Richard E. Kramarczyk

”.   To Kenneth,Christopher and Kayla: In memory of Brother Richard, The Rick  The Real Kramarczyk, The mayor of Lonyo.   Our Little brother Rick, your dad was a born gear head. He loved working on  cars up until his pain restricted him a few years back. He always kept a supply of broken down cars in his yard so that he could work on them when he got around to it.  He was once a Union Tradesman at Kelsey Hayes and got his hands dirty  every day either at his main job or as backyard mechanic.   So in that respect, it may seem strange that I think of brother Rick, the guy with the grease covered hands as being a beautiful rosebud, a uniquely shaped creation of Nature that was larger, more colorful and more special then the rest.  We hoped  that someday  that special bud would open completely and expose the full expanse of its beauty and purpose . Rick never completely realized his potential. But he did leave behind three special children: Kenneth, Chris and his baby Kayla, who are all well on their way to a successful life. There is no question that he was extremely proud of each of them, even as they worked their way through some rough patches.   The Rick was the Prince of Lonyo and the self proclaimed REAL Kramarczyk, a throwback to another era, by choice,  a simple man, preferring to avoid the complexities and hype of the times. He often pointed out to brother Bob, sister Diane and myself  that he was the only one in our brood who chose to carry on and keep the Kramarczyk family name. Sister Diane had a name change by marriage. Bob and I had chopped the last 4 letters from the name, which left us one czyk short of being authentic like him. This gave him the self proclaimed title of THE REAL KRAMARCZYK. He was proud of the name, his Polish heritage and was especially proud of his kid’s achievements in spite of the difficulties they faced over time.   Rick was the 4th of 5 siblings born to Edward and Cecilia and was preceded in death by them and brother Ken who passed away tragically in 1975. Though he and Rita had divorced years ago, he maintained  contact with her. Rita brought him food and company in his last  months. We thank you for that Rita. It was she who discovered Rick after numerous family calls to him were not answered.   Brother Rick was a highly intelligent, deep thinking man with an assortment of talents, beliefs and ideas, some of which bizarre or at least   unconventional. He could and did argue points he believed in even as most of us did not share his beliefs. He is now in position to verify the existence of extraterrestrial aliens here on earth. Wouldn’t it be great if he was right?  Often forgotten was his athletic ability as a left handed pitcher for U of D High School where he pitched against friend and rival Frank Tanana who went on to star in the majors.   Ricky followed his own beat. His intellect was strong but his direction faltered especially after he sustained serious spine injuries in a work related accident. One  can only wonder what he could have  achieved had he remained healthy.   Quiet and usually shy, his wild and unique sense of humor would often came to light when he was in the company of family and friends. He had a number of theories that many of us found unique. Unfortunately  that humor showed much  too infrequently as Rick was uncomfortable leaving the familiarity and comfort of his west side environment.  Getting Ricky to attend family events like Christmas or Easter get -togethers or any other family event was virtually impossible. A trip to nearby suburbs to visit his siblings was like a trip to China or Antarctica  for Rick. His comfort zone ended somewhere south of 8 Mile Road. In spite of it all, he had a strong sense of family and he could be counted on to to show up at family funerals. Fortunately, we all had a chance to spend some time with him recently at Aunt Bernice’s memorial gathering.   Through it all he maintained a strong Catholic faith, admired his Polish pope  and had an innocent naivety about him. He was a good guy who got a bad deal in life.   The Real Kramarczyk, a real Detroit guy, a loving father caught up in the harshest realities of life, he will be missed. Goodbye little brother,father,uncle, friend from us all.   Here’s to you Richard. Enjoy eternity in the company of your mother, father and brother  and the untold and unknown Kramarczyks  you share your heritage with.   Ernie Bob and Diane