Melvin Ricker Jr. passed on Aug. 15, 2008, at MaineGeneral Medical Center, Waterville.
Mel was born Feb. 15, 1924, in Presque Isle, the third of five children of Olga (Lathrop) and Melvin Ricker Sr. After his father's death, Olga married Archie Farley, and four additional siblings followed.
His early years were spent in Presque Isle working in the woods with his stepdad. He started school at 4 years old because he insisted on going with his two older sisters. They would bring along a blanket, and he would have to take a nap in the afternoon in the one-room schoolhouse. He picked potatoes in the fall and hayed in the summer. His love of work and learning continued throughout his life. When picking potatoes, he would miss more than a month of school and still be at the head of the class on the first day back.
He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the Army Air Force from 1943 to 1947, earning the rank of sergeant and a Bronze Star. He was a flight engineer on B-17s and was in the 388th Bombardier Group.
He was part of Operation Chowhound in the spring of 1945 and was always moved when telling stories about the people in Europe coming out to take the food from the skies. He pulled a fellow serviceman from a plane when spilled fuel was erupting around them. But he would say he didn't do much, was only doing his job. He sent his wages home for his mom to support his siblings. To save money, he hitchhiked home. Later, he also rode on trains, including hanging on the top of boxcars for dear life.
In Washington state, he worked the log drives and was responsible for opening up logjams, but he quit after someone was crushed between the logs.
He settled down when Bunny finally agreed to marry him after chasing her for six years. They were married Dec. 24, 1948.
He graduated from the first class of the Central Maine Technical Institute in Lewiston. Thereafter, he worked as a mechanic for several construction companies, including DeMateo, Lee Brothers, Blue Rock and Rossi, and retired from Mardens. He was well
respected and trusted by truck drivers and equipment operators.
Mel enjoyed being a husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and uncle. He was creative, not only tinkering around the garage, but also building a camp and home for his family. Mel and Bunny carved out a heart-shaped pond on their land and built a moose out of an oil tank. He built a gazebo for Bunny and then had all their relatives' names and hand/footprints sealed in cement below the gazebo's roof. He built stilts of various heights for his kids and their friends, some towering to the garage.
He would make homemade fireworks, cattail torches and floating candles for the Fourth of July at Webber Pond, where many summers were spent with cookouts and swimming. Family and friends alike were always welcome. He had a great fondness for camping with extended family in the northern Maine woods, especially around Mount Katahdin, Baxter State Park and along the Golden Road. He enjoyed teaching grandchildren where the best fishing spots were and where to find bear and moose.
Mel was predeceased by his wife, Bunny; their sons, Michael D. Ricker and Eugene "Gene" "Kenny" Ricker; sister Anna and her husband, Raymond Bowman; sister Louise and her husband, George Spear; sister Betty and her husband, Donald McCaslin; sister-in-law Louise Varney; sisters-in-law Marjorie and Thomas Newell and Shirley and Paul Marshall; brothers-in-law Richard Pullen and Harry Hughes; and several nephews.
The family would like to thank the staff of HomeCare of Maine and Cynthia O'Clair, especially Care & Comfort, who helped Mel at home when his wife, Bunny, was still living; Senior Spectrum; LifeLine; Winslow Rescue; Delta Ambulance; MaineGeneral Medical Center Emergency Room and the nurses and Dr. Brown; Veterans' Affairs Center staff, including Chris Essancy; and Dr. Burke and Nurse Emma and staff.
Staples Funeral Home of Gardiner is overseeing the cremation. A celebration of his life will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 19, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Eastern Avenue, Augusta. A reception will immediately follow at the church. A gathering for family and friends will be at 1 p.m. on Tuesday at Mel's home, 177 North Pond Road in Winslow. All are welcome.
Gifts to celebrate Mel's life may be sent to the Greater Waterville Food Bank, 61 Pleasant St., Waterville, ME 04901.
Published by Morning Sentinel from Aug. 16 to Aug. 17, 2008.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
MEMORIAL EVENTS
To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.
Plant Trees
Funeral services provided by:
Staples Funeral Service - Gardiner
Contributor: Lori Lee Crawford Corey (47954899)
Mel was born Feb. 15, 1924, in Presque Isle, the third of five children of Olga (Lathrop) and Melvin Ricker Sr. After his father's death, Olga married Archie Farley, and four additional siblings followed.
His early years were spent in Presque Isle working in the woods with his stepdad. He started school at 4 years old because he insisted on going with his two older sisters. They would bring along a blanket, and he would have to take a nap in the afternoon in the one-room schoolhouse. He picked potatoes in the fall and hayed in the summer. His love of work and learning continued throughout his life. When picking potatoes, he would miss more than a month of school and still be at the head of the class on the first day back.
He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the Army Air Force from 1943 to 1947, earning the rank of sergeant and a Bronze Star. He was a flight engineer on B-17s and was in the 388th Bombardier Group.
He was part of Operation Chowhound in the spring of 1945 and was always moved when telling stories about the people in Europe coming out to take the food from the skies. He pulled a fellow serviceman from a plane when spilled fuel was erupting around them. But he would say he didn't do much, was only doing his job. He sent his wages home for his mom to support his siblings. To save money, he hitchhiked home. Later, he also rode on trains, including hanging on the top of boxcars for dear life.
In Washington state, he worked the log drives and was responsible for opening up logjams, but he quit after someone was crushed between the logs.
He settled down when Bunny finally agreed to marry him after chasing her for six years. They were married Dec. 24, 1948.
He graduated from the first class of the Central Maine Technical Institute in Lewiston. Thereafter, he worked as a mechanic for several construction companies, including DeMateo, Lee Brothers, Blue Rock and Rossi, and retired from Mardens. He was well
respected and trusted by truck drivers and equipment operators.
Mel enjoyed being a husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and uncle. He was creative, not only tinkering around the garage, but also building a camp and home for his family. Mel and Bunny carved out a heart-shaped pond on their land and built a moose out of an oil tank. He built a gazebo for Bunny and then had all their relatives' names and hand/footprints sealed in cement below the gazebo's roof. He built stilts of various heights for his kids and their friends, some towering to the garage.
He would make homemade fireworks, cattail torches and floating candles for the Fourth of July at Webber Pond, where many summers were spent with cookouts and swimming. Family and friends alike were always welcome. He had a great fondness for camping with extended family in the northern Maine woods, especially around Mount Katahdin, Baxter State Park and along the Golden Road. He enjoyed teaching grandchildren where the best fishing spots were and where to find bear and moose.
Mel was predeceased by his wife, Bunny; their sons, Michael D. Ricker and Eugene "Gene" "Kenny" Ricker; sister Anna and her husband, Raymond Bowman; sister Louise and her husband, George Spear; sister Betty and her husband, Donald McCaslin; sister-in-law Louise Varney; sisters-in-law Marjorie and Thomas Newell and Shirley and Paul Marshall; brothers-in-law Richard Pullen and Harry Hughes; and several nephews.
The family would like to thank the staff of HomeCare of Maine and Cynthia O'Clair, especially Care & Comfort, who helped Mel at home when his wife, Bunny, was still living; Senior Spectrum; LifeLine; Winslow Rescue; Delta Ambulance; MaineGeneral Medical Center Emergency Room and the nurses and Dr. Brown; Veterans' Affairs Center staff, including Chris Essancy; and Dr. Burke and Nurse Emma and staff.
Staples Funeral Home of Gardiner is overseeing the cremation. A celebration of his life will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 19, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Eastern Avenue, Augusta. A reception will immediately follow at the church. A gathering for family and friends will be at 1 p.m. on Tuesday at Mel's home, 177 North Pond Road in Winslow. All are welcome.
Gifts to celebrate Mel's life may be sent to the Greater Waterville Food Bank, 61 Pleasant St., Waterville, ME 04901.
Published by Morning Sentinel from Aug. 16 to Aug. 17, 2008.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
MEMORIAL EVENTS
To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.
Plant Trees
Funeral services provided by:
Staples Funeral Service - Gardiner
Contributor: Lori Lee Crawford Corey (47954899)
Melvin Ricker Jr. passed on Aug. 15, 2008, at MaineGeneral Medical Center, Waterville.
Mel was born Feb. 15, 1924, in Presque Isle, the third of five children of Olga (Lathrop) and Melvin Ricker Sr. After his father's death, Olga married Archie Farley, and four additional siblings followed.
His early years were spent in Presque Isle working in the woods with his stepdad. He started school at 4 years old because he insisted on going with his two older sisters. They would bring along a blanket, and he would have to take a nap in the afternoon in the one-room schoolhouse. He picked potatoes in the fall and hayed in the summer. His love of work and learning continued throughout his life. When picking potatoes, he would miss more than a month of school and still be at the head of the class on the first day back.
He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the Army Air Force from 1943 to 1947, earning the rank of sergeant and a Bronze Star. He was a flight engineer on B-17s and was in the 388th Bombardier Group.
He was part of Operation Chowhound in the spring of 1945 and was always moved when telling stories about the people in Europe coming out to take the food from the skies. He pulled a fellow serviceman from a plane when spilled fuel was erupting around them. But he would say he didn't do much, was only doing his job. He sent his wages home for his mom to support his siblings. To save money, he hitchhiked home. Later, he also rode on trains, including hanging on the top of boxcars for dear life.
In Washington state, he worked the log drives and was responsible for opening up logjams, but he quit after someone was crushed between the logs.
He settled down when Bunny finally agreed to marry him after chasing her for six years. They were married Dec. 24, 1948.
He graduated from the first class of the Central Maine Technical Institute in Lewiston. Thereafter, he worked as a mechanic for several construction companies, including DeMateo, Lee Brothers, Blue Rock and Rossi, and retired from Mardens. He was well
respected and trusted by truck drivers and equipment operators.
Mel enjoyed being a husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and uncle. He was creative, not only tinkering around the garage, but also building a camp and home for his family. Mel and Bunny carved out a heart-shaped pond on their land and built a moose out of an oil tank. He built a gazebo for Bunny and then had all their relatives' names and hand/footprints sealed in cement below the gazebo's roof. He built stilts of various heights for his kids and their friends, some towering to the garage.
He would make homemade fireworks, cattail torches and floating candles for the Fourth of July at Webber Pond, where many summers were spent with cookouts and swimming. Family and friends alike were always welcome. He had a great fondness for camping with extended family in the northern Maine woods, especially around Mount Katahdin, Baxter State Park and along the Golden Road. He enjoyed teaching grandchildren where the best fishing spots were and where to find bear and moose.
Mel was predeceased by his wife, Bunny; their sons, Michael D. Ricker and Eugene "Gene" "Kenny" Ricker; sister Anna and her husband, Raymond Bowman; sister Louise and her husband, George Spear; sister Betty and her husband, Donald McCaslin; sister-in-law Louise Varney; sisters-in-law Marjorie and Thomas Newell and Shirley and Paul Marshall; brothers-in-law Richard Pullen and Harry Hughes; and several nephews.
The family would like to thank the staff of HomeCare of Maine and Cynthia O'Clair, especially Care & Comfort, who helped Mel at home when his wife, Bunny, was still living; Senior Spectrum; LifeLine; Winslow Rescue; Delta Ambulance; MaineGeneral Medical Center Emergency Room and the nurses and Dr. Brown; Veterans' Affairs Center staff, including Chris Essancy; and Dr. Burke and Nurse Emma and staff.
Staples Funeral Home of Gardiner is overseeing the cremation. A celebration of his life will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 19, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Eastern Avenue, Augusta. A reception will immediately follow at the church. A gathering for family and friends will be at 1 p.m. on Tuesday at Mel's home, 177 North Pond Road in Winslow. All are welcome.
Gifts to celebrate Mel's life may be sent to the Greater Waterville Food Bank, 61 Pleasant St., Waterville, ME 04901.
Published by Morning Sentinel from Aug. 16 to Aug. 17, 2008.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
MEMORIAL EVENTS
To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.
Plant Trees
Funeral services provided by:
Staples Funeral Service - Gardiner
Contributor: Lori Lee Crawford Corey (47954899)
Mel was born Feb. 15, 1924, in Presque Isle, the third of five children of Olga (Lathrop) and Melvin Ricker Sr. After his father's death, Olga married Archie Farley, and four additional siblings followed.
His early years were spent in Presque Isle working in the woods with his stepdad. He started school at 4 years old because he insisted on going with his two older sisters. They would bring along a blanket, and he would have to take a nap in the afternoon in the one-room schoolhouse. He picked potatoes in the fall and hayed in the summer. His love of work and learning continued throughout his life. When picking potatoes, he would miss more than a month of school and still be at the head of the class on the first day back.
He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the Army Air Force from 1943 to 1947, earning the rank of sergeant and a Bronze Star. He was a flight engineer on B-17s and was in the 388th Bombardier Group.
He was part of Operation Chowhound in the spring of 1945 and was always moved when telling stories about the people in Europe coming out to take the food from the skies. He pulled a fellow serviceman from a plane when spilled fuel was erupting around them. But he would say he didn't do much, was only doing his job. He sent his wages home for his mom to support his siblings. To save money, he hitchhiked home. Later, he also rode on trains, including hanging on the top of boxcars for dear life.
In Washington state, he worked the log drives and was responsible for opening up logjams, but he quit after someone was crushed between the logs.
He settled down when Bunny finally agreed to marry him after chasing her for six years. They were married Dec. 24, 1948.
He graduated from the first class of the Central Maine Technical Institute in Lewiston. Thereafter, he worked as a mechanic for several construction companies, including DeMateo, Lee Brothers, Blue Rock and Rossi, and retired from Mardens. He was well
respected and trusted by truck drivers and equipment operators.
Mel enjoyed being a husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and uncle. He was creative, not only tinkering around the garage, but also building a camp and home for his family. Mel and Bunny carved out a heart-shaped pond on their land and built a moose out of an oil tank. He built a gazebo for Bunny and then had all their relatives' names and hand/footprints sealed in cement below the gazebo's roof. He built stilts of various heights for his kids and their friends, some towering to the garage.
He would make homemade fireworks, cattail torches and floating candles for the Fourth of July at Webber Pond, where many summers were spent with cookouts and swimming. Family and friends alike were always welcome. He had a great fondness for camping with extended family in the northern Maine woods, especially around Mount Katahdin, Baxter State Park and along the Golden Road. He enjoyed teaching grandchildren where the best fishing spots were and where to find bear and moose.
Mel was predeceased by his wife, Bunny; their sons, Michael D. Ricker and Eugene "Gene" "Kenny" Ricker; sister Anna and her husband, Raymond Bowman; sister Louise and her husband, George Spear; sister Betty and her husband, Donald McCaslin; sister-in-law Louise Varney; sisters-in-law Marjorie and Thomas Newell and Shirley and Paul Marshall; brothers-in-law Richard Pullen and Harry Hughes; and several nephews.
The family would like to thank the staff of HomeCare of Maine and Cynthia O'Clair, especially Care & Comfort, who helped Mel at home when his wife, Bunny, was still living; Senior Spectrum; LifeLine; Winslow Rescue; Delta Ambulance; MaineGeneral Medical Center Emergency Room and the nurses and Dr. Brown; Veterans' Affairs Center staff, including Chris Essancy; and Dr. Burke and Nurse Emma and staff.
Staples Funeral Home of Gardiner is overseeing the cremation. A celebration of his life will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 19, at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Eastern Avenue, Augusta. A reception will immediately follow at the church. A gathering for family and friends will be at 1 p.m. on Tuesday at Mel's home, 177 North Pond Road in Winslow. All are welcome.
Gifts to celebrate Mel's life may be sent to the Greater Waterville Food Bank, 61 Pleasant St., Waterville, ME 04901.
Published by Morning Sentinel from Aug. 16 to Aug. 17, 2008.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
MEMORIAL EVENTS
To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.
Plant Trees
Funeral services provided by:
Staples Funeral Service - Gardiner
Contributor: Lori Lee Crawford Corey (47954899)
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