BUIKAT, Ernst (Ernie) Robert

The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona, Wednesday, November 05, 2014 Ernst "Ernie" Robert Buikat of Houston, Texas, passed away on Sunday Oct. 19, 2014. He was 89 years old and born July 21, 1925 in Neuwiese, Kreis Labiau, Ostpreussen (East Prussia). He was married to Grace Elizabeth (Zufall) for 52 years before her passing in 2010. He was a resident of Prescott Valley, Arizona, from 1994 until 2011. He is survived by his daughters, Sandra Koehnke of Yorba Linda, California, and Tina Buikat of Houston, Texas; his grandson Garrett Collins; and great-grandson Jonah Collins of Santa Clarita, California. Ernst grew up on a farm in rural East Prussia with his father Gustav Heinrich Buikat, mother Emma Buikat (Rasch) and older sister Charlotte Buikat. Ernst worked on the farm and attended school, but also enjoyed building things such a bicycle, a wine still and a homemade battery. At the age of 17, Ernst was drafted into the German army to serve in WWII and eventually was captured as an American prisoner of war. He was transferred by boat to the U.S. and lived as a P.O.W. in the Provo, Utah, area. After the war was over, he was sent back to England and then to Germany (Kamp Lintfort where his mother and sister were then living) where he lived until he immigrated to the U.S. in the late 1950s. His immigration was sponsored by a Methodist church in Meadville, Pennsylvania, and in Meadville he apprenticed as machinist. During this time, Ernst went to night classes to finish high school, and it was in Meadville that he met Grace Zufall who worked as a nurse at the local hospital and they were married on Nov. 1, 1957. Ernst was 33 at the time of their marriage and Grace was 31. In 1960, Ernst and his wife and two young daughters, Sandra and Tina, moved to Albany, Oregon and Ernst worked in a local wood plant. Eventually he and his family would live in Waverly, Virginia, Oakridge, Oregon, and Salem, Oregon. Ernst and Grace also lived in Eugene, Oregon, Las Vegas, New Mexico, and in 1994, they moved to Prescott Valley, Arizona. Ernst lived in Prescott Valley until 2011 when he moved to Houston, Texas to live with his daughter Tina. Ernst was a self-taught engineer and worked with several press-board and particle board plants both inside and outside of the country including one in Russia during the 1970s. After retiring from has last job, Ernst continued to travel and work as a consultant for plants in the U.S., Canada, Australia. Ernst always enjoyed "shooting the bull" and telling stories about his time as a P.O.W. in Utah and about his travels and jobs. He was a supervisor at many of his jobs but he thought of himself as common man and always identified with laborers and union workers. At home, Ernst never left anything unfixed and was always willing to help friends and neighbors with anything that they needed to have fixed. One of Ernst's favorite quotes (he truly enjoyed sharing wise and pithy sayings) was "When all is said and done, there is a lot more said than done," and there is much more to say about Ernst but not enough room to say it. No services for Ernst are planned, but his two daughters will have a private gathering at Tina Buikat's home with nearby friends to share stories and remember dad/Ernie - and continue his legacy of storytelling. Information provided by survivors.