More detail on this person: Charles Ray Ritzschke MAJOR, US ARMY VIETNAM Charles Ray Ritzschke was born in 1939, at Republic, WA, to Floyd Ritzschke and Helen Davis Ritzschke and passed away in Valrico, Florida, on April 6, 2010, from a long term bout of "on again and off again" Leukemia, brought about by exemplary service to his country as an Army Helicopter Pilot, having to fly through clouds of Agent Orange in the Vietnam War. Ray grew up on the family ranch, adjacent to the Sweat Creek Camping and Picnic area between Republic and Wauconda. He graduated from Wauconda Grade School and went on to excel in scholastics at Tonasket High School, riding the school bus 35 miles each way, every day, over the highest mountain pass at the time in the state of Washington. He graduated from Tampa University, Florida in 1972. Ray's was not a life in school sports, but he made up for it by attaining excellence in livestock studies in the local Wauconda 4-H Club and the Tonasket High School Future Farmers of America chapter, leading in Livestock Judging with several awards across Washington State. He was often selected by his peers in both Club and Chapter Leadership positions and was often recognized by adult elected officials in the communities of Wauconda, Republic and its surrounding Ferry County area, and Tonasket. His seriousness in social interaction was the focal point of younger boys, who looked up to him as their image of the ideal to be in their own lives. He was the recipient of the Army Air Medal twice, the Bronze Star, the Army Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal with several Oak Leaf Clusters and the Army Longevity Ribbon for his 25 years of active military service, spanning in rank from the lowest Private to Major, including two volunteer tours of duty in the war zone of Vietnam. He retired from the regular U.S. Army as a Major, continuing to do extensive volunteer work in subsistence care in his local Catholic church and the Elks Lodge. Ray is survived by his lovely wife, Mary Lou, whom he married December 10, 1960; his daughters, Judith Ann (Dave) Skiles, Mary Rae Kelly and Lisa Ann (Charles) Wiggins; and son, Raymond Robert; his mother, Helen Ritzschke; brothers, Larry Ritzschke and Byron Ritzschke; special friends, Don and Jinny Thomason; and several cousins. He was preceded in death by his father, Floyd Ritzschke. Ray's ashes were Interred in the National Veteran's Cemetery in Florida, with Full Military Honors.
Burial information: Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, FL
This information was last updated 04/22/2020
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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024
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