Karnes City Hermann Sons Lodge 215 selected Robert and Victoria Thonhoff as their Humanitarian Award winner for 2012.

They have been an inspiration not only to Hermann Sons Lodge but also to all the people in Karnes City and surrounding counties. They have been a husband-wife team who chose to live and work in Karnes County for most of their adult life. Although they are not residing here presently, their many accomplishments will remain in hearts forever.

Mr. Thonhoff is a noted author and historian and has written or helped write over a dozen books on Texas history, a speaker, an emcee and a community leader. Mr. and Mrs. Thonhoff were educators for 35 years and retired from Karnes City ISD where he served as principal of the Fashing School also known as the Fashing Polecats. They have been recipients of numerous awards, one of which was for being the founder of the Texas Folklife Festival and he will be remembered as the famous “Professor Katzenjammer” emcee which he portrayed for 35 years. Mr. Thonhoff also served as county judge of Karnes County and was instrumental in getting the county courthouse renovated for its centennial celebration in 1994.

Mrs. Thonhoff was always by his side and never missed an event that he was participating in. They are truly a husband-wife team who always did things together, loved their children and worked to make the world a little better place to live.