Raymond Peter Istvanick

Ray is survived by his wife Carol Lee Istvanick, son Brian Thomas and his wife Sheila Marie Istvanick, daughter Wendy Lynn Istvanick, granddaughters Roxanna Rae Istvanick, Juliette Rose Istvanick, Josephine LaRoux Istvanick.

In lieu of flowers, remembrances in Ray's name can be made to the Stained Glass Memorial Fund at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 1084 West Bullard Avenue, Fresno, CA 93711 or to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, designating the gift as a tribute in memory of Ray.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 1084 W. Bullard in Fresno on Saturday, May 23, 2015 at 11:00 am.

IN LOVING MEMORY OF RAYMOND PETER ISTVANICK

The Gliwa farm in Liberty Borough in Pennsylvania was the site of Raymond’s entry into this world on August 29, 1938. He grew up on his grandfather’s dairy farm. During this time he learned how to milk cows and help on the farm saddling and driving teams of work horses to complete work around the farm.

He completed high school graduating MAGNA-CUM-LAUDE from Glassport High School. He then went on to study printing management at Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Printing Management. Later in life he returned to school to earn a Masters in Business Administration from Marquette University.

He met his future wife on a blind date only to discover that her second cousin was the doctor who brought him into the world. His first position after graduation involved a move to Milwaukee Wisconsin despite the fact that he had to leave his soon to be fiancé behind to finish her education in nursing. A year later he returned to Pennsylvania for their wedding. They returned to Milwaukee to begin a marriage that has lasted 53 years.

During the years in Milwaukee he was active in many church activities including playing on the softball team. He enjoyed running and participated in many short running events. When he injured his knee playing softball he decided to start bicycling. He gained strength while biking to and from work, a distance of about 20 miles each way. When he heard of an event to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis called The Best Dam Bike Tour by biking 150 miles over 2 days he was ready to participate. He participated in this ride for 5 years. During the last year he convinced his wife and daughter to join him. He loved golfing and was especially proud of the fact that he had a HOLE IN ONE during a tournament of a local club. He kept the certificate of this event in his office at all times. He also enjoyed playing bridge and at one time he and Carol joined a couples group that played Duplicate Bridge.

When his daughter Wendy was born he was overwhelmed with pride. Three years later his son Brian joined the family. As they were growing Ray participated in many activities with them including Indian Guides and Indian Princesses. He always tried to support them in all their activities such as football, music, skateboarding and band. When Ray found out about a vacation spot in northern Wisconsin where we could rent a cottage near a small lake we decide to try spending a week there. We went every year for about 10 years. During that time we usually went to the Porcupine Mountains to hike for a day. It was here that Ray started to sail. One year when the Kool cigarette company had a promotion that with the ends of two cartons and $ 50.00 you could purchase a Snark sailboat. Ray was not a smoker but he asked the vendor who was servicing the machine at work for the carton ends. Then he sent for the boat. We had much enjoyment using this boat when in Eagle River. One thing that the children enjoyed immensely was the “toboggan run” in our front yard every time there was a large snowstorm. Ray would build this run down the hill and across the front lawn to avoid the children sledding out into the street. This was a very popular place when it snowed. There were many trips to and from Pennsylvania to visit the relatives there. In 1992 Carol had the opportunity to accept a position in Fresno California. He had no problems in encouraging her to accept the position. Once again he was moving to a new state, this time to follow his wife as she had followed him when they were first married. The children were grown and it was a good opportunity. He stayed behind to sell the house before moving to California. Wendy stayed in Wisconsin and later relocated for a position in Chicago Illinois. Brian was in the Air Force. After this he relocated to California and met his wife. In 1998 Ray was able to finally fulfill his lifelong dream to own a small printing business. A year later he fully supported Carol with both emotional and financial support as she started her own business as a nurse practitioner. Brian married Sheila in 2001. When their children arrived Ray was overjoyed, first Roxanna then Juliette and Josephine. His time with them was very precious. Ray taught Roxanna and Juliette how to play chess. Every time we visited it was always “Pap Pap please play a game with me.” Last August they surprised Ray with a personal visit to the print shop on his birthday armed with cake and candles. In 2012 Ray made the plans to take the whole family to Hawaii to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary. We went to a Luau and celebrated our anniversary by repeating our vows on the beach. This was a very fantastic trip and will always be remembered. Ray loved to travel and accompanied Carol to many conferences. We went to the Bahamas, San Antonia and Albuquerque. Ray would play golf while Carol was in the conferences and afterward they would spend time together. We also had the opportunity to visit Wendy in various places where she was working on a project. This included New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Calgary and India. Ray enjoyed these trips. On one visit to Hawaii he decided to try to bicycle down the volcano from top to the shore. Naturally he did it. On one anniversary we went to Paris. Ray enjoyed this trip very much. He insisted on going to Normandy. After our anniversary dinner we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and viewed the city all lit up. Unfortunately he left this world sooner than we would have liked. As you can see we have many happy memories of the days he was with us. But God called him home and he is with Him now. We will miss him dearly but when we begin to be sad we can think of his smiles and jokes and especially his answer to anyone when they asked how he was “BETTER THAN I DESERVE” Farewell Ray, Dad, Pap Pap. We will miss you but we know we will meet again someday. We love you.