Obituary of Carl William Gruenewald, II

Carl William Gruenewald, II, age 87 passed away Sunday, January 10, 2021 in the Jackson Madison County General Hospital. Carl was born in Memphis, TN to the late Miriam Rawlison Gruenewald and the late Carl William Gruenewald Sr. He graduated from Christian Brothers College High School. He received a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Memphis (formerly Memphis State College). He worked part-time at Oak Hall men’s store and Izzy Rosen shoe store in Memphis, TN during his college years. After graduation, he joined the U.S. Navy and went to Officer’s Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, He served over three years of active duty in the U.S. Navy before discharged. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserve until 1964 when resigned as a Lieutenant in the USNR. He received his Certified Public Accountant certificate while working in Memphis, TN for M.O. Carter Company. He subsequently worked for Mid-Continent company in Memphis, TN before joining The Pictsweet Company (formerly Winter Garden Freezer Company and United Foods, Inc.) in Bells, TN. He was employed there for some 44 years in a number of executive positions in finance and accounting until his semi-retirement in 2010. He loved working around his home and at Brownsville Baptist Church where he was a Deacon and over the years was a member of its Sunday School and various Ministry Teams. Due to Covid-19 the family will have a private funeral service with a celebration of life service to be held later in 2021. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Patricia Wilkinson Gruenewald, one son, Carl William “Bill” Gruenewald, III (Betsy), one daughter, Kathy Gruenewald Watts (Allen), all of Brownsville, TN, three grandchildren, Carl William Gruenewald, IV (Jill), John Schaefer Watts (Elizabeth), David Lanier Watts (Mary Paige), and two great-grandchildren, Alynna and Alden Gruenewald. He was preceded in death by his parents, Carl William Gruenewald, Sr., and Miriam Rawlinson Gruenewald and two brothers, Richard Lewis Gruenewald and Ronald Morris Gruenewald. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Brownsville Baptist Church, P.O. Box 177, Brownsville, TN 38012. All services and arrangements are under the direction of the Lea & Simmons Funeral Home in Brownsville, TN.