George Riecan, Sr.

Obituary GEORGE RIECAN, Sr. "Mr. Fij" George Riecan, Sr., formerly of Edwardsville, age 85, died on Friday, October 30, 2009 at his home in University Place, WA surrounded by his son and family. Mr. Riecan was born on April 13, 1924 in East St. Louis. His parents, John & Ella Theresa (nee Janovich) immigrated from Slovakia in the early 1900's. He was the youngest of 6 children, preceded in death by two brothers, John II & John III, his sister, Ethel (Adam) Smolik, sister Mildred (Pete) Starzyk and older brother, Joseph Riecan, Sr. who passed January 16, 2008. Mr. Riecan and his wife, Leona (Kish) Riecan were married nearly 58 years before she passed away last year on March 9, 2008. He was a union man who never crossed a picket line and worked as a Millwright and Maintenance Mechanic at A.O. Smith in Granite City for 27 years. They made their home in Edwardsville, belonged to St. Boniface Catholic Church and lived on Grainey drive and raised one son, George M. Riecan, "The Fij" (St. Boniface 1965, EHS class of 1969, SIUE 1974). Their only child, George M. Riecan, worked for Attorneys Morris B. Chapman & Charles W. Chapman in Granite City before moving to Washington State in 1976, married Peggy Styner of Yakima, WA. and attended Puget Sound Law School in Tacoma where he now practices law. George Sr. and Leona moved to Washington State in 1981 to be close to their Son, his wife and their 3 grandchildren, Dustin, Courtney and Cameron. He is survived by his son, George M. (Peggy) Riecan, grandchildren, Dustin (Rachel) Iacobazzi Riecan, Courtney (nee Riecan) (Josh) Corpeno and Cameron Riecan, along with one great-grandchild, Caleb Elias Corpeno. Mr. Riecan entered the Army Air Corps in 1943, was sent to India to build airfields in the middle of the jungle. He was part of the "China-Burma-India" theater flying supplies "over the hump" to U.S. Allies to defeat the Japanese. He rode elephants, fought off Tigers and had a pet Mongoose named "Sammy" to protect him from the Cobras. The Army wouldn't let him bring "Sammy" back to the U.S.A. He was brokenhearted and later had several dogs that he named "Sammy." He started smoking at age 12 but had to give up his "Pall Mall's" 70 years later at age 82. He attributed his long life to avoiding doctors for over 70 years, never had an antibiotic until in his 80's, If he got a sore throat he smoked Kools and still went to work, he drank 2 pots of "strong" Chase and Sanborn coffee daily with plenty of cream, gargled with Listerine, hated vegetables, loved the fat off the Pork Chops, red meat and Fried Chicken. He attributed his full head of hair to the daily use of Lifebuoy soap. He had a strong heart and drank a quart of Half n Half practically daily, had incredibly low cholesterol but the Ciggies got him in the end. Had he not had COPD he may have lived to be 150 years old. He did not have Cancer. He had two surgeries: a hernia operation in 1975, the doctor said it would last him 30 years, the doctor died and Mr. Riecan had a second hernia surgery in 2005. At age 82 he was up on his roof cleaning it and his son stole all three of his ladders. Bad son! Later that year, he was T-boned in an intersection when the other driver blew the light, car totaled, air bag deployed, He did not go to the doctor. His son took away his license,,,bad son! In the 60's, with his 3 inch high flat top, cig hanging out his mouth, driving his Chevy Wagon home from the factory he would gladly and generously give long haired hitchhikers a ride. He never judged people by their color, their religion,how they looked or how long their hair..., as long as they showed manners and took a bath! He and Leona welcomed many blossoming baby boomers into their home, offering sandwiches, cookies and sodie! The Riecan household always had an open door, "wherever particular people congregated." He loved the neighborhood kids and his son's high school friends: Tom, Mike, Jim, John, the Pij, Bill, Jeff, Allen, The Duke, Gary,Terry, Myron, Molly, Keith, and many others. He and Leona were affectionately christened, "Mr. & Mrs. Fij," a nickname that they enthusiastically adopted and thoroughly enjoyed. He was a carpenter and built 2 homes on Grainey Drive and an A-frame the size of a small pyramid at Lake Carlyle with the help from the "boys." He was proud of his military service and loved "Deetroit" where he worked after the War for Hudson, Kaiser and Chrysler. He and Leona loved being close to their grandchildren but dearly missed many relatives in Central and Southern Illinois. He and Leona were able to travel to Slovakia with their son and granddaughter, Courtney to visit relatives in 2002. He was a great father and wonderful husband, taking care of his wife, Leona who was diagnosed with MS in 1970. He regretted that he could not have spent more time with his brother and many nieces and nephews on the Riecan side of the family most of whom still live in Southern Illinois, the Riecans, Starzyks, Smolik, Pate, Newtons, Weavers, Feichtinger. He is also survived by many wonderful family members on Leona's side: the Kishes, Svetliks, Petrunichs, Timko's, Leskos, Kravec, and many other Slovaks. A thank you to Rob who helped Mr. Fij at the Beach House and to John G. who helped Mr. Fij (who was color blind, dyslexic) hook up 220V hot water heater and survived to tell the story. A special heartfelt thank you goes to "Joe" the neighbor in U.P. who befriended and watched after Mr. & Mrs. Riecan and to "Elizabeth," the caregiver who was very loving and special to George & Leona. Mr. Riecan will be buried in his flannel shirt, carpenter overalls taking with him his favorite Hammer, tape measure, Listerine, a bar of Lifebuoy and Lava, duct tape, caulk, a can of Chase & Sanborn and a pack of non filtered "Pall Malls" along with the motto, "IN HOC SIGNO VINCES," in Latin meaning, "with this sign you shall conquer." A private service and internment will be on Thursday, November 5 at Tahoma National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the family suggests considering a donation in Mr. Riecan's name to St. Leo's "The Food Connection," 710 South 13th St., Tacoma, WA 98405 or a food bank of your choice. On line condolences at www.GaffneyCares.com. Gaffney Funeral Home, Tacoma, WA