- Date Of Birth: July 4, 1935
- Date Of Death: August 13, 2022
- State: Michigan
Fred Edson Triquet, age 87, of Kalamazoo passed away surrounded by his beloved family, on August 13, 2022, at Rose Arbor Hospice Home.
He was born on July 4, 1935, in Kalamazoo, the son of Russell and Leona (Cummins) Triquet.
He proudly served in the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict. Fred attended Tri-State University and Western Michigan University. He was a Chief Engineer for Checker Motors and Weber Specialities. He retired from Premier Products in Kalamazoo as Co-Owner, Vice President, and Chief Engineer.
On March 19, 1966, Fred and Diane Marie Justice were married. They met on a blind date set up by a co-worker of Diane’s, and her friend was the perfect matchmaker. Fred and Diane were married for 56 years. They had four beautiful daughters and the best sons-in-law they could have ever imagined.
His family includes his wife Diane; his daughters and their husbands: Jennifer (Russell) Smithyman, Prosser, WA; Suzanne (Brian) VandenBrink, Bradenton, FL; Kathleen (Todd) Hurley, Lawton, MI; and Sarah (Jeff) Curry, Paw Paw, MI. He loved his grandchildren with all his heart: Mackenzie Smithyman, Zayne (Chasity) Smithyman, Cassandra Smithyman, Emma VandenBrink, Allen VandenBrink, Parker (Courtney) Hurley, Peyton Hurley, Eliana Curry, Jaxon Curry, Alexia Curry; and his sister Sally Adduci, niece Dianna (Nick) Wilder, and nephew Blake (Jill) Weston.
On October 21, 2010, at Cleveland Clinic, Fred was honored with a gift of life by receiving a lung at the age of 75 years old. It was a gift that his entire family cherished and he spent as much time as he could for the next 12 years helping to mentor anyone facing the possibility of receiving a gift of life, an organ transplant. Fred enjoyed spending time at their cabin and boating on the Muskegon River. Fred and Diane enjoyed traveling to Europe, RV-ing the United States, and fly fishing along the way. He loved building things including the house and barns on the family homestead. He purchased a 4 stall garage from Wolf Lake Fish Hatchery. Fred and Diane took it apart and reassembled the entire garage on their Almena property. He was very good at figuring out the impossible. He loved farming and building everything necessary for his girls to raise their 4-H animals. The family belonged to the Almena Happy Helpers 4-H Club for over 24 years.
Fred was a hard-working and loving family man, successful engineer, and businessman. He will be dearly missed by his family and all that knew him.
