Ernest Holloway Wilder

Ernie was born on March 5, 1934 in Winchester, Kentucky to Ernest Wilder Sr and Irene Wilder (Niblack) At his birth, his start was a fight. He was born premature and had double pneumonia and was known at that time as the smallest baby in Kentucky. His middle name Holloway originated from the doctor who assisted at his birth. He was the oldest of three children: Earnestine (Brammer) and Betty Jo (Moore). His mother died when he was only 7 years old and he went to live part-time with the family of his Aunt Edna/Uncle Bennie Estes and the family of Uncle Johnny Wilder/Aunt Elizabeth. He enjoyed his fishing days at the Great Lakes with his cousins. He kept in close contact with his cousin Rosemarie Hollar, daughter of Uncle Johnny and Aunt Elizabeth. Because of his parents' death, Ernie and his sisters were now orphans and lived separately. Earnestine and Betty Jo were thankfully kept together but lived in an orphanage. Betty Jo's daughter, Debbie Shanher was instrumental in reuniting Ernie, Earnestine and Betty Jo after more than 40 years of separation. In school he enjoyed helping in the lunch room and got to eat before the other students. One of his first jobs was sweeping floors at The Kroger Co. store. In high school, he excelled in dramatic arts and was a lead actor in a school play. He often said that he only graduated because his Aunt Edna was on the school board. At 18 years old, Ernie joined the Navy and went to Philippines, Vietnam, Japan and Guam. He adopted a daughter Akemi "Amy" Bidewell of Port Orchard. While in the Navy, he and his daughter Amy were walking on the beach, they met Emperor Hirohito of Japan. He is survived by a grandson: Aaron "BoBo" Bidewell and family of Port Orchard After Navy retirement he worked as a glazier (glass installation) for the RMS Queen Mary ocean liner exhibit in Long Beach, CA and worked at Signal Hill Glass and at Hordis Brothers Glass. He married Shigeko Gotoh on July 29, 1972 and recently celebrated their 46th wedding anniversary. They lived in Bellflower, CA where their two daughters, Naomi and Nancy were born. In 1977, Shigeko began to study the bible with Jehovah's Witnesses and was baptized in 1978. The Downey, CA congregation would often ask Ernie for his help in various repair work at the Kingdom Hall. He was always willing and happy to help. He loved to read the Watchtower and Awake magazines, especially the section on "Watching The World" He was injured in a motorcycle accident and on medical leave to heal a broken collarbone. One of the most shy brothers asked Ernie if he would like to study the bible. He agreed since he had nothing else to do. The company went on strike and the workers didn’t get paid however he was on paid sick leave. He considered himself a captive audience and actually enjoyed learning about the bible. In 1987 the family moved to Port Orchard. He worked with Stan Quinn in lawn maintenance and continued his bible studies with Stan. He was baptized on July 8, 1989 on the same day as his daughters, Naomi and Nancy. His daughter, Nancy married Jonathan Knapp. He has two granddaughters: Tavia and Tori Extended family include Knapp & Carrizosa He was a tenderhearted and generous person who loved Jehovah's creations. He loved dogs and adopted the nickname "Reddog", he loved Miki I, Miki II and Pablo. Ernie kept a log book of birds, squirrels, deer, bunny rabbits and other critters that he saw. He loved fishing and the outdoors and homegrown green beans and tomatoes. He often talked about his Hawaii trip and became a steady wearer of Hawaiian shirts. There were a lot of wood working projects that Ernie constructed around the home. Dad built a wonderful clubhouse for Nancy and Naomi. He even made a huge aviary/chicken coop in the backyard. A favorite activity was gathering and preparing firewood. He loved to sing and dance during the Beatles hour on the radio. Dad was quite the clown and put on the Red Skelton “Freddie the Freeloader” outfit and looked very much the part. His favorite comic strip was the Peanuts Gang and he loved anything related to Charlie Brown and Snoopy, he even had a cocker spaniel named Snoopy. He was a voracious reader and loved to clip out newspaper articles, many of the friends would receive an envelope with clippings that he thought would be of great interest to each individual. He shared with others about how Jehovah would fix all things permanently by means of the Kingdom. Ernie especially loved the time spent with the brothers of the congregation, he loved all the friends in the congregation and his deepest desire was to join his fellow worshipers at the Kingdom Hall. One of the greatest privilege was serving in the congregation as a ministerial servant for over 20 years. He will be greatly missed and is very much remembered for his heartfelt comments. It was always a wonder at what inspiring and funny thing he would say. Never to be forgotten will be his singing prayer. What a character. He was baptized at 55 years old and would say that it is never too late to find real purpose in life and serve our Creator, Jehovah. A favorite song that he would join in singing was “Just Around The Corner” As he would often say: “Thank You Kindly” and see you in paradise. Arrangements by Edwards Memorial, Funerals Homes, Chapels and Crematories. 253-566-1008