Richard DeKam

Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on June 9, 1934, to Ronald and Agnes DeKam, Richard grew up in the Milwood neighborhood. He attended Barber Hall grade school and St. Augustine’s High School, both Catholic-sponsored private schools. Richard was very active in sports and specially liked baseball and bowling. He was also an avid hunter, which he did with his father and their German Shorthair dog, Gretta. Later in life he continued to follow his passion for sports and took up golfing, tennis, softball, and continued to bowl and hunt.

Richard enlisted in the US Army immediately following high school. The highlight of his tour abroad was to be stationed in France where he was selected to play a role in a motion picture about WWII aboard an aircraft carrier.

Richard was honorably discharged and returned to Kalamazoo after the war. He enrolled in the local pipefitters Union and became an apprentice commercial plumber, following in the footstep of his father and grandfather. At this time, he also met a young woman by the name of Mary Whitehead and dated for a couple of years before they married in 1959. They purchased a small three-bedroom home on Miller Road in Kalamazoo, where they settled and started their family. Together, they had three children, Rickie, Rodney and Kimberly. Later they relocated to a larger home on Ira Street on Kalamazoo’s East Side. Richard and Mary later divorced in 1966.

Richard met Sally Linde in the late 1960’s playing golf. Sally had four children, John, Katherine, Steve and Don, but only Don was still living at home at that time. Richard and Sally became very close quickly, later went out to Las Vegas to marry. They purchased a home on Trotwood, in Portage. The Shannondale neighborhood was a rather large community packed with families, two schools, a large community pool, tennis courts, and even several churches. The children were all able to make ample friends from within the neighborhood and adjacent schools and their summers were largely centered around the community pool that Richard helped to maintain.

Richard and Sally were perfectly paired, maybe even in heaven. They were both very social and loved dancing, golfing, playing tennis, and traveling. Hilton Head Island in South Carolina was their go-to vacation destination because it offered all of their favorite activities, so they purchased several weeks of timeshare units in June and July and took the family there every summer for many years. Some of the family’s best memories have come from those summer vacations and have become a favorite destination for nearly all of their children, which tradition has carried through to their children, and now becoming a centerpiece for a 4th generation of DeKam family members as well as Linde family members!

Richard always worked in the trades as an industrial plumber and pipefitter. He ran many large projects including several renovations and additions to Borgess Hospital; several new nuclear power plants like Bridgeman, Palisades, Cook, and others; several new lab and manufacturing facilities for Upjohn; and other similar larger complex projects. His attention to detail and meticulous approach to developing and improving existing mechanical systems was his strength and passion.

Richard was a kind person and had an abundance of charm to the extent that everyone loved him dearly. He also loved his 501 vodka and tonics after work. He loved working with his hands and always seemed to have a project in progress like finishing the basement, building a large shed from scratch in the back yard, maintaining his rental properties, and other similar endeavors. And when we wasn’t focused on home projects, he was usually trying to get out to the golf course or to play tennis. He was a very competitive individual and was inclined to casually improve his lie on the golf course with a little “foot-wedge” action when he needed a little relief. And the man could cut a rug with the best of them and was no stranger to closing a bar down when they had a good band and dance floor!

A couple of Richard’s more interesting perspectives included:

1. After being prescribed with a statin to aid his system with the reduction of cholesterol, he simply quit trying and would lather the butter onto his bread when making a Mayo and cheese sandwich, stating that he took special pills so that he could do so. More recently, he would add “When you make it to 90 years old, you figure a few things out and can let others know just how it’s done.”

2. When walking into his bedroom or the family room while he had Fox News on, he would typically want to engage you in a “discussion” about worldly topics like Trump for President, COVID, enforcing boarder security, just to name a few of his more favorite subjects. These discussions would generally lead to him getting red in the face, dropping some colorful language to make his point, raising this voice to drown you out, and even some light spitting as he tries to get his point across. But he would insist that he was just discussing these topics with you and was NOT arguing, regardless of how red his face was getting?!

3. Asking to be dropped off at Meijer to just get in a little shopping. He would buy literally anything on sale, including women’s shoes, and could stay there for countless hours on end. In fact, if we didn’t call him and insist that he be ready for pick up by say 10:00 PM, he would have never come home!!! The man had a true obsession for shopping and talking with other price-conscious people, and there seemed to be no limit to how long he could do that!

The world will be less fun with Richard gone. He was a very unique individual that deeply cared about so many people and things, but he just didn’t always know how to express some of his deepest thoughts. And while he will be missed, heaven is brighter with him now together again with his beloved Sally.

Richard passed peacefully on Wednesday, August 21, at home surrounded by family. Services will be held at the Betzler Life Story Funeral Home in Kalamazoo, on Saturday, October 5, 2024, with services starting promptly at 4:00 PM. Celebrate Richard's life online by sharing your favorite stories and photos on his dedicated webpage at BetzlerLifeStory.com