Gene Schrolucke was a farmer, on land his mother's family, the Holtkamps, had worked since 1851, when his maternal great-grandfather first bought the plots.

He was born in Celina on January 26, 1943, to Wilson and Ruth (Holtkamp) Schrolucke, and he spent his life in the farm country of west-central Ohio. Several generations of his family lived on that same ground. The original log cabin stood on the farm until the 1970s, when it was moved to a nearby farm and set among several others like it... a small piece of the family's beginnings preserved just down the road.

He graduated from New Knoxville High School in 1961, where he played four years of basketball, served as chorus president, and was a member of the FFA. He spent a quarter at Ohio State, but the farm called him back. In 1964, he married Patricia Schumann at St. John's Lutheran Church near Wapakoneta. They were together for sixty-two years.

He worked the land his whole life, through the oil crisis, the blizzard of '78, and the farm crisis of the 1980s... all the ups and downs that farming hands you. He farmed alongside his parents, and later enlisted his own children, who remember every chore and task being performed in either freezing cold or sweltering heat, never anything in between. Along with his parents, the farm earned several awards from Dayton Power and Light and others for its innovations. In later years, he joined the farming operations with his longtime friend Jay Elshoff, bringing an end to the farm's dairy. Planting in the spring, harvesting in the fall, and every job in between. He was good with his hands and never far from work that needed them... welding, hammering, turning wrenches at Golden Hills and Lageman's Garage, putting in time at Hoge Lumber, and hauling cattle for Producers Livestock.

For forty-seven years, he answered the call as a volunteer firefighter with the New Knoxville Fire Department. In 2015, the Shelby County Firefighters Association recognized his decades of service with its R. Stanley Crosley Lifetime Achievement Award.

There was more to his days than work. He sang in the choir at the First United Church of Christ in New Knoxville, later known as First Church... the big church in town. The family raised registered Brown Swiss cattle and showed them at local and state fairs for years, taking home plenty of ribbons along the way, and Gene belonged to the Brown Swiss Association. He gave more than twenty years to 4-H, first as a member and later as a leader. In his younger years, he spent many a weekend playing softball with a team that traveled all around west central Ohio. Year-round, he pulled for the Buckeyes, the Reds, and the Browns.

In the fall of 2021, Gene and Pat, with some coaxing from the kids, remodeled the original farmhouse to make it accessible for their later years. The timing turned out to matter more than they knew... in 2022, Gene suffered a significant stroke, and the house was ready for them.

Gene died Thursday, June 25, 2026, at Vancrest of St. Marys Nursing Home. He was 83.

He is survived by Patricia, his wife of sixty-two years; his children, Craig (Patrick Horne) Schrolucke of Kettering, Ohio, Kimberly (James) Smith of Lockwood, New York, and Justin (Jennifer Jankowski) Schrolucke of Mechanicsburg, Ohio; his grandchildren, Daylen (Genevieve Senecal) Smith of Hampton, New Hampshire, and Cora Smith of Somerville, Massachusetts; and by his brothers- and sisters-in-law and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and by his sisters, Phyllis (John Schneider, Roger Dicke) and Roberta (Manny) Kallas.

Funeral services will be held at Noon on Friday, July 17, 2026, at First Church of New Knoxville, with burial to follow at Pilger Ruhe Cemetery. Friends may call from 10:00 A.M. until 11:45 A.M. Friday in the Prayer Room of the church. The New Knoxville Fire Department will conduct a memorial service at 11:45 A.M. and will escort Gene to the cemetery.

Special thanks to the care team who looked after Gene these last months... Kim, Sarah, Kiersten, Glory, Adam, "B," Mindi, Vicki, Rachel, Amy, and Tausha. And to the New Knoxville Fire Department, thank you for being there when it mattered.

The New Knoxville Fire Department were close to Gene's heart through nearly five decades of service. To honor his service, memorial gifts may be given in his name to the New Knoxville Fire Department. To honor his service, memorial gifts may be given in his name to the New Knoxville Firefighters Association at https://account.venmo.com/u/NKFirefightersAssociation.

Vornholt-Miller Funeral Home of New Knoxville is entrusted with the arrangements. Memories and condolences may be shared at Millerfuneralhomes.net.