Richard Erwin Rettig

Richard (Rick) E. Rettig, age 70, died Wednesday, July 22, 2020 from COVID-19 with his wife by his side. Rick was born May 5,1950 in Cincinnati, Ohio and grew up in North College Hill, Ohio where he found his first love….golf. His first job was as a caddy at Clovernook Country Club where he begged them to hire him at the age of eight so he could follow in his big bother, Ken’s, footsteps. He always followed his passions so when he could drive, he worked for United Dairy Farmer in order to eat all the ice cream he wanted. He went to St. Thomas More College on a golf scholarship, but with his nimble mind and desire to see the world he followed his older brother and his older sister, Rosemary, into the USAF. In technical training school he volunteered for special forces training as an Air Commando which included training with the Navy Seals and Green Berets. Then it was on to Vietnam. During his 20-year career in the USAF Rick enjoyed discovering new cultures and cuisines and indulged in his passion for games including pinochle, dice and dominoes. While stationed in Aviano, Italy he played on an Italian minor league baseball team and traveled all over Europe as a member of the USAF European Golf Team. He met his true love at the baseball diamond at Brooks AFB in San Antonio. He and Judy were married for 38 years. After he retired from the USAF, he worked for Felco Office Systems for nine years repairing and setting up copy machines all over San Antonio, Texas. When he left Felco he became the best house husband to support his wife while she continued to work. He cooked, cleaned, walked the dogs and loved every minute of it. Rick was a member of OWLS, an organization promoting senior socializing and games. He made sure he was available to give anyone rides to appointments and offer advice or help around their homes. His absolute joy in the past three years at their new home outside San Antonio was to feed the birds, watch the variety of wildlife in the greenbelt behind their home and play pinochle and dominoes with his friends.

Rick was a man of his word, a loyal friend and a husband that loved his wife. He is survived by his wife, Judith K. Rettig, Sister Rosemary Grim, Sister Donna Rinckel. In order to keep our family and friends safe due to the Covid Pandemic we are delaying the burial at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery so that more of our loved ones can attend and celebrate Richard's life with us.