Richard "Rik" DeGunther
1956-04-13 2014-09-02
April 13, 1956 — Sept. 2, 2014
It is with great sadness that family and friends mourn the passing of Richard “Rik” DeGunther Jr. of Rescue, Calif. He is survived by his wife, Katie; son, Erik; and daughter, Ally.
Rik was an incredibly gifted mechanical and electrical engineer with a master’s degree in physics from Stanford University. He held patents on inventions that most of us couldn’t pronounce, let alone explain. He was an accomplished musician, carpenter, goat farmer as a hobby with his children, and an avid golfer. He was a published author of books on solar power, energy efficiency and golf. He wrote a regular column in the Mountain Democrat, where he enjoyed skewering both partisan ends of the political spectrum.
Rik was a quirky genius type whose quick wit and dry sense of humor could just as easily offend as entertain. Most importantly he was a loving husband, father, son, uncle and brother. He will be missed by many. He was born and raised in Rockford, Ill., where his mother, Betty and father, Richard “Dick” Sr., lived until Dick’s passing many years ago. Rik is survived by his mother, Betty; his sisters, Connie, Vickie, Betsy and Sara; his bothers, Jim and David; and many other Midwest relatives who will all miss him terribly. He is also survived by Katie’s mother, Marcia; sister, Kim; bother, Brad; numerous nieces; and nephew, Joey, who he always had a special bond with.
It is with great sadness that family and friends mourn the passing of Richard “Rik” DeGunther Jr. of Rescue, Calif. He is survived by his wife, Katie; son, Erik; and daughter, Ally.
Rik was an incredibly gifted mechanical and electrical engineer with a master’s degree in physics from Stanford University. He held patents on inventions that most of us couldn’t pronounce, let alone explain. He was an accomplished musician, carpenter, goat farmer as a hobby with his children, and an avid golfer. He was a published author of books on solar power, energy efficiency and golf. He wrote a regular column in the Mountain Democrat, where he enjoyed skewering both partisan ends of the political spectrum.
Rik was a quirky genius type whose quick wit and dry sense of humor could just as easily offend as entertain. Most importantly he was a loving husband, father, son, uncle and brother. He will be missed by many. He was born and raised in Rockford, Ill., where his mother, Betty and father, Richard “Dick” Sr., lived until Dick’s passing many years ago. Rik is survived by his mother, Betty; his sisters, Connie, Vickie, Betsy and Sara; his bothers, Jim and David; and many other Midwest relatives who will all miss him terribly. He is also survived by Katie’s mother, Marcia; sister, Kim; bother, Brad; numerous nieces; and nephew, Joey, who he always had a special bond with.