Ernst F. Ritz

Ernst (Ernie) Ritz was born in New Hamburg in 1925. Ritz trained as an Aircrew Navigator and served in the Royal Canadian Air Force from 1943 to 1945.

Ritz spent his professional career in the printing and publishing industry. He was employed at the Kitchener-Waterloo Record from 1947 to 1950 and he was co-owner and editor of the New Hamburg Independent from 1950 to 1966. After forty years in the printing industry, he retired in 1990.

He served his community for 50 years in appointed and elected municipal positions. He served on the New Hamburg Planning Board from 1948 to 1972. He was first elected to the New Hamburg Village Council at the age of 24 in 1950. Ritz was the last Mayor of the Town of New Hamburg in 1972 and he was the first Mayor of Wilmot Township from 1973 to 1978. He was a member of the first Waterloo Regional Council, serving as Chair of the Regional Planning Committee and the Regional Engineering Committee. He also served as member of three different Hydro Commissions: New Hamburg, Baden and Kitchener-Wilmot. He was also a member of the Waterloo Regional Police Commission from 1979 to 1986.

Ritz has been very active in the preservation of local history. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Waterloo Historical Society for ten years, and was President of the Society in 1990-1991. He served on Wilmot Township LACAC from 1985 to 1997 and has been Vice-Chairman of the Wilmot Township Archives Committee.

Photograph courtesy of Pirak Studios, Waterloo.