Peter James Wolfinger of Galion passed away peacefully on Sunday, July 28 at his home surrounded by family. He was 82 years old.
Born in Marion, Ohio on March 12, 1942, he was the son of Robert and Ethel Wolfinger. He graduated from Marion Harding High School in 1961.
Pete was always most comfortable in the water and this would eventually become the canvas for his life’s work. He left an indelible impact on the scuba industry as an instructor, the author of several books including, “Regulator Savvy,” and owner of two scuba diving businesses, Dive Inc., a local scuba diving shop, and Peter Built, an extensive machine shop where Pete invented and manufactured revolutionary scuba regulator repair tools.
The love of his life, Maija, was his high school sweetheart and he married her in 1963 after winning her over with his persistent character and 1962 red Corvette. Each wedding anniversary, Pete would give Maija a bouquet of roses that matched the number of years they had been together. He passed just five days shy of their 61st.
Pete loved Jesus and found insight and comfort in daily devotion and prayer. A man driven to understand, he worked hard on having faith when God’s path couldn’t be comprehended by his logical mind and critical decision-making skills. He strived to serve others whenever he could and became a beloved part of the community at the Galion YMCA, where he swam laps several times a week and was named Volunteer of the Year in 2019 for his service to youth.
He is survived by children Russ (Liz) Wolfinger, Kathy (Todd) Patton and Natalie (Scott) Shafer; grandchildren Jordan (Chris) Weiderhold, Haley and Brenna Wolfinger, Thomas and Julia Patton and Ian, Ellise and Gavin Shafer; and great-grandchildren Wren and Reece Wiederhold. Pete was known for sporting the ball cap of the college of the grandchild that was visiting – it was always a struggle when multiple grandkids were in the room, so he would wear them in shifts. (The last recorded hat he wore was the University of Alabama, Roll Tide!) He was also a big dog lover and nurtured four of his own – Toby, Roscoe, Jake and Jigger – in addition to giving lots of ear rubs and table scraps to his kids’ canines, including Manteo, Charlie, Roxy, Lucky, Bud, Starla, Shadow, Teddy and Winston.
Pete has been laid to rest at Fairview Cemetery in Galion, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation to your local humane society or YMCA youth program.
Those wishing to share a memory of Peter or send condolences to the Wolfinger family may do so by visiting https://cas5-0-urlprotect.trendmicro.com:443/wis/clicktime/v1/query?url=www.masfh.com&umid=837eed13-4f64-11ef-90ee-000d3a30b1f7&auth=8789d1923baeef5cdc1c0bb41e7be32625ccae84-76932320186aeee6e02efaf1f42ced9cd946006b.
The Mark A. Schneider-Gompf Funeral Home, 303 Portland Way N., is honored to serve the family of Peter James Wolfinger.