Richard (Dick) Worzalla II was born on the 15 ^th of April 1950 in Milwaukee Wisconsin. He passed away peacefully on July 6 ^th , 2022, after a fierce and arduous battle with lung and brain cancer complicated by leukemia, lymphoma and most recently sepsis due to covid pneumonia. He was one of three children of Caroline (Carpenter) Worzalla and Richard Worzalla Sr. He grew up in Stevens Point Wisconsin, along with his 2 sisters Patti Worzalla and Mary Jo Worzalla-Burchfield.

Dick had a great life. 72 years of life. Just like all of us he had his ups and downs, good times, bad times, happy times, sad times. A full life from start to finish.

I hope you will remember him for the fun times and the good times that he had with you.

If you bought a fake ID in the late '60s in Point, chances are that Dick was probably the guy who helped you out! He was a member of a garage band The Fugitives along with a few of his high school friends. Dick was an entrepreneur throughout high school and well into his adult life. He was a creative, artistic, ambitious, confident, and focused leader and businessman and was active in local and national politics. He owned and operated Shamrock Pizza in Point during his high school (Pacelli) and college years. He attended the University of Wisconsin (UWSP) and later moved to Central Florida area with his family. He held various leadership roles for several National companies including Darden Restaurants, Pepsi-Co and Ford Motor Company to name a few. Dick was a proud and devoted Green Bay Packer stockholder and fan, and many knew him in the Central Florida area because of his Packer Smart Car: Green and gold with a gigantic custom-made cheese head on top.  (Go Pack Go)

And speaking of cars, Dick has gone through plenty from his very first car, a '67 Corvair to his 1969 special edition Indy 500 Pace Car – the white Camaro convertible with orange racing stripes and then on to several variations of the classic corvettes, mustangs and various other vehicles. He also had a Fat Boy Harley somewhere in the middle of all of his cars & trucks, until he fractured his ribs and punctured a lung!

Dick had a love of politics, debate and battles of wit. He also loved music, poetry, romance and had a sharp sense of humor, often peppered with a dash of cynicism or sarcasm if he wanted to make a point. He embraced his Polish heritage and studied its culture, language, and cuisine. Dick was a foodie and could cook everything from pierogis to pizza to pasta and potato pancakes. His love of chocolate, Oreos with a glass of cold milk, Starbucks coffee and bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers was notorious!

He was an avid reader and movie enthusiast. Dick was extremely computer savvy and despite his state-of-the-art computer systems he preferred using a planner (that he designed and printed) and writing with a fine ink pen and highlighters. He was super organized and detailed in tracking and logging expenses, events and significant dates. Dick always remembered birthdays and anniversaries and would send unique and memorable paper cards in the mail.

Dick had many interests; his tastes were diverse. He was most often frugal but could be extravagant in his pursuits and purchases. He visited (almost) all of the remaining drive-in theatres in Florida, was obsessed with pandemic related memes, often poked the bear (especially his political adversaries) and before he became ill early last year his goal was to purchase a Rickenbacker 360 FG Fireglo Electric guitar and record a Tik Tok video playing one of his many favorite songs.

Dick was a great brother. He taught me how to play Satisfaction on the guitar, he yelled at me for quitting college and convinced me to go back and complete my degrees (I did), he took me to see the ocean (Daytona Beach) for the first time (in his yellow corvette), he taught me how to drive a big rig truck (a part time gig for extra money in college), gave me my first job as a pizza delivery driver (Shamrock Pizza) when I was 16, introduced me to MAD Magazine and he was always there when I needed to talk, at every stage of my life. Dick taught me the joy of being competitive, how to be a winner and how to be a loser. We even competed over who would have the first grandchild. He won. His first son was born on 11/16/82, my first son was born on 11/18/82. Our seconds sons were born years apart. I had my 2 ^nd son in 1983 and he had his in 1988. I won.

My sister Patti and Dick were very close and shared common friends and hangouts throughout their high school years. Our family would always attend Dick's football games at home or away. He was #68 for the Pacelli High School Football team. He always kept his Pacelli high school jacket in his closet, along with his Green Bay Packer leather jacket.

Together my sister and I spent the last 18 months with Dick, starting with the onset of his lung cancer diagnosis. Patti and I own a farm in Osteen Florida and Dick moved in with us shortly after his diagnosis. We went with him to every chemotherapy infusion and radiation treatment. We frequently went out to lunch together after each treatment. We had time to reminisce, laugh, cry, and share our feelings about life, our experiences, friends, foes and family. Dick did not share his diagnoses and prognosis with anyone other than us and my son Matt and daughter-in-law Lynne. He was private about his illness and treatment. We were all lucky to be his caregivers and confidants as Patti and I helped him navigate through the complex healthcare systems. It was amazing to see his strength, and courage throughout his treatments, multiple hospitalizations, transfusions, procedures, surgeries, and setbacks. It was an unimaginable journey. The journey has now ended, and our hearts hurt.

Now it is time to rest in peace my brother. Your life, your love and your energy lives on in all of us who have been privileged to know you and love you.

If you have any fond or fun memories about Dick, please feel free to share them with his family and friends.