Isadore "Ike" Appelhanz

Isadore "Ike" Appelhanz, age 97, of Topeka, KS, passed away at the Topeka VA Hospital on Monday, December 4, 2023.

He was born the son of Jacob J. and Barbara Marie (Hefner) Appelhanz on June 28, 1926, on a small farm west of Topeka, KS.   He attended St. Joseph grade school and was a 1944 graduate from Capitol Catholic High School. He sold newspapers as a child.   After high school he worked for Seymour Packing Co.  He then enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II, serving from 1944 until his discharge in 1946 as a Seaman First Class.  While in the Navy he served on the U.S. Navy Armed Guard of which he was very proud.  He served on three different ships as a Navy Gunner.  He joined the Army Reserve and in 1969 he graduated from the Command and General College at Ft. Leavenworth.  Ike retired in 1979 as a Lieutenant Colonel from the Army Reserve.

After the service he attended Washburn University and later graduated from KU in 1950.  After his graduation he worked as a Microbiologist for the VA Hospital until his retirement in 1984.

He was a charter member of Christ the King Catholic Church and a member of the Adoration Society.  Ike was also a member of Knights of Columbus Council #8411 and the James W. Gibbons Assembly of the Forth Degree Knights of Columbus.  He enjoyed gardening with his brother Leonard and in his back yard. Ike loved to feed the birds, do volunteer work, was a great storyteller and played the harmonica.

He was a member of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia and enjoyed speaking to groups and schools about his German heritage.  He was an avid genealogist and helped others research their ancestry.  Most of all he will be remembered as a family man who enjoyed his children and grandchildren, always had a great sense of humor and would always be available to help others.

He married Patricia Evans and they had eight children and later divorced.  He married Sara Brinell and they had one daughter.  He is survived by three sons, Fred Appelhanz, Michael (Cindy) Appelhanz, Daniel (Denise) Appelhanz, and four daughters Christine (Ron) Finn, Janet Shaw, Amy (John A.) Tompkins, Elizabeth (Scott) Gilchrist, 18 grandchildren, Mallory, Jessica, Zachary, Kelsie, Angie, Ben, Juliane, Jason, Jimmy, Michelle, Calvin, Anna, Clint, John Jr., Elaine, Eric, Amber, Christian and Austin, numerous great-grandchildren, and one great-great granddaughter, and a brother Leonard Appelhanz.   He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Patricia Appelhanz, wife Sara Appelhanz, two son, Roderick and John Appelhanz, and five brothers, Paul, Ralph, Raymond, Adam, and his twin Theodore, and two sisters Eva Berwett and Mary Catherine Allen.

Ike will lie in state on Monday, December 11, 2023, from 9:00-9:45 A.M., followed by a Christ the King Knights of Columbus Council #8411 rosary and a James W. Gibbons 4th Degree Chalice Ceremony to follow at Christ the King Catholic Church.

Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 A.M., at the church. Burial with Ft. Riley military honors will follow at Mt. Calvary Cemetery.

Memorial contributions can be made in Ike's memory to Disabled American Veterans (DAV), 2200 SW Gage Blvd, Topeka, KS 66622, Let's Help, 200 S. Kansas Ave., Topeka, KS 66603, and/or Special Olympics Kansas, 5280 Foxridge Drive, Mission, KS 66202. Contributions can be left or mailed to the funeral home.

To share a memory or to leave condolences, please visit, www.brennanmathenafh.com.

Arrangements entrusted to Brennan-Mathena Funeral Home, 800 SW 6th Ave., Topeka, KS 66603.