- Date Of Birth: April 9, 1947
- Date Of Death: October 17, 2021
- State: Wisconsin
Richard Walter Zawatzke passed to the arms of his Lord on October 17, 2021 at Riverview Hospital, Wisconsin Rapids. Richard was born April 9, 1947 in Janesville, Wisconsin to Walter George Zawatzke and Helen Therese Zawatzke (Yasaitis). Later, the Zawatzke family moved to Racine, Wisconsin. Richard attended Holy Trinity grade school and Horlick High School.
After high school in 1966, Richard married Horlick High School classmate, Beverly Elayne Smith (nka Heintz) and they had a daughter, Stephanie Elayne Zawatzke (nka Severson O’Toole). Richard proudly enlisted in the Marines, following in the footsteps of his beloved father-in-law, Jerd L. Smith.
After his honorable discharge from the Marines in 1970, Richard moved back to Racine, Wisconsin, passed tests to qualify for a 1st Class FCC license, and was hired by AT&T as a telephone technician specialist. He worked at AT&T for 35 years and retired in 2007. In 1972, Richard married Linda Haas and they had a son, Richard Stephen Zawatzke.
In his retirement years, Richard moved to Wisconsin Rapids to be closer to his mother and sister, Susanne Zawatzke (nka Stuckey), and her children, Carrisa Stuckey and Colton Stuckey. Richard enjoyed the fellowship of the parishioners at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wisconsin Rapids where he found a welcoming church home. Richard had a very active, curious mind and often ordered online college level courses to learn new things, though he was always particularly interested in computers and related technology, frequently taking computers apart and putting them together.
In his later years, Richard was troubled by a host of physical ailments, which prevented him from getting out of the house as often as he would have liked. One of his greatest joys were his pets, most recently Joey (a Chow/Samoyed mix featured in the obituary picture), a rescue dog, Leelah, and a rescue cat, Smokey. He loved to feed the birds and to garden, much like his mother did. He adored his mother and communicated with her regularly throughout her life. Richard was also an avid cook who enjoyed exploring different cuisines, though fried porkchops were a favorite of his. His cooking talent was acquired from his father, who was known to be an excellent cook, having served as a cook in the U.S. Army.
Richard is preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Helen (Yasaitis), and his dear younger brother, Stephen, who died in a drowning accident at age 11, when Richard was just 13. It was an impactful event in Richard’s young life.
Richard is survived by his children, Stephanie and Richard, and sisters, Therese (“Terri”) Gregory, Marcella (“Marcie”) Orton, and Susanne (“Sue”) Stuckey, and numerous nieces and nephews.
