A Blessed Man Living In A Great Community
By Dean Winkler
I come from a long heritage of forefathers that were resilient, willing to take risks, and had strong Christian beliefs.
My great-great-great grandfather William August Winkler and his wife, Anna, picked up their family and left their Wendish community in Weigersdorf, Germany. They came to America in the 1860s to find religious freedom. This move changed the path for them and generations that would follow.
They came by clipper ship through the Gulf of Mexico and settled in south Texas in Lee County. It wasn’t long before they brought their family to The Grove in Bell County to escape some unchristian influences. In 1885, August donated 20 acres of land to St. Paul Lutheran Church for the church building, school and cemetery where he was buried in 1920.
My dad and mom, both Winklers, grew up in The Grove. One time Daddy rode up with two of his brothers on one horse to visit Momma and her two sisters. At some point later the three brothers married the three sisters.
In the 1950s, my dad left farming and moved to Temple to do carpentry work. My brother, Royce, and I both learned the carpenter trade growing up. I also worked with my brother some until I dropped a pick through a double aquarium. That was quite a mess but he was very understanding.
I was born April 19, 1956, to Adolf and Lucile Winkler at the old Scott & White Hospital in Temple. I was raised in a Christian home with my brother and three sisters, Jeanette, Diane, and Beth. After going to Temple Junior College for two years and graduating from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in 1978, I helped start CRW Construction with my father-in-law, Jack Caesar, and my brother-in-law, John Russell.
In 1990, I took control of the business and in 2018 I hired John’s son, Todd. CRW Construction has been in business for over 42 years. We do commercial, industrial, and residential construction, both new and remodel. Check out our website at crwtx.com.
A couple of interesting projects we have been involved in lately include the “Bindominium,” which was featured in Tex Appeal, and Amy’s House. Amy’s House is a transplant recovery home just east of Scott & White in Temple. I got involved with the design of the house about four months after I received a liver transplant, so this project is near and dear to me.
My office manager Patti Kiemele has been with CRW Construction for more than 35 years. She does our books and payroll, shops for supplies, makes trips to the bank, and even does some cleanup in the office in her spare time. She has made my time at work much more enjoyable. Everyone that comes in the front door gets a big smile and a warm conversation, but don’t think you can get by with something. She keeps all our employees and subcontractors in line.
I also have to show appreciation to my wife, Beth, who keeps the home fires burning and provides a relaxing atmosphere at home for me.
I stay involved with UMHB as a trustee, have been a board member with Ralph Wilson Youth Club for more than 20 years, a Kiwanian, and serve at First Baptist Temple as a choir member, deacon, and trustee. I love playing golf with my good buddies each week.
I have been married to Beth Caesar for more than 43 years and we have two perfect daughters. Stacie is a speech language pathologist with Elite Therapy Center in Temple, and Mandy is a multiple sclerosis research nurse in Dallas at UT Southwest.
Beth is a full-time homemaker and spends much of her day serving others. We enjoy traveling together as a family and have taken many trips throughout the United States, as well as trips all over the world. We just came back from a trip to the Holy Land and were truly blessed with a safe and memorable experience. It was amazing to walk in Jesus’ footsteps.
Being a Central Texan to me means having pride in my home state of Texas as well as my community here in Temple and Belton. I am blessed more than I deserve to live, work, and serve in these communities. We live on Lake Belton so we see each day how beautiful God’s handiwork is all around us just sitting on our back porch.
In all my travels I have never been any place where the people show more pride in their area than Central Texans. They fly their Texas flags, greet each other with a big handshake or hug, and can’t stop talking about the beautiful bluebonnets in the spring, the great weather in the fall, and the wonderful sunny days of summer. We don’t talk much about winter around here.
I really appreciate Central Texas and realize we have perhaps the most ideal place in America to live. It’s not just the great location, but the wonderful giving people that live in these communities. We still have a small-town atmosphere but have access to many big cities all around us.
Life is pretty good here in Central Texas. I am a blessed man.
