Roger grew up in Dayton where he graduated from Stivers High School before enlisting in the Navy for four years during the Korean War. After returning to Dayton in 1955, Roger attended the Dayton Art Institute and then accepted a position as a draftsman in the engineering department at the City of Dayton.
Roger met Lois when both were singing in the Daytona Chorale. Lois grew up in Dayton surrounded by music. Her musician parents, Harriet and Bill Wollenhaupt, made sure she received musical training from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. She later played the organ as Miss Miami Valley in the talent portion of the The Miss Ohio competition where she was named first runner-up in the pageant, which is part of the Miss America Organization.
“I’ll never forget her hands flying across that organ,” said Roger, who recommended Lois for the organist position at Central Christian Church, a position she has held for 52 years. “They thought she might be too young to be the organist, but once she got in there she blew them away. She was the best.”
The couple married and had four children, who all graduated from Centerville High School. Jeffrey graduated in 1982 and is a local builder, who lives in Centerville with his wife Kimberly and son, Maxwell, 7. Bryan is a 1983 graduate who also lives in Centerville and works as a loan officer for the Wright-Patt Credit Union, while Craig graduated in 1986 and married Centerville graduate, Cathy Sheldon. Craig works as a financial advisor at Ameriprise Financial and lives in Oakwood with his wife and their two children, Jacob, 6 and Kyra, 3 months. Julie Sutherland Krabill graduated from Centerville and the University of Dayton with a degree in interior design. She lives in Centerville with her husband, Tony and their two children, Christian, 5, and Brianna, 3.
The Sutherlands faced a crisis after Roger left his secure position as an art director at EF McDonald to take a position as the National Advertising Manager for Spring Hill Nursery. Within five months, he was laid off from the failing company and left without any benefits. The couple struggled to make ends meet and once again Lois’ musical talent came in handy as she played at weddings and continued to play for funerals and memorial services at Routsong Funeral Home, a position she held for 30 years starting in 1960. She became licensed as a Realtor in 1980 and worked for Village Green Realtors until 1983 when she joined Irongate Inc. Realtors, where she has been the top sales person for 20 years.
“We had four young children at home,” said Lois, who keeps in shape by swimming daily and playing tennis. “I was so discouraged the first six months in real estate, because interest rates were at 18 percent and I didn’t sell a single home.”
By the second six months, Lois had hit her stride and sold $1 million worth of real estate. Financial success has brought a feeling of thankfulness and a need to give back to the community.
Lois, who recently received the 2008 Community Service Award from the Dayton Board of Realtors, currently serves on the boards of Hospice of Dayton, The Five Seasons, Kettering Medical Center Foundation, Kettering Children’s Choir, the Dayton Opera Board. Past board positions include working with The Dayton Ballet, The Dayton Opera Guild, the Juvenile Diabetes Board, and the Dayton Philharmonic Board.
Contact this columnist at (937) 432-9054 or jjbaer@aol.com.
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