Rich Wych
Rich D. Wych, 70, of Quimby, passed away on Monday, January 30, 2017, at a Sioux City hospital.
Services were held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, February 3 at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Cherokee, Iowa. The Rev. Dan Guenther officiated. Burial will be at a later date. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.greenwoodfuneral.com.
Richard “Rich” D. Wych, was born on September 11, 1946, in Cherokee. His childhood years were spent in near Quimby.
He graduated from Willow High School in 1964. Rich then attended the University of South Dakota for three years, where he was majoring in computer science.
Rich was drafted into the U.S. Army in November 1968. He was assigned to Fort Ord, California for basic and infantry training. He volunteered for airborne training and completed his training, jumping five times from about 3,000 feet.
In November 1969, he was sent to Vietnam. He was assigned to the 25th Infantry Division, based out of Cu Chi, which was in the Parrot’s Beak. For the majority of his time in the jungle, he walked point.
He was wounded in June 1970 by a Chinese claymore mine. He was hospitalized for two weeks in Japan before being transferred to Lakes Naval Hospital in North Chicago. He was discharged from the U.S. Army in October 1970.
He was awarded the following medals: the Vietnam Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, the Combat Infantry Badge, Airborne Wings, the National Defense Medal, and Expert Marksman M16 and M60.
After his service to our country, Rich went back to USD, where he completed his degree in computer science.
On October 28, 1972, he was united in marriage to Carol Wright in Quimby. Following their marriage, they lived in Cherokee; Washta, Iowa; and Jefferson, South Dakota; before moving to Holstein, Iowa, where they lived for 18 years.
Rich worked for VT Industries in Holstein for 28 years.
In 2002, they moved to Quimby and lived on the golf course. He spent a lot of his time playing golf.
Rich was a member of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. He enjoyed baseball, playing golf, working, and bowling. He was an avid Hawkeyes fan, and he was very proud of his manicured yard. Most of all, Rich loved spending time with his family and friends.
Rich is survived by his wife of 44 years, Carol; his five children: Kimberly Bumgardner, Timothy (Kim) Wych, Daniel Wych, Anthony (Jenny) Wych and Alison (Brant) Kurtz; his 20 grandchildren: Alex, Aaron, Ashley, Karissa, Charlie, Kammy, Gavin, Parker, Taylor, Maddie, Katie, Savannah, Austin, Brody, Camden, Chandler, Chaypin, Cayden, Colton and Daxton; an aunt, Shirley Perrett; siblings Ruby and Donnie (Carol) Wych; brothers-in-law Gary (Dorothy) Wright, Phillip (Carolyn) Wright, Douglas Wright and Michael (Ann) Wright; sisters-in-law Debbie (the late Mark) Court-right, Cathy (Larry) Nicolaisen, and Terri Chester; many nieces, nephews, and cousins; and other loving relatives and friends.
Rich was preceded in death by his parents, Paul and Ferne (Warburton) Wych.
