08/11/2026
The Pommern Regional Group wishes to note the passing of one of our long time members:
Obituary for Kermit Edward Frye – First GGS President
Kermit Edward Frye, 84, of Bloomington, Minnesota, died peacefully Thursday, July 16, 2026, at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, MN, with his family at his side. Kermit was born September 30, 1941 in Mankato, Minnesota, the son of Edward Leigh Frye and Selma (Hohenstein) Frye.
Kermit and his wife Jan were longtime members of the Minnesota Genealogical Society, where Kermit served a term as president (1985-1986), and he helped start the German Interest Group as its first president in 1980, which later became the Germanic Genealogy Society (GGS). With a small group of friends and colleagues from GGS, he co-authored a series of German genealogy handbooks that eventually grew into Germanic Genealogy: A Guide to Worldwide Sources and Migration Patterns, 3rd edition which became a standard reference for tracing German-speaking ancestors.
Kermit was an active and reliable volunteer for 40 years. Kermit maintained the GGS membership database for many years; he worked on many cemetery recording projects; he wrote the bylaws for GGS and IGGP and taught others how to read old German script. Along with Fred Sauer, Kermit developed a place locator database for Pomerania. He always had big ideas and knew how to take the detailed steps to make them a reality. He would encourage others to research their families and would challenge them to dream big as well. We will truly miss him.
Family obituaries: https://www.washburn-mcreavy.com/obituaries/kermit-frye/ #!/Obituary https://obituaries.startribune.com/obituary/kermit-frye-1093914227 https://www.twincities.com/obituaries/kermit-edward-frye/
FRYE Kermit Edward, Age 84 of Bloomington, Died July 16, 2026, at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, MN. Born in Mankato, MN on September 30, 1941 to Edward Leigh Frye and Selma Hohenstein Frye. He attended Mankato High School prior to…
