William Rittenger II

RITTENGER - Mr. William F. "Bill" Rittenger II aged 76 passed away Sunday, May 10, 2015. He was preceded in death by his parents, Lloyd and Dorothy; brother, Chuck and sister, Cindy. Surviving are his children, Suzanne (Howard) Kelly, Kim (Kurt Volkers) Winchell, Bill (Gina) Rittenger III; grandchildren, Marissa Kelly, Rachael Kelly, Olivia Kelly, Sophia Kelly, Erika (Steve) Hagy, Tara Kelly, Ryan Winchell, Brett Winchell, Molly Rittenger and Ella Rittenger; great grandchildren, Charlotte, Jillian, Jonathan, Juliana and Amadeo; sisters, Mary Ruth "Mimi" Ostrander, Lorraine Green, Linda Giammona-Eggers; several nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be held 1:00PM Wednesday May 13, 2015 at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, 3000 Monroe NW., with visitation one hour prior to the service. Bill was known by everyone he met by his friendly, outgoing personality, his mischievous sense of humor, and his obvious love for his family. As the oldest child of Lloyd and Dorothy, he was doted on by his mother, loved watching and talking sports with his dad, and took his job as big brother to his siblings very seriously. He knew how to tell a story so you got a picture in your head and always had plenty of them to tell about his family and neighborhood adventures growing up on Quigley and Horton Ave. Later in life, he had opportunity to share some of the best ones in a series of columns called "Flat Facts" in a small newspaper published up in one of his favorite places, Grand Marais, Michigan. His children often heard of his days at South High School and eventually learned the Trojan Fight Song from hearing him sing it. After high school, he attended Central Michigan University and then went on to enlist in the US Army, serving most of his time in Germany, where he was stationed during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He enjoyed talking about his time and his travels while serving in the US Army and was discharged and returned home on November 22, 1963. Back in civilian life, he eventually met his first wife, Jo, and over the next couple of years they married and began their family. They had three children over the next few years: Suzi, Kimmy Jo and his namesake, Billy. He was an amazing and incredibly devoted father and his children were not surprisingly his priority. He had a keen eye for finding the best new playgrounds to try out with his kids and they have memories of countless trips to the library, museum and zoo. He'd pick them up on a Friday for spontaneous weekend trips to the cabin "up north" where he took them fishing, for walks on the "bumpy road" (singing corny songs he'd made up for them..), and playing wiffle ball in the high weeds around the cabin. He always took interest in them, and whatever they had interest in or whatever they were involved in, he got involved in. He was a fixture at the Southern Little League ball fields, where he coached and served as Chief Umpire for several years. As the kids transitioned into high school, Bill transitioned as well, becoming the public address announcer for the boys and girls basketball teams at Rogers High School. Whatever the event--band, choir, sports--he was ALWAYS there!! He shared his love for Tiger baseball and ANYTHING to do with University of Michigan sports with everyone around him (GO BLUE!!), and we are all are huge fans of the Maize and Blue because of him. As time went on, the family became a new, blended one, and four stepsons were added with his eventual wife, Linda, and more precious memories for story telling were made. When the time came for grandchildren to enter his life, he was more than ready and did not disappoint. He still knew the best playgrounds to take them to play at, loved to take them for walks, listened to all their stories, and told them his. His grandsons shared his love for baseball and Wolverine sports and his granddaughters will always remember "donut days" and "grandpa parks." His silly humor made them all giggle, and oh....how he loved their giggles. He made everyone he knew feel special and important and he never lost that sense of humor, even when the Parkinsons made it difficult to be understood. He was even cracking jokes on his last morning here in this life. We were all blessed to have been a part of it with him, and though our hearts ache right now because we already miss him so dearly, we rejoice that he is at peace and whole and sharing his humor and stories with another audience. See you later, Diddy..... To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of William Frederick Rittenger II please visit our Sympathy Store.