Latest news with #GaryWolfelt
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'I Am Completely Dead Now': Indiana Man Pens His Own Obituary Before Fatal Crash in Self-Made Plane
72-year-old Gary Wolfelt wrote his own comedic obituary before dying in a plane crash earlier this month The Indiana man crashed his self-made plane in Ohio on May 5 Wolfelt wrote that he had many near misses in his life, stating, 'I am surprised that it took this long to happen.'A man from Indiana wrote his own comedic obituary before dying in a plane crash earlier this month. According to Fox59, 72-year-old Gary Wolfelt crashed his self-made plane in Ohio on May 5. Although he didn't know he would pass away in the crash, he explained in his orbit that he had had many near-death experiences in his life. 'I am completely dead now,' he wrote in an obit published on May 8 — three days after he died. 'I am surprised that it took this long to happen.' 'I had several close calls throughout my lifetime. I guess that I was just lucky that something didn't get me long before now,' he added. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Wolfelt said there was a 'long series of events and mishaps' that 'should have killed me long ago.' This included a baseball landing on his forehead in grade school, his sister's horse kicking him in the gut, being hit by a car and a large brick chimney nearly falling on him. 'In my fifties, I got knocked down nineteen stairs at my office by a couple of hundred pound concrete lined safe which landed on top of me and pinned me to the floor,' he added. 'That one was the worst! I didn't get any body parts broken and no internal injuries.' ! Wolfelt continued that after falling from a scaffold and cracking his head in his sixties, he was forced to go to the doctors, who discovered that he had prostate cancer. While the cancer was found early, Wolfelt's needed to have his prostate removed in his early seventies. 'The surgery went well. But then I developed an internal leak that nearly killed me,' he said. 'I cannot tell you here what sort of event actually killed me as I wrote this obituary before I was completely dead. Someone else will have to fill in the details later on I guess," he continued. is now available in the Apple App Store! Download it now for the most binge-worthy celeb content, exclusive video clips, astrology updates and more! Wolfelt went on to apologize to anyone he may have 'offended or mistreated" during his life, "especially Anoma Hargis in the sixth grade.' He also took time to appreciate his wife Esther Chosnek — whom he married in 1982 — for being 'nice to me most all of the time, even when I spent the grocery money on tools and airplane parts.' Highlighting his life achievements, he wrote, 'I stayed lovingly married to the same woman for a long time. I cut about 100 cords of firewood. I fixed a lot of problems for a lot of people over the last fifty years.' 'I paid all of my bills with my own earnings. I only took welfare (Social Security) after I retired,' he continued, 'I would like to thank those of you who loved me while I was here on Earth. It really meant a lot to me. And I appreciate your letting me love you right back.' At the end of the obit, Wolfelt's wife Chosnek added that 'it took him 17 years to build his beloved Express Aircraft.' Wolfelt is survived by his wife, brother, sister, two brothers-in-law, and 'several nieces and nephews.' Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Haunting beyond-the-grave obituary of Indiana man who predicted his own death
An Indiana man published his own obituary detailing his many near-death experiences after he was killed in a plane crash. Gary Wolfelt, 72, was killed on May 5 after his 'beloved' single-engine Express 2000 FT plane that he spent 17 years perfecting crashed in Ashland, Ohio. People rarely get the chance to write their own obituaries, but the Lafayette native had his ready to go because of 'several close calls' he experienced in his life. 'Hello. I am Gary. I am completely dead now. I am surprised that it took this long to happen,' the late pilot joked in the opening of his obituary. 'I had several close calls throughout my lifetime. I guess that I was just lucky that something didn't get me long before now,' he added. Not only did Gary mention that he believed he should have been dead 'long ago,' but he also shared examples of just how close he had come to the end of his life. One of his oldest memories was when he got whacked in the head with a fly ball during a baseball game as a little boy. Sadly, his injury did not pay off for his team, who went 0-20 all season, he quipped. When Gary was in his 20s he was kicked by his sister's horse directly in his gut, and he claimed that if the animal had aimed any higher his 'heart probably would have stopped.' A decade later he was hit by a car, an incident that he said was completely his fault. 'It was my fault as I was crossing against the light. It really knocked me hell bent for election. But I got up and brushed it off and went home with a torn up coat and kind of sore,' he recalled, adding: 'Lucky me!' While demolishing an old neglected building in his 40s, the structure came crashing down on Gary while he was inside tying off a cable, he said. Luckily for him, a massive brick chimney that fell down just missed him by approximately 10ft. After about 40 years on earth, and several close calls, Gary said he started to believe there wasn't 'any more room in heaven or hell for me' so he had to be 'stuck in purgatory for a while longer.' Just when he thought he was safe, he was pinned to the floor after falling down 19 stairs at his office when a 100lb safe landed directly on top of him in his 50s. Gary said: 'That one was the worst! I didn't get any body parts broken and no internal injuries. But I couldn't even pick up my own feet to get into bed for about a week. Thank god for pain killing drugs!' In his 60s Gary, who was the owner and president of Wolfelt Electronic Security for 27 years, fell backward 10ft off a scaffold and cracked his skull open on the pavement. He got checked out at a doctor's office after, where he found out he had prostate cancer. Fortunately, the cancer was caught early enough to be treated, Gary said, adding that he 'dodged another bullet.' The treatment only lasted so long, as he had to have his prostate removed in his 70s. Although the surgery went well, Gary unfortunately developed an 'internal leak' that nearly took his life. 'One more close call late in life!,' he said, noting that he has no idea what will actually kill him. 'I cannot tell you here what sort of event actually killed me as I wrote this obituary before I was completely dead. Someone else will have to fill in the details later on I guess,' he continued. After detailing his many near-death experiences, Gary kept the rest of his obituary light-hearted, apologizing to those he 'might have offended or mistreated.' 'The truth is that I was far from a perfect human, although I did try to learn from my mistakes and short-comings as I grew older,' he went on. Gary made sure to mention his family, including his wife Esther Chosnek, who he met 'sometime in January of 1982 in Las Vegas, Nevada,' he wrote. He noted that he did not want a funeral and asked people to take themselves out to dinner in lieu of flowers. At the end of his unique obituary, he let Esther get a word in. She added some of his accomplishments, including her late husband being a graduate of Purdue school of Aviation Technology. A celebration of life is set to be held for Gary on May 19th.
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
‘I am completely dead now': Pilot, 72, who died in a crash pens his own obituary detailing his close brushes with death
A 72-year-old man who died in a small plane crash had the foresight to write up his own obituary before his death, and he packed it full of charm and stories of his close calls in life. "I am completely dead now," Gary Wolfelt wrote in his obituary. "I am surprised that it took this long to happen." On May 5, Wolfelt left Lafayette, Indiana, in a small plane that he spent 17 years building. The plane never made it back, and Wolfelt did not survive a crash in Ohio. When his obituary was published, readers were likely surprised to see that it was penned by Wolfellt himself. 'I had several close calls throughout my lifetime. I guess that I was just lucky that something didn't get me long before now,' he wrote. According to Wolfelt, he'd had a "long series of events and mishaps" that "should have killed me long ago." Wolfelt knew his audience would want some examples, and he delivered. In one story, he recounted taking a fly ball to his skull during a Little League game. Sadly, his bodily sacrifice for the game did not translate into luck for his team, which he said lost 20-0. In another tale, Wolfelt describes an unfortunate encounter with his sister's horse. The animal kicked him in his gut noting that 'any lower and I'd be singing soprano for the rest of my life.' Gravity almost got Wolfelt twice before his final plane right. In one instance a brick chimney collapsed and nearly crushed him. In another he took a tumble down the stairs, and a metal safe came tumbling down after him. Despite the parade of mishaps, Wolfelt remained positive and gave thanks for the important things in life. "Thank goodness for pain killing drugs," Wolfelt wrote. Wolfelt isn't all jokes though. Buried beneath the humor, Wolfelt spends some time in his obituary pondering the decisions he made in life. For example, Wolfelt never had children, but he did love dogs. 'Generally a dog will only bite you when you have it coming. This is not the case with many people," he noted. At one point, the 72-year-old apologized for past wrongs, noting that he "was far from a perfect human," and allowed that he did try to "learn from my mistakes and shortcomings as I grew older." He also shared his pride at another decision he made — remaining faithful to his wife Esther for the entirety of their 40-year marriage. "I stayed lovingly married to the same woman for a long time," he wrote. "Hopefully if there is a life after death, I will end up with Esther and all of our dogs in a sunny field of tall grass with music playing all around me."
