Gunther H. Greulich

Gunther Hermann Greulich, age 95, a longtime resident of Lynnfield died peacefully, with family, in hospice care at his residence on April 26. 

Born in Brandenburg, Germany on March 17, 1928 he was the son of the late Karl and Emma (Lehmann) Greulich. 

As a teen, Gunther spent most of his time training as a coxswain with the local rowing club on the river Havel, where he made lifelong friends and met his future wife. Shortly after marrying and starting his family, he and his family migrated to the United States under the sponsorship of the Lutheran Church in Tulsa. After six months in Oklahoma, the Greulich family made the move to Massachusetts and settled in Newton for a time before making their home first in Peabody and then in Lynnfield. 

Gunther spent his professional career in civil engineering and land surveying. He received an engineering degree from the State College for Engineering in West Berlin, Germany. Upon arriving in the United States he worked for New England Survey Service for eight years before becoming a founding partner in Boston Survey Consultants and later became the founding owner and President of Gunther Engineering, Inc., all headquartered in Boston. He was a Professional Land Surveyor in all New England states, a Professional Civil Engineer in Massachusetts, a Certified Hydrographer, and a Certified Photogrammetrist. During the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 he was a Fallout Shelter Analyst for the United States Department of Defense and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

He belonged to numerous professional surveying and engineering organizations and served as president of the Massachusetts Association of Land Surveyors Civil Engineers (MALSCE) and as president of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM). He was a Trustee and founding member of The Engineering Center in Boston. A prolific writer, he wrote articles for a variety of surveying and engineering magazines and authored the column “Watermark” in the ACSM monthly publication. He was a contributing editor to the New England Real Estate Journal among other publications, and received numerous awards in his professional career including Surveyor of the Year in 1979.

True to his German heritage he was active in the German-American Club of the North Shore and the Boylston Schul-Verein. He also served as editor of the AGSM - AGSNE newsletter “Die Brucke” and was an occasional contributor to the New York Staats-Zeitung. His involvement in German cultural affairs was informed by his deep understanding of 20th century German history.

Gunther’s passion for writing was matched by his passion for gardening and landscaping. He was seemingly born with a “green thumb” and often spent long hours tending to his flora and fauna in the evening and on weekends. He loved wildlife, particularly amphibians, and built several natural pools and terrariums populated with fish, frogs, salamanders and turtles.

Besides Gunther’s professional and personal interests, he loved socializing and was outgoing, open and knew how to have fun and enjoy life including winters in Naples, Florida. Gunther and his wife, Irmgard, traveled widely and attended and hosted many social events over the years. He loved being with his family and friends and they loved being with him. Gunther immigrated to the United States from Germany and with lots of hard work made the “American Dream” his.

He was the beloved husband of the late Irmgard (Baer) Greulich. He was the father of Peter Jurgen Greulich and his wife Judith of Wakefield and Knut Michael Greulich and his wife Kelley of Merrimack, NH. He was the grandfather of Ashley Healey and her husband Chris, Hannah Scott and her husband James, and Kimberly DeKemper and her husband Brendan. He was the great grandfather of Colin Healey, Oliver Scott, and Myles DeKemper. He was predeceased by his two brothers: Karl-Heinz and Horst Greulich. 

Visitation for relatives and friends will be held at the McDonald Funeral Home, 19 Yale Ave., Wakefield on Wednesday, May 3 from 4-7pm. A Graveside Service will be at Forest Hill Cemetery, Forest Hill Ave., Lynnfield on Thursday at 11am. 

In lieu of flowers, charitable gifts can be made to the Deutsches Altenheim Foundation: https://dafboston.org/donate/