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Memorial Keepers(1)
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Emily Piper
Richard W. Grelck
January 18th, 1943 - November 1st, 2022
January 18th, 1943 - November 1st, 2022
On November 1st, Dick Grelck passed away surrounded by family after a year long battle with cancer – always with optimism and an unrelenting desire to fight. Dick was a wonderful husband, best friend, Father and Grandfather. With our loss of him, there was a change in our world as if one color of the spectrum disappeared and is now missing in all we see. Our lives will never be the same without his calming presence, his ability to take problems quietly in stride, and his deep and thoughtful friendship. Dick expressed to his family that he would like a jubilant Celebration of Life Memorial. The family can only hope to keep his memory alive with your help for such a memorial in January when he would have turned 80 years old. **Go to the "events" tab at the top of this page to RSVP to his Celebration of Life, that will be held on January 14th, 2023.**
Dick wanted us to support a cause that was important to him so we are asking for you to consider contributions to a charity in his honor rather than flowers. As most of you know Dick’s favorite place to be was at our family cabin on Chambers Island. He valued the serenity, charisma and community of that space greatly, and made it his goal to put every effort into contributing to the prosperity and unity of the culture of the Island. A facet of this community was the Chambers Island Community Emergency Response Team, a group of volunteer Islanders who take time out of their busy island lives to come and learn how to best serve our community in times of crisis. Be that a fire, an accident, or a serious injury, the CERT is there at ready to jump into action. Please consider donating to this group in honor of Dick Grelck’s love of the people and culture of Chambers Island. **To donate you can find the link below to the GoFundMe for this cause.**
Thank you for being a part of the Grelck family, we are finding solace during this time in the stories and sentiments that you have shared with us about Dick. Always the person to lend an ear or share a dry-humored joke, Dick’s presence will be greatly missed by all. We hope you can join us to celebrate all of the wonderful aspects that made up our favorite man.
Sincerely, Carol, Kurt, Emily, Stephanie, and Shawn
Events
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Tributes
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Wayne Wedell
I had the privilege of working with Dick at EMS, IFS and WorkWise. He was a great mentor, business partner and friend. Dick was held in the highest regard and consistently made invaluable contributions to the people and companies he worked with. Dick often spoke about his family and wonderful times spent on Chambers Island. He will be missed greatly. May Dick rest in peace with the Lord.
Henry Parisi
It is with heavy hearts Joyce & I learn of Dick's passing. Dick was an excellent visionary who always made time to listen. Enjoyed all the years we worked side-by-side to improve our company and team members.
Terry James Schwantes
I met Dick in about 1982 when I would travel to EMS-Illinois to teach ERP classes. It was always an enjoyable experience. I did not know that Dick was involved in CERT as I am affiliated with CERT in Hartford, Wisconsin.
Mary Jane And Ben
Dear Carol and Family, Since we can’t be with you to celebrate all of the fun we have had with Dick, we hope you can share this picture with your family and friends as a reminder of what a great sport he was. He was always game for just about anything. We love this photo of him as he was helping support the creation of the Chambers Island Nature Preserve. Not everyone would be willing to ride on a float with blow-up sex dolls while wearing a skin-tight body suit with a strategically placed large leaf on his genitalia. And, he made it look like fun. Of course, the Chambers Island Enquirer had many articles about him because he loved being part of the jokes. We will never forget his intelligent conversation and stimulating political discussions. It helped, of course, that we were politically in line with him. The things he did to advance the Chambers Island Community are too numerous to mention. Dick was also a two-term (plus) CIA president along with being a friend and helper to anyone who needed assistance or advice. He was indeed one of those outstanding people…the kind we are all grateful to have known and called a friend. We promise to go on telling stories about Dick as long as people are still listening to us. We miss him very much. Ben and Mary Jane
Jim Van Hecke
I worked with Dick for a number of years at EMS. He was a good teacher and generous with his time. What an excellent sense of humor! We'll miss him.
Rod West
Dick hired me in 1987 to work with him and Dan Long at EMS. It became a life-long experience with both of them. I have so many memories of Dick as a boss and a good friend. I'm having trouble knowing that he is gone. What a Guy!
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