Ronald ‘Ron’ C. Schinkowitch, 77, loved being outdoors

Obituary for Ronald ‘Ron’ C. Schinkowitch

Ronald “Ron” C. Schinkowitch, age 77, passed away on Sunday, March 5, 2023, at Accent Care in Oak Creek. Ron was born on July 29, 1945, to Clarence H. and Elizabeth F. (Nee: Wolf) Schinkowitch in Racine, Wis.

Ron graduated from St. Catherine’s High School with the “Class of 1963” and went on to attend UW-Stevens Point. On Sept. 7, 1968, Ron married “the girl next door,” Susan “Sue” DenHartigh. Together they raised three daughters while he worked for 32 years at JI Case as a Parts Coordinator. After his retirement in 2000, Ron was excited to work on his true passion, lawn care. He established “Neighborhood Lawn Care” and was happy spending even more time outdoors, his favorite place to be.

Ron was named “Jaycee of the Year” in 1970 after starting the first soap box derby on Hoeffert Drive. He was also very involved at Sacred Heart Church for many years where he was a member of the choir, men’s 16” softball team, festival committee, athletic association, and later, coach of his daughters’ sports teams.

In his Northside neighborhood of 50 years, Ron was very popular and even referred to as “the Mayor” by some. You never knew what to expect when he showed up to lead the parade of one of their themed block parties! Friends and neighbors always knew they could find him sitting out in the garage at all hours of the day or night.

Living by the adage, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” Ron’s garage was always packed full of interesting things. This is where he spent most of his time watching Brewers games, hosting Packer tailgate parties, or just relaxing while he watched the birds and squirrels in the yard. Ron’s other hobbies and interests included turkey hunting, fishing, frequenting the scrapyard, stamp, and coin collecting, having rummage sales, and doing crossword scratch-off cards. He was an avid recycler who never let anything go to waste.

Family was important to Ron, and he never missed a celebration where he could sing his own classic version of the Birthday song or the Christmas song using his “Alvin and the Chipmunks” voice. He was dearly loved and will be sadly missed by his wife, Sue, of 54 years; daughters, Kristine (Joe) Ramirez, Kim (Eric) Gegare, Karin (Christopher) Meier; grandchildren, Mari, Kali, Maya (Ramirez), Shannon, Ethan, Payton, Louden, Kaden (Gegare), Jackson, Emmaleigh (Meier); sisters, Carol (Robert) Hesse, Judith (Timothy) Joosse, Linda (David) Pias; sister-in-law, Gail (Jesse) Doughty; nieces, nephews, other relatives, and dear friends, as well as his faithful furry companion, Tucker. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by nieces, Lynn Hollow and Gayle Hammond.

Services

A Memorial service celebrating Ron’s life will be held at the Maresh-Meredith & Acklam Funeral Home, at noon, on Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Relatives and friends are welcome to meet with the family for visitation beginning at 10 a.m. until the time of service.

The family wishes to extend a very special thank you to all the doctors, nurses and therapists who helped care for Ron over the years, especially Dr. Joseph Mathew, Dr. Steven Johnson, Dr. Subbanna Jayaprakash, and the staff at Accent Care. The list would not be complete without mentioning the enormous amount of gratitude to his wife, Sue, who cared for him at home for the past 11 years following his stroke and through the challenging stages of dementia with unwavering commitment and compassion.