Richard Rurka

He was born March 14, 1945 in New Britain. He was predeceased by his son Brian Rurka of East Hartford, whom we are also honoring at the service. He was also predeceased by his brother Frank Rurka, Jr. Richard was the son of the late Frank and Olga (Balkun) Rurka. Richard was a wonderful husband, father and grandfather.

He is survived by his wife Gail Rurka and his sons Kevin Rurka of Windsor and Benjamin Rurka of East Hartford. He also leaves his grandchildren Christopher Rurka of Stamford, Stephanie Rurka of New Hampshire and Scarlett Rurka of Glastonbury. He also leaves many cousins and nieces.

Richard graduated from East Hartford High School in 1963. He eventually earned an Associates degree. In June of 1967-1968 he served one of his three years in the Army in Vietnam. He was very proud of his service to his country. He retired from Aetna in Hartford in 2010. He worked in the IT Department. Richard and his wife enjoyed their retirement years traveling the country, spending time in Florida where they took residence in 2018 and spending time with their family and friends when they returned to CT.

Rich ( as he liked to be called) will be remembered as a man that liked to keep busy with fixing, building, repairing and remodeling in his home and others. He was proud of the shed he built from scratch for his backyard. He loved to go to the casino where one year he celebrated his 60th birthday. He loved to wear his red shirts in fact so often that his kids used to tease him about it.

Relatives and friends are invited to the Newkirk and Whitney Funeral Home (address) on Saturday, February 21 from 2-4pm followed by a short memorial service at 4:00pm. Burial will take place privately and at the convenience of the family.