Obituary of Nickolas Joseph Garecht

Nickolas (Bud) was born February 10, 1925 in Richardton, North Dakota, the son of Joseph and Margreth Joksch Garecht, he was one of seventeen children; Joseph (1903), John (1904), Mary Magdalyn (1906), Theresa (1907), George (1909), Stephen (1911), Theodore (1912), Carl (1913), Eleanore (1914), Wilhelm (1915), Carolyn (1919), Margaret (1920), Eva (1922), Loretta (1923) and then the baby of the family, Nickolas (1925). Bud loved his life on the farm and often told stories of his upbringing. He was also very proud of his military service in WWII. He often spoke of his time in Italy and of “Jinx” his truck. Upon his return from war; he married Ann Anton on June 10, 1947. Initially he worked for the Coke plant until the couple moved to California. His first house was in San Leandro where his daughter Cynthia and son Tom were born. Then in 1956, the family moved to Danville to a newly built house. Here two other children, Gianna and Scott would be born. He would leave Coke to work for a machinist shop owned by Don Wells. In 1990, he would retire and move to Oroville. His wife, Ann, of 62 years would pass away in 2009. He would continue to live in Oroville until 2013 when he would move to Antioch to be closer to family. Before moving to Antioch; Bud would return to his beloved Richardton, North Dakota with his son Tom for a week-long trip beginning on Saturday, October 11, 2010. Tom would learn the family history and how his great grandfather, Peter, helped build the Abby in town and his grandfather, Joseph was the deputy sheriff in Dickinson for many years. Bud was so proud to take Tom to the courthouse where his dad had been sheriff and shared stories of the attic trapdoor where Bud would go whenever he needed to “sleep it off”. The only regret that Bud would have would be to not see the family farm up close and take a walk to Young Man’s Butte. He would also take a couple of trips with his daughter, Gigi, to Las Vegas to visit with his grandson David and his great grandson, Dominic. Bud loved to ride in the car, it was relaxing and allowed him to just look at the scenery which he could never do while he was driving during his family trips. During this transition time of living alone, he would bond with a his neighbor, Duke, who would take him on many car rides which included a drive to Danville at Christmas time to visit the kids and later to Granite Bay to visit his older brother, Bill. These trips would give Bud something to look forward to, which in turn gave him much joy. Bud loved family gatherings; especially in the good old days. He often reminisced about the Christmas Eve celebrations when the tree was in the “screen room” and how by the end of the evening, the room would be filled with torn wrapping paper and gifts galore. He also loved to cook when he had the opportunity. His ham hock and bean soup was well liked by the family and of course those “Peppered” bar-b-que hamburgers were legend. The family would have many pets throughout the years; but Bud’s favorites were “Ringo” the cat and “Kelly” the dog. Both of these animals would remain in his heart and memory for years to come. Other Bud favorites were: Comic Books, Golf, TV show “Cops”, Spätzle Dumplings/Noodles, Pork Sausage (but only from his family farm because they fed the pigs better grain), Oh Henry candy bars (because it was a treat when he was in the army), popcorn, banana cream pie, milk shakes, Country Western music (especially Hank Williams), the harmonica, the movie “Nebraska” and his beloved recliner chair. Bud is survived by: Brother: Bill Garecht (who will be 100 Years old in December) 4 Children: Cindy Quinones, Tom Garecht, Gigi Puckett and Scott Garecht 10 Grandchildren: Kenny, Kimberly, Michael, David, Christopher, Ethan, Natalie, Chelsea, Nikki and Ashley 4 Great Grandchildren: Tiara, Dominic, Lily and Lance Graveside Services will be held on Friday, September 25, 2015 at 10:30 AM at Memorial Park Cemetery 5646 Lincoln Blvd. Oroville, California. Arrangements are entrusted to Ramsey Funeral Home 530-534-3877.