Larry passed away three days’ shy of his 95th birthday, at home, following a brief hospital stay. The family was gathered for two planned weekends of birthday celebrations, and many were here to wish him goodbye.
Larry was a WWII vet, trained as an Air Force B17 Bombardier. In 1946 he met Joanne Pardieck while visiting his parents in Altadena. They married in 1949 and had six children, Rick, Karen, Dyan, Charlene, Greg and Laurie. For the most part they lived in Ventura, and most of the children attended Assumption and Saint Bonaventure.
Dad built, managed, and designed specialized agricultural equipment and he and Joanne traveled to China, Israel, and Ecuador on business. Many summers the family rented a cottage on Meeks Bay on Lake Tahoe, and later owned a home in Incline Village. As the children got older, Larry and Joanne were able to travel with friends to Europe and the Caribbean, as well as the Columbia River, rarely going to the same place twice.
Dad was a tinkerer, and in retirement may have been Lowe’s greatest customer. He enjoyed his daily walks from his home in the Keys to the Ventura Harbor, and will always be remembered by the phrase “Your dad is a great guy!”
He is survived by his children, their spouses, Jamie, David, Michael, Jon, Susan, and Peter, seven grandchildren, Nicole, Ricky, Jenny, David, Ben, Luke, and Christopher, and their spouses, Matt, Charlie, Julie, Lauren, and Anna, and five great grandchildren, Caden, Cora, Charlotte, Rowen, Axel, Curtis, Layla, and his friends Gloria, all his fiends from Cypress, Carol and the group from the church. A Mass dedicated to Larry’s life will be held at Assumption Church, March 15th at 8 am.
Never ill, Larry’s was a life well lived!