (later renamed Kaufman Footwear) in 1964, after having worked in the company since 1952. In 1973 he again succeeded his father, this time as Chairman of the Board. In 1979 several companies were amalgamated to form William H. Kaufman Inc. William H. Kaufman stepped down as president in 1986 but remained as Board Chairman.

William H. Kaufman followed the example of his father and grandfather in his service to the community. In 1955 he became a member of the Kitchener-Waterloo Hospital Commission and in 1974 became the Chairman on the Waterloo Region District Health Council, serving for 35 years until 1990. The YMCA also benefited from his participation for more than 35 years: in 1954 he became a board member, served as president from 1978 to 1981, helped fund the A.R. Kaufman YMCA in 1982 and was named Honourary President in 1983. In 1996 he activated The William H. Kaufman Charitable Foundation to fund innovative projects worldwide in the areas of education, health, environment, and others.

William H. Kaufman's philanthropic and volunteer work earned him many awards, among them the Canada National Health and Welfare Volunteer Award (1986), National YMCA Council Fellowship of Honour (1983), Canadian Red Cross Society Distinguished Service Award (1987).

William H. Kaufman married Sarah Kathleen Kaufman on November 22, 1947. Together they had four children: David, Sally, Tom, and Elizabeth. They divorced in 1965. He was married for a second time on May 12, 1968 to Margaret "Peg" Isabelle Forbes.

William H. Kaufman died on October 8, 2005 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Jane Helen "Jean" Kaufman was a philanthropist and volunteer. She was born October 25, 1886 in Port Elgin, Ontario the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Hutton. She moved to Berlin (now Kitchener) in 1911 where she would become known as an active supporter of local organizations. She raised funds for the YWCA and Victorian Order of Nurses, and was a member of the Zion United Church. Kaufman married Alvin Ratz Kaufman on August 12 , 1911 and together they had three children: Helen Mary, William Hutton, Edward Kaufman (deceased in infancy) and Sally Jean.

Alvin ("A.R.") Kaufman was an industrialist and philanthropist. He was born to Jacob Kaufman and Mary Eidt Ratz in Berlin (Kitchener), Ontario on February 11, 1885. He was raised alongside his three siblings; Emma Ratz Kaufman, Milton Ratz Kaufman, and Edna Louise Kaufman.

In 1907, Alvin Ratz and his father Jacob Kaufman formed the Kaufman Rubber Company Limited, which continued as the Kaufman Footwear division of William H. Kaufman Incorporated until 2000 when the company declared bankruptcy.

Following the example set by his parents, Jacob and Mary Kaufman, Alvin Ratz supported, both personally and financially, many community organizations in the Kitchener area as well as endeavours to which he was philosophically committed, such as birth control.

He was Chairman of the Kitchener Planning Board for 36 years, served on the Kitchener Parks Board for more than 40 years, was a member of the Kitchener Hospital Board, was president of the YMCA for 13 years, was a member of the founding Board of Governors of the University of Waterloo, and served in various capacities for Zion Church in Kitchener.

Alvin Ratz Kaufman founded the Parents' Information Bureau in 1935 to distribute birth control information. One of the field-workers he hired, Dorothea Palmer, was arrested in 1936 in Ottawa under the obscenity provisions of the Criminal Code. She was acquitted in a landmark verdict that declared her work to be 'for the public good." In 1976, Alvin Ratz was honoured by the Planned Parenthood Federation of Ontario for his work in birth control and family planning.

Alvin Ratz married Jane Helen "Jean" Hutton on August 12, 1911 and together they had four children; Helen Mary Kaufman, William Hutton Kaufman, Edward Kaufman (deceased in infancy) and Sally Jean. Kaufman was remarried in 1972, following Jean's death, to C. Elspath "Beth" Hall, who died shortly after their nuptials. He was married for a third time to Ruth Samson.

Alvin Ratz died on February 1, 1979 and was buried in Woodland Cemetery.

Sarah Anna Anthes was born July 3, 1858 in Wilmot township, Ontario to parents Jacob Anthes and Magdalena Stricker. On June 15, 1887 she married Menno S. Hallman also of Wilmot and they had a daughter, Lizzie Hilda Hallman, born July 12, 1891. Sarah died of consumption [tuberculosis] September 26, 1893 at 35 years old. Her young daughter, Lizzie died a few years later on March 17, 1896. Both are buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener.

Menno S. Hallman was born December 26, 1857 in Wilmot township, Ontario to parents Samuel Hallman and Mary Snyder. On June 15, 1887 he married Sarah Anna Anthes also of Wilmot and together they had Lizzie Hilda Hallman, born July 12, 1891. Sarah died of consumption [tuberculosis] September 26, 1893 at only 35 years old. Her young daughter, Lizzie died a few years later on March 17, 1896. Both are buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener. Menno was remarried to Martha Snyder circa 1902. It does not appear they had any children. Menno died November 9, 1933 and is buried Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener. His widow Martha died August 25, 1964 and is also buried in Woodland.

Laura "Lola" Emma Ahrens was born in Berlin (Kitchener) Ontario to parents Charles Andrew Ahrens and Henrietta Charlotte Roth. She married George Henry Hachborn also of Berlin on September 26, 1894. The couple lived in Berlin and had four children: Marguerite Helen (Koenig) ; Laura Isabella Hachborn; Rudolph Albert and Robert Carl Hachborn.

Laura died December 9, 1939 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener alongside George who predeceased her on July 1, 1934.

August Gralke Jr. was born in Germany to August and Catherine (nee Krause) Gralke. He died in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener) at 20 years of age from tuberculosis and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery.

Roger E. Gofton was born on January 4,1863 in Wilmot Township to Robert and Rosannah Fonger Gofton. His occupation was in woodworking. He married Elizabeth Schnieder, the sister of J.M. Schneider, October 20, 1886. Together they had a son named Alfred Schneider Gofton. After the unexpected death of Elizabeth in 1894, Gofton married Anna Woelfle with whom he had 8 children. He died April 3, 1949 and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery.

Alfred Schneider Gofton was born in Kitchener, Ontario on March 9, 1889 to parents Roger and Elizabeth Schneider Gofton, J.M. Schneider's sister. He lived with the J.M. Schneider family for a time, worked at the plant, and was a friend of J.M.'s son Norman. During World War I Gofton served overseas in the Canadian Army Service Corps in a motor transport unit. He enlisted in 1914 and was not discharged until 1919. He married Charlotte Elizabeth Braun June 6, 1923 with whom he had four children: Eleanor, Marion, Jerene, and Annette. He died November 19, 1985 and was buried at Woodland Cemetery.

Colleen O'Hara Gildner was a translator, homemaker and volunteer born October 18, 1925 in St. Catharines to Minnie and Frederick Maines. She majored in languages at Victoria College in Toronto, graduating in 1947, and worked for several years as a translator for Sunshine Waterloo Company. Together with husband Earl Gildner, she stayed at home to raise their children and volunteered with the Cancer Society and the Heart and Stroke Association. Gildner died November 20, 2023 and was interred at Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener.

Margaret "Peg" Isabel Forbes was born in Hespeler, Ontario on July 10, 1924 alongside her twin sister, Betty, to parents Millicent Lyall Forbes and George Alexander Forbes.

Peg grew up at the Forbes' family estate, Hillhead, in Hespeler and attended Bishop Strachan School in Toronto. Peg later attended the School for Nurses at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario for 3 years and graduated in 1946.

Peg married Colin Andrew "Joe" Wilson on October 9, 1948. The couple had two children: Pamela and Ross. Peg later married William "Bill" Hutton Kaufman on May 12, 1968.

Peg passed away on October 22, 2016 at the age of 92 and was buried in Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener, Ontario.

The Doon School of Fine Arts was opened in 1948 at the former home of Homer and Pheobe Watson by Ross and Bess Hamilton, who purchased the property in 1947. An agreement was struck between with the University of Waterloo in 1963 resulting in fine arts instruction at both schools. The Doon School of Fine Arts operated until 1966 when it was closed due to lack of funding.

Dare Foods Limited is a family-owned business based in Kitchener, Ontario. It manufactures cookies, crackers, candies and fine breads at its seven plants in Ontario, Quebec and South Carolina. Dare candies are made in Toronto and Milton, Ontario.

In 1889, Charles H. Doerr opened a grocery store on the corner of Breithaupt and Gzowski (now Weber) Streets in Berlin (now Kitchener, Ontario) that by 1892 had become a biscuit-manufacturing operation. In 1919 a larger bakery was built in Kitchener to replace the original plant and at the same time a line of candies was added. In 1942 the Kitchener plant was destroyed by a fire and in 1943 a smaller wartime replacement was constructed on a former flying field on the outskirts of Kitchener. A new office building was constructed in Kitchener in 1952. In 2003 a new Kitchener office building was constructed to preserve and highlight the original 1952 yellow-brick structure.

The company now known as Dare Foods Limited was originally known as the C.H. Doerr Co. When Charles H. Doerr died in 1941 his grandson, Carl M. Doerr, became President of the company and began an expansion program that introduced Dare products in more than 40 countries. In 1945 the company and family name was changed from “Doerr” to “Dare” creating The Dare Company, Limited, later renamed Dare Foods Limited. With the help of his sons Bryan and Graham, Carl Dare continued to guide Dare Foods Ltd. until 2002. In Nov. 2002 Fred Jacques was appointed as President, the first non-family member to head the company in 111 years. Bryan and Graham Dare remain co-chairmen of the company’s Board of Directors.

The business history of Dare Foods is complex: it has formed, acquired, merged and dissolved other companies and its own divisions over the years. One of Carl M. Doerr’s first expansion acquisitions was The Howe Candy Company in Hamilton, Ontario. Other acquisitions include Saratoga Products, St. Jacobs Canning Company, Mother Dell’s Bakeries, Dairy Maid Chocolates, Bremner Biscuit Co., Saputo/Culinar CFS.

In 1960 a sales office was opened in Montreal, establishing Les Aliments Dare Limitée, Dare’s selling and distributing organization in the Province of Quebec. The Western Division was established in 1962 with the opening of a bakery and sales office in North Surrey, Vancouver, B.C., serving British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.

In 1954 The Dare Company, Limited was the first Canadian cookie company to use the new recloseable tin tie packages that had been used successfully in the coffee industry and which have become standard packaging in the cookie industry in Canada.

Founded by Charles Andrew Ahrens circa 1881 as Charles A. Ahrens & Sons on Queen Street in Berlin (later Kitchener) Ontario. In 1886 the factory was moved to a larger location on Queen Street, near King Street, Berlin and employed over 35 workers. Both machine or hand sewed slippers in a variety of materials were manufactured.

Harry Byers was born in Brodhagen, Logan Township on July 31st, 1896 to Andrew Byers and Caroline Graul. Byers married his wife, Violet Boyers on October 21, 1929 in Burlington, Iowa. Violet was born to John and Sarah (nee Murray) in Missouri on November 15, 1908. Together they had four children before Violet died April 15 1943 in Listowel, Ontario due to complications from childbirth. Their children were: Robert John (May 12, 1932), Jean Mildred (October 20, 1933), James Allen (January 20, 1942), and Shirley Marie (April 3, 1943).

After serving in WWI for both Canada and the United States, Harry was honorably discharged for medical reasons in 1918 due to arthritis in his left knee. After the war, Harry worked as an instructor at the Kansas Sweeney Automotive and Electrical School in the 1920's. He was then employed by the Grain Trust to go to the USSR from 1930-1931 to instruct Russians in the operation of large machinery, as part of the First Russian Five Year Plan. Violet went to Russia with him and the two kept a diary of events of their time in the country. Byers lived and worked in Grozny, Moscow, and Nikolsk (now Ussuriysk) among others. The couple returned to the United States and lived in Iowa until 1938 when they returned to Canada to settle in the Waterloo Region.

Byers lived his final years Kitchener, Ontario where he worked as a City Cab Company dispatcher and was a member of the St. Matthew's Lutheran Church. He and his wife Lorraine (nee McKay) lived at 27 Onward Ave. Byers died on July 13, 1957 at the Kitchener-Waterloo Hospital after a short illness. He was buried in a soldier's plot at Woodland Cemetery.

William Walter Breithaupt was born in Berlin (later Kitchener), Ontario June 7, 1894 to parents Louis Jacob and Emma Alvarene Devitt. He received his education at the Kitchener Collegiate Institute, and attended both Northwestern College, Naperville, Illinois and the University of Toronto. He worked at the Breithaupt Leather company, the family business. William served in World War I as a lieutenant in the Infantry in Spring of 1916. He served in Canada in various capacities before heading to England for further training in 1918 where he was on Armistice Day. He returned to Canada where he was honourably discharged in May of 1919.

William Walter married Gertrude Irene Hughes of Toronto on December 12, 1919 in Toronto. The couple lived in Kitchener, and had two children. A son, William Ransom was born August 7, 1920. William Ransom served in World War II as a flying officer in the 239th Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force. He was shot down on September 13, 1944 near Cologne, Germany, did not survive and is buried in Rheinberg, Germany War Graves. A second son, Norman Hughes was born December 31, 1924 in Kitchener.

Gertrude died April 10, 1954 and was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Kitchener. William Walter died in Scarborough, Ontario on January 7, 1977 and was buried with Gertrude.