Ernest "Ernie" Schowengerdt

Ernest Frederick Schowengerdt, aged 98, of Osage Beach, MO, died December 17, 2020.  He was born on September 8, 1922, on the family farm in Chamois, Missouri to Ernest and Alma Findlay Schowengerdt. He graduated from Chamois High School in 1940.  He was married to Geneva Emma Peters on September 22, 1948.  She preceded him in death in October, 2005. They were married for 57 years.

At 21, Ernie joined the Navy and took courses from California Poly-Tech and the University of Iowas where he obtained a pilot's license.  He was the first person to have a plane in Chamois.  He farmed the Schowengerdt farm in Chamois after WWII for 12 years and was then employed by Central Electric Power Plant for 17 years.  In 1977, he moved to Osage Beach to become the Director of Plant Management at the new Lake of the Ozarks General Hospital, where he stayed until he retired. 

Music was a passion of Ernie's life, playing in big bands, combos, and a dixieland jazz band, and playing solo at several area nursing homes and his church.  He entertained many people through the years with his clarinet and saxophone.

Ernie was a man of many interests, having built 4 of the homes his family lived in.  After retirement, he built a waste-water treatment company and was maintenance supervisor at the Knolls and Lakewood Condominiums.  He was well known around the lake for playing his clarinet.  He and his wife were active members of Harper Chapel Methodist Church and sang in the choir for over 20 years.

Ernie was preceded in death by 3 sisters:  Marie Gilbert, Alice Schowengerdt, and Ethel Bolten.

He is survived by 2 daughters:  Pamela White (Sam) and Suzanne Love (Gary); 3 granddaughters: Jahana Utchman (Stacey), Jenna Amato (Jeremiah), and Janessa White; and 5 great-grandchildren:  Auden and Calem Amato, Owen Yake, and Porter and Lena Uchtman.

A memorial service will be held in the spring.

In lieu of flowers to the family, donations can be made to Stephen's Ministry at Harper Chapel Methodist Church in Osage Beach, Missouri.

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