Dear Judy and FamilyPlease know that our thoughts and prayers are with you. Lee was great, always full of smiles and joy of life when we saw him. He was very special to our family and will be missed by all. He is at peace.  Sid will take good care of him. LoveKarl and Cheryl Hoffman

My Lee...    Will miss seeing his smile and hearing his laugh.   What a great guy...  Love to you Judy.

Dear Judy & Donnie,Lee was truly one of the most amazing and loving people in my life.  He was always asking about myself or my mom even when he wasn't feeling that well himself.  After 30 years of knowing him, I could always count on that huge smile to brighten up my day and that wonderful hug he was always willing to share.  Judy, the two of you were truly the love of each other.  I know in my heart that he is finally at peace and is watching over you as he always did.  Please know that my heart, my prayers and my love are with both of you right now.With our love to you,Joy & Ted

Judy:  I just wanted to send my deepest sympathy after the news of Lee's passing.  He fought the good fight for himself and you, your son and the rest of us.  I miss not seeing the both of you every Monday for Monday Invitational mixed.  He was always sweet and kind and gave great hugs.  As Lee would say to John and I "Bye honey bowl good" (what John always says to me as we pass the counter).  That counter is just not the same but holds great memories of the wonderful person Lee was.Jane & John Bratanch (Monday Night Bowling).

My darling Bear,How many times during the past 25 years have we both said, "I love you just isn't enough for how deep my love is for you"?  I'm still saying that but I'm also saying, "I'll miss you just isn't enough for wondering how I'll get through my life without you by my side".You gave me strength when I had none.  You made me laugh even when I wanted to cry.  You made life a glorious journey each and every day.  I looked forward to seeing your smiling face every morning when I woke you up and I will always remember feeling your bear hug every night before we went to sleep.  Funny little things a person remembers at a time like this...I always loved that no matter whether you were in a deep sleep or wide awake the moment you felt my hand touch your cheek you always turned your head to the side to hug my hand.  Such a small gesture but you made me feel so loved.Two years ago our lives spun out of control when we got that dreaded diagnosis, and I'm saying dreaded but you know in my mind I'm thinking the "F" word.  We continued our journey as best we could, laughing together and crying together and trying to stay positive at all times.  When we recently found out the cancer had continued spreading and radiation might give you a little more time you said, "See, we'll get another camping season yet".  I can't even imagine how you were always able to stay so strong and brave but I did my best to follow your lead.I am so honored you chose to share your life with us.  That you came into our world and raised Donny as though he were your own son and you gave us both a beautiful life.  I hope we both always made you feel as loved and protected as you made us feel. You were so proud when our little granddaughter, Hayleigh was born.  I remember you had the nurses in the hospital checking multiple times a day to see if she'd been born yet and when she finally was, it was as though they had an addition to their own family.  I will always remember how much time we spent in the hospital watching the videos of our little Hayleigh over and over and over again and how we laughed together.  I always laughed when you would say, "Has Shana posted any new Hayleigh pictures?"  Last October you shocked our beloved Dr. Siegel by dying in his office and of course you left all of us speechless when you came back to us.  I laugh as I think of sitting with you in the ICU not having much memory of anything or anybody but you told the breathing therapist how you had a beautiful granddaughter and you were looking forward to the weekends she would spend with us at the camper.  "Not now, you said, she's still too young, but when she's about 5 or so".  And how you always said you couldn't wait to give your grandchildren lots of candy just before sending them home to Don and Shana.  I'll bet you really would have done that.It was always amazing to watch you interact with people.  You had the ability to put a smile on everyone's face, even when they didn't know there was anything to smile about.  I laugh when I think of all the people you made stand up next to you while you got the attention of the crowd and proceeded to sing a loud "Happy Birthday" to your victim.  Even  when we were doing the most simple task of shopping you never ceased to amaze me.  You would always make sure you addressed the checkout person by name, sometimes even asking them things like, "Hey, did you ever find the keys you lost"? Or "Did you enjoy spending time with your grandkids over the weekend"?  You could always tell people were surprised you knew their name or that you remembered some little bit of their lives and you took the time to ask them about it.When you had first come into our lives, Donny always introduced you as HIS best friend and we started calling ourselves the three Musketeers.  My heart is warmed by knowing your final moments were spent with the three of us holding hands as the Three Musketeers should.Just as in the words from the songs we both loved that were "our songs", "I've had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you".  You truly are my hero and the wind beneath my wings.  Goodbye my darling Bear.

Our family first met Lee at the bowling alley and the friendship really began when we moved three doors down from Lee and Judy. Over time, that friendship grew, and soon we felt closer to Lee and Judy than we did some of our relatives. Lee, Judy, and Donny were the family we chose.We became constants in each others lives, sharing meals, holidays, celebrations, vacations, and even times of sorrow. Lee was kind: always offering a gentle smile, willing ear, and a lending hand. Knowing him changed our lives.Lee was a camper and he taught us how to build a campfire and chop wood.He was caring, like when Lee and Judy took Donny, Adam, and Kevin on an adventure week when Mom and Dad needed a break, not long after we became family friends. He didn’t think twice about cutting the legs off his grill so that 6-year-old Kevin could roast s’mores and tonka toasters over it when we camped in his backyard.He loved playing board games and he was even a good sport with the games he didn’t like as much because he knew it would make someone else happy.He taught Kevin and Clayton how to mow the lawn.He was patient and none of us can remember him ever yelling...which is pretty amazing if you consider that James once got a fish hook caught in Lee’s thigh.He was a prankster. One time, we covered blocks of wood with wrapping paper and put them out in the middle of the street. We sat inside with the lights off, watching through the window while unsuspecting people stopped their cars or bicycles to grab what they were sure was a birthday present. The big grins and high fives the people gave each other were priceless. We spent the whole day laughing until we finally ran out of blocks of wood and sunlight. He had a knack for making everyone laugh, especially when pretending to be his alter-ego, “Freddy.” Lee was dependable: someone you could call if you needed a ride, needed your bike tires filled, or if you needed help repairing the dishwasher. Maybe most importantly was the morning when Jennifer was home alone and found a dead mouse in her kitchen sink. It was 5 am but Lee came to the rescue. He was a superhero.He was dependable in other ways, too. He loved candy and you could always count on him to have lifesavers in his pockets. When he was feeling grumpy about the hospital food, we brought him some Fannie Mae pixies. He went from looking tired and gloomy to being his lively old self, rubbing his hands together and licking his lips. Lee was the kind of man who would give up his hospital bed so Jennifer could take a nap before work and he joked with the nurses, saying Jennifer was his second wife and that she had kicked him out of his bed. Always kind and generous, always cracking dirty jokes, Lee was many things to us--and he will truly, truly be missed.

In April of 1987 almost 28 years ago, lee began working at EGB.  In fact this is where he met Judy.  It was a difficult time at the center, my father had passed away very suddenly and Lee was being brought on board to help my mother manage the center.  You have to understand that becoming a new employee, much less a new Manager at EGB is very difficult.  Our employees are a tight group of very dedicated people.  sometimes making it difficult for a new person to break through.  He met his challenge  when he met Judy, who recently told me she really didn't like him when she met him.  Soon Lee was part of our family and even Judy had become to warm up to him.  she was giving him implicit training on how "we" did things as far as policies and procedures.Soon they were fast friends.  Such good friends that she invited him to move in with her and Donny and rent the dining room from them!  Yes, his room was the dining room where a blanket hanging from the the ceiling was a room divider.  They eventually married in June of 1991 and Lee got to move into a real bedroom!Sunday and Monday night was their time to work together at the bowl and they were a great team.  They would do a remarkable job with the leagues and bowlers loved them.  Their planning of New Year's Eve parties at the bowl were great.  Eventually Judy gave up working nights and lee continued to do a great job without Judy's instructions!  He loved his Monday and Thursday night bowlers, but I think he shined when working with the kids.  He started a great summer bowling program that grew to 120 kids one summer, as well as starting out Adult/youth league.He always had a great relationship with the bowlers and co-workers.  Words that people used to describe him were, great teacher, patient, nice as can be, big cuddly bear, and great sense of humor.  Lee was my guy when the alarm company would call him in the middle of the night to say that the alarm was going off.  One night Lee had just gotten home from work and ADT was calling to say that the motion alarms had been triggered.  Lee couldn't understand that because he had just left- he returned to the bowl to find the police all there, telling him that they could see someone walking around.  They went in and there was one of the bowlers walking around wondering what was going on.  He had fallen asleep on the going to the bathroom and got locked inside by accident.Lee was able to be a manager, or mechanic- he was great at fixing things and had ideas that helped us to grow the business where we are today.  Even when he became sick and couldn't return to work he and I would talk weekly about the bowl and what was going on. I always valued his opinion and lee sell wanted to be part of it all.We could always expect lee to stop in on his day off with one of his many flowered hats on to talk about his dogs and camping- One day I stopped over to see their new camper.. when I thought of Judy and Lee camping, I had always imagined them sleeping on air mattresses in a tent or a "pop up thing"- i had NO idea.. this camper was not a camper, it was a luxury home on wheels, no wonder he and Judy LOVED camping.Lee, we have missed you at the bowl, you were so much more then an employee, you are part of our extended family.  Your shifts have been covered, but your spirit and memory will last forever.

I can’t believe this day is here. The day I have to say goodbye to my friend, Lee.  Yes, I said my friend. Some people think of their dad as a hero. But to me a hero is someone you hope to be, but can never quite achieve. No, Lee was my friend from the very beginning.He was a guy who was larger than life to a little 8 year old boy. And to me he was all I ever hoped to be in a man. He always had the cool truck.  He always knew how to fix it.  He taught me everything I needed to know about being a good person. From teaching me to drive, to carving a turkey, and of course how to be an amazing husband and father. He was guy who could talk to anyone, could make anyone laugh, and would help anyone as much as he could. He almost always remembered some little thing about a complete stranger.  But to my mom and I, he was just our Lee. The man we turned to when a decision needed to be made, or something needed to be fixed. That all changed a couple years ago when Lee first got diagnosed. He was no longer the one to offer advice or fix it.  It was confusing to my mom and I because he was always the one with the answer.  But he was always positive, no matter how tired, or sick, or how much bad news came, he was always smiling and saying it was going to be fine.  During the last few days, his biggest concern was for my mom. Even facing the end he was thinking about someone else. In a way Lee taught everyone in this room something. He taught us that even in the face of extraordinary pain you can be positive. You can still smile, you can still laugh,  you can still enjoy life, and even until your last second, you can still have hope.  I imagine him in heaven, driving on a long winding road, the window of his cool truck down, his arm out the window, dancing to some Sweet Home Chicago. The way I remember him is exactly how he was, happy and always smiling.  But I’ll miss my friend.

"Doctor said he ain't got longHe just smiled said bring it onIf you think I'm scaredYou got it all wrongA little cancer can't break meMy heart's right and I believeWe all hit our kneesStarted prayin'Naw he never gave upSaid the Good Lord's waitin'An' that's One Hell of an AmenThat's the only way to goFightin' the good fightTil the Good Lord calls you homeSo be well my friendTil' I see you againYeah this is our last goodbyeBut it's a Hell of an Amen"

OBITUARY

Lee R. Havlik

January 29, 1951 – September 19, 2014

Glueckert Funeral Home

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