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THE PASSING OF AL HEINZ
Feb. 11, 2010
Source: Mason City Globe-Gazette reports:
MASON CITY - Albin "Al" Matthias Heinz, 87, of Mason City died Sunday (Jan. 24, 2010) at his winter home in Weslaco, TX, where he had spent parts of the last 23 winters.
Al was born on Oct. 8, 1922, in Lancaster, KS, the oldest child of the Rev. F. Albin and Adeline (Matthias) Heinz. He grew up in many small communities in Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa where his father served Lutheran Church parishes. Al graduated from high school in Wellsburg, IA, and later followed his parents to Mason City where he spent his adult life.
Al began work in the 1940s with KGLO radio as an announcer and later worked on both radio and TV, accumulating over 50 years of media work primarily as the farm director. He took a brief hiatus from that work to sell agricultural fertilizer with a local company, but returned to radio and TV in the late 1960s. He officially retired from KGLO radio as farm director in 1998.
He enjoyed the combination of meeting interesting people and his love of the land, livestock and equipment. He truly loved broadcasting work, especially radio - it was his calling.
Al was actively involved in community, professional and service organizations. He served as president of the Jefferson Elementary School P.T.A. in Mason City, represented Mason City's Third Ward as a City Council member, was president of the North Iowa Fair Board, served on the executive committee of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB), was a past president of the Mason City Evening Lions Club, served on the Mason City Planning & Zoning Commission, and was active in church, serving St. Paul Lutheran Church with their education building project in the 1960s and later as an usher at Trinity Lutheran Church.
His interests included reading, nature/wildlife, socializing with people, companion dogs, good food, walking and being outdoors, camping, horses, motorcycles, fixing things, helping others, hunting pheasants and ducks, and fishing. Being with his family was his greatest joy.
Al was married to Janet Rowe on April 27, 1952, and they celebrated 55 years of marriage prior to her death in August 2007.
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