As of: March 26, 2024, 11:59 a.m
By: Markus Schwarzkugler
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Adalbert Berndt died at the age of 86.
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The disposal company Berndt GmbH from Oberding is known far beyond the district borders.
Senior boss Adalbert Berndt has now died.
Our obituary shows that he was much more than “just” a successful entrepreneur.
Oberding/Hohenpolding – The name Berndt is initially associated in the district with the waste disposal company in Oberding.
Now Adalbert Berndt, the managing director until 1998 and then a long-standing “senior manager”, has died at the age of 86.
But he also left deep traces in his home town of Hohenpolding.
Berndt was involved there, among other things, as a local councilor.
Emphasis on, among other things.
“It was a life full of energy and creativity, until old age,” says his son Rainer.
And despite all the work, his father was always a family man.
There is a nice anecdote about the latter: “In the spring of 1990, my then wife Irmgard put the maternity card on his plate at the coffee table as a surprise,” says Rainer Berndt.
His father took the book - and simply put it aside.
He thought he already knew that.
FC Schwaig's commemorative publication looked similar.
“We were all a bit taken aback by his reaction at first,” says Rainer Berndt with a smile.
His father was born in October 1937 as the fifth of seven children of Auguste and Ernst Berndt in Krehlau, Upper Silesia, in what is now Poland.
He was actually only called Adalbert by his mom; all his friends called him Albert.
The family had been running an animal carcass recycling business in Krehlau since 1929.
After returning home from the war, his father decided to sell the business and move to Bavaria.
He was firmly convinced: “The Russians will come to Krehlau at some point.” The family applied, got the contract and built a new processing plant for animal carcasses in Oberding, which went into operation in 1942.
Adalbert Berndt learned the profession of soap maker and at the same time completed the commercial vocational school in Munich.
Berndt was a passionate hunter from an early age - and in this "office" he also stalked his biggest catch: his Thea, née Schlegel, from Landshut.
That was at a riding tournament in 1962, where the hunters, including Berndt, blew the hunting horn loudly.
The two of them got to know each other.
They married in March 1963, their son Rainer was born almost six months later, followed by his brother Stefan in 1970.
“He was a person who was very close to nature and hunting.
“Hunting is not about winning as many trophies as possible, but rather as a steward and caretaker of the local natural landscape,” says Rainer Berndt.
His father was a hunting tenant in Hohenpolding for over 40 years, and the family had since settled in Loiting.
He always liked to tell a story: One night he killed three sows with just two shots.
Berndt was an entrepreneur in an unusual business that was no longer “just” dedicated to animal carcass disposal.
Another mainstay is the disposal of food leftovers, used cooking fats and grease separator contents as well as stored, packaged food and freezer damage.
The main customers are catering, hotel and food businesses.
When Berndt took over the company with his brother Manfred in 1972, there were 26 employees.
Today there are 500 at six locations.
He was managing director until 1998, and as a “senior manager” he continued to support his successor and son Rainer with advice and support.
“Due to his calm and matter-of-fact manner and qualified manner of expression, he was always an expert in his field.
“My father was on the executive board of the Federal Association of Animal By-Products Utilization Companies in Bonn for over twelve years, and he was a founding member and board member of the German Meat Flour Factories Sales Association in Hamburg in the 80s and 90s,” says the son.
Despite all the work, Adalbert Berndt was also a very sociable person who maintained many friendships.
He was a member of several clubs and was also involved in the Hegering Erding.
And in Hohenpolding he was also a local councilor from 1978 to 1990.
He was one of the founding members of the CSU local association in Oberding.
“And he was a member of the Mittelstandsunion – out of conviction and with passion,” says son Rainer.
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Berndt had five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren who kept him busy.
“My father didn’t like long-distance travel, but he went on a cruise with his granddaughter Julia, who was almost 80 years old, via Greenland to the North Cape because he really wanted to go there again,” his son remembers.
However, his father traveled extensively and often to Carinthia and Thuringia.
He had a fulfilling life for a long time.
However, the corona pandemic took a toll on his active and sociable spirit.
In addition, dementia was becoming apparent, which, according to his son, he was able to “characterly and tactfully cover up” for a long time.
In the last year of his life, nursing staff looked after Berndt full-time.
He was only tied to bed in his last two weeks, so he was now allowed to die at home surrounded by his loved ones.
Berndt was 86 years old.
The funeral service and burial will take place this Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. in the parish church of St. Korbinian in Schwaig.