Bryan K. Akers, 61, of Cougar, Washington (and formerly of Elkhart), passed away peacefully of natural causes at his home near Merrill Lake on Saturday, October 7, 2023.

He was born in Mishawaka on June 9, 1962 to Shirley Wenner Akers who survives him in Goshen.

Also surviving are his daughters Susan (Jason) deFerbrache of Elkhart and Brianna Greene of Mishawaka; Bryan's sister Kelly (Brett) Struble of Elkhart and grandchildren Nick, Joni, Clover, Anastasia and Jillian deFerbrache. Bryan will also be missed by a host of loving extended family, good friends, in laws, outlaws, rowdy Army buddies and an outdoor neighborhood of beloved woodland creatures and critters who came to know and love Bryan's kindness and company. Additionally, Bryan is preceded in death by his son, Bryan C. Akers (who was the royal heir to his father's sense of humor), his brother Craig M. Akers, and his grandma Hazel Schmidt.

A time of gathering and remembrance of Bryan's Memory has been planned for Monday, October 23, 2023 at Billings Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Elkhart from 2-4 pm, starting with Military Honors being rendered by the US Army Funeral Honor Guard, The Elkhart Veteran's Honor Guard and the Northern Indiana Chapter of the Patriot Guard led by "superhero, outstanding citizen, defender of the free and champion to the veteran" Chuck Damp at 2:00 pm. In accordance with Bryan's wishes, no funeral services will take place.

Bryan served his country proudly as a career soldier with the United States Army, serving as a Sergeant at different locations with different responsibilities, including logistics and mess operations. If a lifetime in the Army did anything positive for Bryan, he would come out with the ability to cook like Gordon Ramsey. Interestingly, his "especialities" included items that you didn't ordinarily see in a GI mess line: awesomely designed personalized birthday cakes and the best Christmas cookies ever, the baking of which was a tradition well remembered by his daughters. He also made "regular stuff" too, but for some reason, if Bryan made it, it just tasted better.

As alluded to earlier, Bryan had a terrific sense of humor and was the undeniable grand-champion of gut-wrenching, headache-inducing "dad-jokes" of his time. (Q: Why can't you hear a Pterodactyl use the bathroom?  A: Because the "P" is silent.     Q: Why was Cinderella so terrible at soccer?    A: Because she kept running away from the ball)……… Alright, alright already , we'll shut up. Anyway, he loved to see folks laugh (and also apparently groan) and his charm and quick wit always made him fun to be around. He was certainly the tool you needed in your box if you wanted to liven up your get-together.

As also alluded to earlier, Bryan was one with the outdoors and absolutely enjoyed every minute spent with nature's magnificent splendor. No wonder he had such a draw for the Pacific Northwest. He loved to hike and camp, and he enjoyed interacting with the myriad of woodland creatures who came to recognize Bryan as a "friend". There was even a story about him rescuing a baby squirrel and the squirrel refusing to leave Bryan's company once it healed. Go figure. We can only assume, though, its affinity to Bryan wasn't because of Bryan's incessant dad jokes.

Bryan's well-rounded collection of talents also included art and music. He was a really talented sculptor, and he liked to make ceramic buildings with different holiday themes which would then become separate pieces in a themed "village". He did haunted houses, Santa's castle and a really cool music box in the image of an opened book. Additionally, he was an accomplished trumpet player, and was able to pass this talent down to his daughter and granddaughter. In Bryan's world, if you could play the 24 notes of "Taps" perfectly, you would be a respectable bugler (trumpeter), and the girls continue to play this iconic military honors staple to this day.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Bryan's family to try to help stamp out terrible dad jokes in our lifetime. However, if you are of the mindset that dad jokes rule and pretty much make the world go 'round, then kindly leave one in the comment section of Bryan's obituary to honor his dedication to the craft. Otherwise, please give generously to the Veterans organization of your choice. They deserve your benevolence.

To the Family

Veterans Organization of Your Choice