Clemence "Clem" Echele, Jr.

Clemence “Clem” John Echele, Jr. of St. Charles, passed away on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, at the age of 83. Beloved husband of 60+ years to the late Barbara Ann Echele (Luesse); cherished son of the late Clemence Echele Sr. and late Dionysia (Vogt) Echele; devoted father of Larry (Annette) Echele, Dianna (Mark) Knobbe, and Keith (Jenny) Echele; loving grandfather of Abbey (Kevin) Arrow, Emily (Austin) Klackner, Elizabeth (Ethan) Blase, Nick (Jessica) Knobbe, Meredith (Matt) Burgess, Avery Echele, Mikai Voss, and Sophia Voss; treasured great grandfather of Natalie, Waylon, June, Noah, Brooklynn, and Baby Burgess; beloved nephew of Olga Echele. Clem was proceeded in death by his brother Donald "Giz" (Terri Mund) Echele, his brother-in-law Lawrence “Lonnie” (Pam) Luesse, and his sister-in-laws Karen "Smokie" (Alan) Burckhardt, Connie Connor, and Candace "Candy" VanBrocklin,

Born and raised in Portage des Sioux, Clem was extremely proud of his hometown. He was an active leader in the community where he was Alderman and Mayor. Clem was very involved with the Jaycees, church picnics and town functions.

After coaching many years of Little League Baseball, he became Manager of the Portage Baseball Team in the EMBA League, and later became President of the league. Clem was passionate about the City Dartball League. He not only played for the Dartball Team in Portage, but also served as a secretary of the League for over 20 years. He later served as President of the League. He was inducted into the St. Charles County Amateur Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. Wherein after, he served on the Hall of Fame Board.

After graduating from St. Charles High School, Clem served in the United States Navy. He built lifelong friendships with his Navy buddies. His love for aviation and airplanes landed him a 40+ year career at Leonard’s Metal Inc. He enjoyed his career in aircraft manufacturing as well as traveling and teaching others fabrication skills. He retired as plant manager in 2005.

Clem truly loved vacationing with family and friends, especially fishing trips to Lake of the Ozarks and Higbee. Clem had many lifelong friends from Portage and made many more wonderful new friends after moving to St. Charles.

Most of all, Clem's love for his late wife Barb, his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren is something that did not go unnoticed. Clem was very proud of the family he built. Clem will be missed dearly by his family and friends, especially Clem's beloved kitty, Sammie.

Memorials may be made in Clem’s name to the American Cancer Society and St. Francis of Assisi Church.