A portrait of Earl Menzel wearing a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Volunteer in Prevention shirt. Menzel, an Oregon House resident who turns 100 on June 30, served in the U.S. Army during World War II and later became known locally for his volunteer work in fire prevention efforts, the Dobbins Food Pantry and the Alcouffe Community Center. Photo courtesy of the Menzel family.

 

OREGON HOUSE, CA (MPG) - Earl Fred Menzel has lived a century marked by hard work, military service, family devotion and a steady commitment to helping his community.

Born June 30, 1926, in San Jose, Menzel grew up on a 20-acre property where four families lived and raised walnuts and prunes. The homes had no electricity until his father, Fred Menzel, petitioned the electric company to extend service to the surrounding area.

As a boy, Menzel learned the value of hard work early. By about age 12, he was driving a tractor around the family property. He attended school in the San Jose area, though a bout with scarlet fever in the fourth grade kept him out of school for a year.

At 18, Menzel was drafted into the U.S. Army and trained at Camp Roberts. He served with the 11th Airborne Division's 187th Paraglider Regiment during World War II. His service took him through the Pacific, including the Philippines and Japan, where he was selected to serve as a driver for a captain whose duties included providing dental care to troops. During his service, Menzel came under enemy fire several times.

After two years in the military, Menzel was discharged at Camp Beale and returned to San Jose, where he drove a truck for a lumber company. He later moved to Gualala for work and began building the life that would eventually bring him to the foothills

Menzel married Eileen Anderson on July 4, 1948. The couple raised two children, Mitchel, known as "Rusty" because of his reddish hair, and Maxine. The family later moved to Sacramento, where Menzel worked for the California Highway Patrol in Cordelia, inspecting trucks to ensure they were roadworthy.

He later went to work for the State Water Resources Department, a job that took him throughout California inspecting vehicles, checking pumps, repairing equipment and monitoring mountain snowpack to help determine how much water would be available during the summer.

Menzel retired in 1982. He and Eileen purchased a bus, which Eileen transformed into a second home for travel. Eventually, the couple found their "forever home" in Oregon House. It was there that Menzel's local legacy took root.

He volunteered as a fire lookout on Oregon Peak and is credited with reporting the Colgate Fire after a bird flew into power lines. He also drove to Nevada City to pick up food for the Dobbins Food Pantry, helping ensure local families had access to food.

Menzel also helped build the Alcouffe Community Center from the cement floor to the roof trusses. Today, the center remains a gathering place and refuge for residents during fires, floods, and other emergencies.

Menzel's family includes two grandchildren, Kristopher Menzel and Jennifer Cambria, and two great-granddaughters, Adrianna and Natalia Eileen, the latter named in honor of her two great-grandmothers.

According to information submitted to the newspaper, Menzel recently suffered a fall that resulted in a broken neck and is recovering in the hospital.

Even from a hospital room, his 100th birthday marks a milestone that stretches well beyond one family. It is a century of service remembered in the roads he drove, the meals he helped deliver, the community center he helped raise and the foothill community he helped strengthen.