My City December 2022

MYCOMMUNITY

Judy Zehnder Keller Dedication, Community and Love With all the success Judy Zehnder Keller had, her

president, and as chairperson for the Frankenmuth Sister City Committee for 22 years. Appointed by Governor Jennifer Gran holm, she served two terms on the Michigan Travel Commission and Hotel Board of Directors. In addition, she was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the Presidential Commission for the German-American Tricentennial, joining the delegation with then-Vice President George H.W. Bush. In June 2022, she designed and donated Frankenmuth’s “Sister City Chair’’ in recognition of the 60th anniversary between Frankenmuth and Gunzenhausen, Germany. Through all her achievements, Judy remained humble. “Every holiday, we worked to serve our guests,” says Martha. “She loved our guests and our team members.They didn’t work for us; we worked with them. She was successful and held people account able but was extremely empathetic. I remember her giving the coat she was wearing to an employee who was without one.That’s who she was.” Of all the lessons Martha learned from her mother, the one that comes most readily to mind is the concept of geduld. “Geduld means patience (in German) and Judy believed that we must have geduld and things will happen,” she explains. “Every team member can tell you all about geduld. It’s just one of the important life lessons we all learned from her.” Judy Zehnder Keller lived a life of purpose, dedicated to her family, community and the city she loved – a life of inspiration for her family, the people of Frankenmuth and the team. “She was a wonderful, wonderful person,” says Martha. “She made such an impact on peoples’ lives.” Thank you to both women for the legacies you built for Frankenmuth and Greater Flint.May you rest in peace. u

daughter Martha Zehnder Kaczynski says she always had time for family. “No matter how busy she was, she would find time for any of us,” she remembers. “We have a tradition that whenever a family member graduates high school, the family makes donuts. When I graduated, she had to oversee a very large event being hosted at the Bavarian Inn. She showed up to the event, did what she needed to do and then left to make donuts with the family. It’s a small thing, but she took the time to always be there.”And, for someone as busy as Judy, time was always in short supply. As the eldest daughter of Bavarian Inn founders Tiny and Dorothy Zehnder, Judy dedicated over six decades of her life to the Bavarian Inn and Frankenmuth, the city she loved. “The com munity meant everything to Judy,” says Martha. “Second to her family, Frankenmuth was her joy. She loved absolutely everything about it.” After officially starting to work at the Bavarian Inn Restau rant in 1960, Judy dedicated her life’s passion to the business and the city. In 1986, she built the Bavarian Inn Lodge and helped develop other family businesses in Frankenmuth such as the Schnitzelbank Shop, Covered Bridge Shop, the Frankenmuth Cheese Haus and numerous retail stores at Frankenmuth River Place Shops. She took great pride in the city, serving on the Fran kenmuth Downtown Development Authority for 23 years. “She always worked to make Frankenmuth beautiful and appealing to residents and visitors,” adds Martha. “She helped so many business owners get their start – not for recognition, but because it was the right thing to do.” Judy also served as the first female City Council member, the first female Rotary Club member and

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(L-R) JUDY ZEHNDER KELLER, DOROTHY ZEHNDER, IRENE BRONNER, AND CARLA BRONNER

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