 40th Anniversary of the GASC 1964 - 2004
Willy Gruetzenbach is the man who had the vision and fortitude to establish what has become the largest German-American Club in Southwest Florida. Willy was born in the city of Wuppertal. Germany in 1916 and emigrated to the USA in 1951. He lived in New Jersey until he and his family moved to Cape Coral in 1962. During the year of 1963, Willy promoted his idea of establishing a German-American Club to 12 of his friends. With humble beginnings their first meetings were held at the Cape Coral Yacht Club, and ultimately the German-American Social Club of Cape Coral, Inc. was chartered in 1964. Shortly thereafter, the members purchased the 25 acres of land upon which this club now rests. To finance construction, the membership approved $210,000 with 15 year notes which were repaid in 7 1/2 years! this was no small task considering that there were only 300 members at the time. Ingenuity, hard work, and perseverance over time has created this magnificent club of which we are so proud.
Karl & Erika Pilz and Friends
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