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olf Umbach, a resident of Oriental for two decades, died Saturday morning, January 9 while at CarolinaEast Medical Center. Wolf was 84. He was the husband of Wally Umbach, whom he’d been married to for 52 years.

“Wolf was a gentleman, in the full meaning of the word.” says his friend, George Schenck. “He was a nice guy you wanted to be around.”

Oriental resident Carol Small says she will remember Wolf as a “lively, sweet man who always had something nice to say. He always had a neat story.”

Carol also says she’ll remember Wolf for his “pink cheeks” and his love for Wally, and his Labrador-mix dog, Mr. Happy.

Wolf Umbach. A memorial service is planned for 2p Wednesday at St. Thomas Episcopal Church.

Wolf was born in Breslau, Germany. After a 2 year stint working in a German coalmine after WWII, he went to work for a camera company, where he met Wally. Wolf emigrated to the US in 1955, working as an engineer for the lens manufacturer, Zeiss.

He and Wally married in 1957 and opened a camera store in Manhattan, and later, in Valley Stream, Long Island.

In 1989, they retired to Oriental, drawn by the sailing on their Catalina 34.

But Wolf never left the camera work behind. Even in retirement, he worked with cameras, fixing them in a small repair workshop he set up in his home. George Schenck describes him as being part of “an old breed… who could reproduce and cut new gear” for cameras.

In addition to the taking care of the inner-workings of friends’ cameras, Wolf was also known for chronicling community events through photographs, whether it be sailboats on the water or gatherings on land.

A 2003 photo of sailboats by Wolf Umbach.

Wolf and Wally were members of the Sailing Club of Oriental. Wolf joined the Rotary and volunteered at Hospice. The couple were also members of St. Thomas Episcopal Church where they started Oktoberfest. It has become a popular rite of autumn.

Several fellow parishioners at St. Thomas also recall the yearly recognition of war veterans. Wolf – who in his teens was an anti-aircraft gunner for the German Luftwaffe in WWII – took part alongside veterans of his adopted country.

George Schenck recalls that on at least one of those veterans events, Wolf would be next to Pete Parham, who had flown bombing runs during the Second World War. As George noted, decades earlier, one man may have been shooting at the other, while one may have been trying to bomb the other.

Photo by Wolf Umbach that graced a recent Christmas card.

In addition to Wally, Wolf Umbach is survived by three nieces and a sister-in-law.

Services will be held at 2p on Wednesday, January 13 at St. Thomas Episcopal Church. Afterward, from 3-5p, a reception will follow at Wolf and Wally’s home. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Thomas Church, HOPE Clinic or Hospice of Pamlico County.

Posted Tuesday January 12, 2010 by Melinda Penkava