Josef Unger, age 74 years, of Delaware Township, NJ, died on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 in the Hunterdon Medical Center, Raritan Township, NJ.

Born on November 20 1942 in Urbersdorf, Austria, located in the Burgenland Province, Josef was the son of the late Ignacios and Theresa Samedl Unger. The third of four children, he emigrated to the United States in 1960, moving in with his aunt, Hedwig Bolz, at 171 Monitor Street in a large Polish section of Brooklyn, NY. He would live there until 1967 when he married the love of his life, Margaret Ditzig Unger, and moved to Flemington, NJ where he resided until moving to Delaware Township in 2012.

While in New York, Josef worked at a meat packing factory on the third shift. Hard work was not new to him, and he did all he could to help his family as they settled in America. When he did have time off, he enjoyed playing soccer with the many other Austrians he met that had come to the United States.

It was through one of his soccer friends that Josef met a young lady named Margaret Ditzig, also from Austria, whose family came to the United States in 1950 and settled in Raritan Township, NJ in 1958 where they owned and operated the very well known Ditzig Chicken Farm. Margret would often go to the city to visit her cousin, who was Josef’s soccer buddy. It was love at first sight and the two were married on April 22, 1967 where they moved out to be closer to Margaret’s family in, “the country.”

Several months after they were married, as the Vietnam war raged on, Josef entered the United States Army and was stationed in Thailand. He served faithfully and was honorably discharged to the United States Army Reserves in 1969. Upon his return, the couple’s only child, Christopher, had been born and Josef assumed the role of father and husband with his new family.

He began working right away at Dannon Yogurt with his father-in-law where he served as a mechanic to 1975. He then got a job with Lacto Yogurt in Raritan Township (now Johanna Foods) as a mechanic. Hard work and dedication helped him become a maintenance mechanic supervisor and eventually Josef earned the position of department manager which he held until his retirement in 2002.

Outside of work, Josef assisted working on the family farm. He had many hobbies, his favorite being bowling. He was a member of several leagues at Oakwood Lanes in Washington, NJ and also a member of several leagues when there were bowling lanes in Flemington and Annandale, NJ. He had several 300 games throughout his lifetime.

He will be forever be remembered as a true family man, helping to provide for his family both here and back in Austria. His caring, warmth, humbleness and dedication to family and friends are what most who knew him will remember as his legacy.

Preceded in death by his wife, Margaret in 2015 after forty-eight years of marriage, he was also predeceased by his own parents, his mother-in-law and father-in-law whom he helped to take care of for many years, Elizabeth Lochli Ditzig and Joseph Ditzig; his siblings, Theresa Unger Legath and Ignacios Unger, Jr.; his nieces, Gerlinda and Martina Unger; and a brother-in-law, Hermann Legath.

Surviving are his son and daughter-in-law, Christopher and Marianne Unger; his grandson, Daniel Unger; a sister and brother-in-law, Erica Unger Fruewirth and Werner Fruewirth; a sister-in-law, Rose Unger; his nieces and nephews, Renate, Hermann, Gerti, Brigitte, Wolfgang, Werner, Gerald, Kathleen and Marlene; and many extended family and friends.

Funeral Services will take place Saturday, July 22, 2017 at 11:30 a.m. in Wright & Ford Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 38 State Highway 31, Flemington, NJ 08822.

Burial will military honors next to his beloved wife will follow at Prospect Hill Cemetery, Capner Street, Flemington, NJ.

Anyone wishing to share a remembrance of Josef to be read at the Funeral is asked to email the remembrance and whether you wish to read it or if you wish it to be read for you to: careteam@wrightfamily.com by Thursday.

Josef will lie in repose on Friday, July 21, 2017 from 3:00-7:00 p.m. and on Saturday, July 22, 2017 from 10:00-11:30 a.m. at the funeral home.

Please visit Josef’s permanent memorial site at www.wrightfamily.com to send a public or private message of condolence and to share stories and photographs of his life.

In lieu of flower’s those wishing to make a contribution in Josef’s memory are asked to do so to the groups that have helped the family so much over the years: Hunterdon County PBA #188, P.O. Box 5195, Clinton, NJ 08809, the Flemington-Raritan First Aid & Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 686, Flemington, NJ 08822, the Stockton Fire Company, 9 Mill Street, Stockton, NJ 08559, or the Sergeantsville Volunteer Fire Company, P.O. Box 87, Sergeantsville, NJ 08557.