Lawrence Paul Onyskow

Bah Humbug! A multifaceted storyteller with a wicked sense of humor, Larry enjoyed life to its fullest and is now playing practical jokes on the angels. Lawrence (Larry) Paul Onyskow, 77, of Tempe, AZ died November 7, 2025 following a chronic illness.

Larry was born in Meadville, PA on Aug 7, 1948 to Irene and Frank Onyskow. Larry liked to tell the story that his Dad, Frank, was so excited that he ran through the marketplace waving a baby basin and yelling, “It’s a boy! It’s a boy!”. And that joy he brought to his father he continued to bring to others throughout his life.

Larry was an avid reader which fostered his curiosity about the world around him. Growing up he collected butterflies, fossils, and arrowheads found on the family farm, experimented with his chemistry set, hunted and fished, and helped work the family farm and Market House stall. He attended Meadville High School and one year at Allegheny College before he decided to expand his horizons by traveling. He traveled south and then west across the country to California with a stop in Phoenix to work at the Paradise Inn. He finally moved to Tucson, AZ to attend the University of Arizona (UA). He studied Hydrology and Water Resources at the UA, receiving first a B.S. in 1975, followed by a M.S in 1989.

Larry met his lifelong partner and spouse, Roberta Bowen, when they were both in graduate school at UA. Larry first worked for the Arizona State Land Department as a hydrogeologist in 1979 before joining the Phoenix office of Cella Barr Associates in 1981. He led the groundwater section specializing in groundwater resource evaluation, groundwater recharge and assured water supply evaluation. He obtained his registration as a Civil Engineer during this time. He left Cella Barr in 1993 and formed hydroLOGIC Consultants, LLC. Larry proudly developed the first groundwater replenishment well for the City of Phoenix, numerous assured water supply studies and artificial recharge systems before retiring in 2024.

Larry had hundreds of tall tales from his travels. One of his favorites occurred when he was camping in New Mexico. As Larry was removing his camping gear from the car trunk, he set a jug of hard cider on the ground. Something brushed his leg, and he looked down to see a raccoon rapidly spinning the jug down the hill, hurrying to claim his prize! Larry’s travels took him through every state in the continental US from Cannon Beach, OR, to Wizarding World in Orlando, FL and from the Queen Mary in California to lobster meals in Maine. He and Roberta enjoyed hunting ‘treasure’ at flea markets and antique shows, throughout the US, Canada, Mexico and as far as exotic Japan.

Traveling enabled Larry to add to his collections of canning jars, stamps, coins, and fossils. He loved photography and was never without a camera in his hand, producing some

stunning photographs. He climbed Mt. Fuji with a Sony camcorder on his back and a 35 mm Nikon camera with multiple lenses around his neck. Larry was a fantastic chef always ready to try new food and recipes. One of the joys of traveling was finding hole in the wall restaurants and sampling new foods like crickets and octopus. His dishes were always polished off at potlucks. One year he not only cooked his own Thanksgiving dinner, but he made a dinner with all the trimmings for a dear friend who was unable to cook the family dinner herself.

Larry loved the Harry Potter series and everything Harry Potter. As you’d expect given his curiosity, he was a Ravenclaw. He visited Wizarding World in 2010 before it officially opened to the public and avidly collected anything related to Harry Potter.

Larry’s curiosity, talents, enumerable interests, and outgoing personality led him to be a great storyteller, as well as a practical joker. He was always on the lookout for angles to make a buck and could sell ice to a polar bear. All this, as well as his gentle soul, led him to play Santa Claus, with Roberta as an elf, for many years at the Ahwatukee Festival of Lights and other Christmas events and functions in and around the Phoenix community. Because he was 6”4’ and had his own padding, his Santa Suit was handmade specifically for him.

Larry will always be remembered for his huge bear hugs, foot rides for his many nieces and nephews, and his love for his family. He always remembered families’ birthdays, and gifts for his nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews at Christmas. Larry enjoyed making others laugh. We couldn’t have asked for a better life partner and spouse, sibling, uncle, and friend, and will miss Larry daily. His memory will live on in the hearts of all those who loved him.

Larry was preceded in death by his father, Frank A. Onyskow and his mother, Irene P. (Kotowski) Onyskow and is survived by his spouse Roberta A. Bowen, his siblings Diane (Dave) Dickson, Lynette (Martin) Bagley, and Ronald (Dee) Onyskow, as well as many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews.

A tribute service will be held on Nov 20 from 11am-2pm at Lakeshore Mortuary, 1815 S Dobson Rd, Mesa, AZ . A Celebration of Life service will be held in Meadville, PA in the fall of 2026 so we can celebrate with fresh cider and Ice wine. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made by check to the volunteer fire department or to the community Market House:

Vernon Central Hose Company -16589 McMath Avenue, Meadville, PA 16335

Meadville Market House- 910 Market St#3319, Meadville, PA 16335

Larry’s response to his death would be his favorite quote from A Christmas Carol, “Bah Humbug”! But then, he’d agree, that “Mischief Managed” from The Prisoner of Azkaban summed up his life perfectly.