Aloysius H. “Wishy” Engelken, 76, of Seneca, Kansas, died Sunday, January 11, 2004, shortly after arrival at the Nemaha Valley Community Hospital in Seneca. He had an apparent heart attack.

He was born December 8, 1927, on a farm south of St. Benedict, the son of Henry J. and Johanna Bergman Engelken. Wishy, as he was known, attended St. Mary’s School at St. Benedict until the family moved to Seneca. He graduated from Sts. Peter & Paul High School in Seneca in 1946. He entered the U.S. Army in 1946 and served in Korea and Japan.

After his discharge in 1947, he returned to Seneca where he was employed by Emmett Mealy at Mealy’s Grocery Store. He also owned a liquor store on Highway 36 and later sold it. In 1966 he became part owner of Mealy’s, and later owned it with Dave Stein. Wishy owned and operated the store with his family helping until 1990 when the business was closed. In his retirement, he worked for the Big B Grocery Store and for the Seneca Meat Market.

On July 9, 1951, he married Marjorie Heideman at Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Seneca. They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary on July 7, 2001.

He was a member of Sts. Peter & Paul Church, the St. Joseph Society at the church, the Knights of Columbus, the American Legion, and a life member of the VFW, all in Seneca. He had been the VFW commander three different times.

Survivors are his wife, Marjorie, of the home; five sons, Daryl “Joe” of Benton, Randy, Ron, David of Seneca, and Dale of Topeka; a daughter, Dana Emmert of Seneca; two brothers, Bernard of Seneca and Kenneth of Topeka; three sisters, Leona Koelzer of Onaga, Kansas, Florence Pearson of Seneca, Mary Ann Armstrong of David City, Nebraska; eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by two brothers, Alfred and Cletus; and a sister, Rosalita Mace.

Mass of Christian burial will be 2 PM Tuesday at Sts. Peter & Paul Church. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Rosaries will be prayed at 3 & 8 PM Monday at Lauer Funeral Home in Seneca.

Memorials may be given for Sts. Peter & Paul School or the American Legion Baseball Association.