Eugene Frank Timpe, 92, of Carbondale passed away April 19, 2019 in Carbondale. Eugene was born in Tacoma, Washington on September 24, 1926 son to the late William Charles and Olga (Hordich) Timpe. He was married to Sally Ann Madison on February 18, 1950.
Sally preceded him in death on April 13, 1990. He later married Emily Joan Annable, who lives in Carterville. Eugene learned to fly in the US Navy during WWII.
He maintained his love for flying throughout his life. After the Navy, he bought a used Stearman biplane and learned to fly aerobatics. During one flight from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, he crashed his Stearman into the mountains just outside Vegas.
He spent three days without food and only the water created from condensation of the wing’s fabric. Eventually, using a broken mirror, he was able to signal his location and was rescued. He soon bought another plane, a BT13 and then eventually a Porterfield.
None would capture his heart like the Stearman. Having met the love of his life, Sally Ann Madison, he was persuaded to settle down. His dream of flying bushwhack in Alaska or Africa was put on hold for teaching elementary school in Compton, Los Angeles.
That from there, he taught in other elementary schools and eventually el Camino Junior College in Los Angeles. With his Ph’d in Literature, he became Associate Professor of Comparative Literature at Penn State University and eventually Chairman of the Foreign Language Dept. at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, where he initiated FLIT – a dual major program combining foreign language and international trade.
Along the way, he was awarded Fulbright scholarships, both as a student and researcher. Each time he and his family traveled to Europe where they lived in such cities as Vienna, Rome, Munich and Neuchatel, Switzerland. Dozens of other trips followed, some for pleasure, others work.
Despite suffering lifelong back and ankle injuries sustained from flying and skiing accidents, Eugene enjoyed weight lifting, bike riding, roller blading, skiing, sailing and winding surfing. He was a vegetarian and active in animal welfare groups. He was a connoisseur and baker of sour dough French bread.
Eugene played the trumpet as a child and continued to blow on the horn until the end. He loved classical music, Italian love songs, German Christmas songs and American Gospel. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Carbondale and sang in its choir.
Most of all, Eugene was a kind and gentle man, generous and forgiving. Though he never discussed his religious views, he lived the values of the New Testament. He will be dearly missed by his children, grandchildren, friends and dogs.
Memorial services will be held at 10am on May 30th at the First Presbyterian Church in Carbondale, Rev. Craig Bean will officiate. Burial will follow at Pleasant Grove Memorial Park.
Memorials may be made to the Sally Timpe Children’s Fund at the First Presbyterian church or the Jackson County Humane Society. Survivors include his wife, Emily Joan Timpe, two sons, Leslie Timpe of San Francisco, Ca, Stephen Timpe of Carbondale, IL and one daughter and son-in-law, Kathryn and Ralf Hoffmann of Nixa, Mo. Grandchildren include Natalie, Tyler and Jennifer Hoffmann as well as Robert and Clara Timpe.
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