Duane Eugene Richardson, 76, of Glen Arbor, MI passed away unexpectedly at home with the love of his life by his side on April 30, 2020.
Duane was born in Traverse City, Michigan to Eugene and Mary Irene (Sheridan) Richardson on January 19, 1944.
The two most important things in life to Duane, or "Duke" as he was known to close friends, were his family and his five generation home of Glen Arbor. The eldest of three sons, he began life in the shadow of the Sleeping Bear Dunes, in a house next to the Glen Haven Coast Guard Station for which his Granddad Sheridan bartered a package of fish. The family moved to Wyandotte when his dad worked on the railroad. When Duane was nine, the family moved back to Glen Arbor to be closer to family, living down the road from a certain little girl who caught his fancy.
Duane and Barb grew up just a stone's throw from each other. Like their parents, they attended Glen Arbor's one room schoolhouse together, two grades apart. Barb noticed right away the shy boy with the mischievous blue eyes.
Duane grew up exploring the woods and waters surrounding him. He loved going out commercial fishing in Lake Michigan with his Granddad Sheridan on his small boat. After Granddad died, Eugene took over the business, followed by Duane until it was no longer permitted.
It was an idyllic childhood which also had challenges. Though Duane was stricken with polio in 1951, he was very athletic, playing basketball and quarterback for Glen Lake's first football team. He was an avid bodybuilder who began lifting weights at age 15, eventually coming within a quarter inch of the world bicep record in his weight class. Receiving a diagnosis of thyroid cancer at age 18, being in such superb physical shape saved his life.
While he had Barbara at his side for his junior prom, his illness prevented him from taking her to his senior prom. However, the die of love had been cast, and Duane told his children, "We started down the road with nothing but the shirts on our backs and if I had to do it all over again, I'd walk hand in hand with her down that same road."
After graduation, Duane worked a variety of jobs before attending meat cutting school in Ohio. He then went to work at Buick City in Flint, MI. Missing Barb terribly, Duane asked her to elope with him. They married on September 19th, 1964 and officially began their 56-year journey together.
The couple lived in Birch Run for a short time while Duane worked at the auto plant. On one of their quick weekend trips to Glen Arbor in their 1965 Hi-Po Mustang, they realized how much they hated driving back and forth between Birch Run and "home". They wanted their children to grow up where their family was deeply rooted, so they relocated back to Glen Arbor and purchased the house Duane's grandfather had built. There, they would raise four children in what Duane referred to as their 'ancestral home'.
Duane owned and operated Sleeping Bear Sanitation for several years. Later, he and Barb opened Barb's Country Oven in Glen Arbor, where he lent his artistry to many a cinnamon roll and twist for which people would line up at 6:00 a.m.
Duane enjoyed coaching his children in their athletic endeavors, hunting, fishing, reading, woodworking, playing cribbage, and having long discussions with good friends and family.
Duane was a seeker, philosopher, and student of life. He dispensed wisdom garnered from experience and let his actions speak for him. Quick to help others, he lived by the code of an older time. "Duke" loved humor and irony, and his own booming belly laugh after telling you his punchline was unforgettable. Ever an adventurer, he decided one bitter midwinter day to make the trek on foot to South Manitou and back; the very next day the ice in the bay broke. Duane never sought to change the world, but somehow by living in his own way, did. Artisan and Renaissance man, he painted with abstract brushes that not everyone could understand or always liked, but the memories are indelible.
Duane is survived by his wife, Barbara; four children, Chris (Rachel), Amy (Ken), Ian (Jenny), Jesse (Becky); 3 grandchildren, Kaia, Gunner and Nolan; his brother, Dennis (Carol); and countless nieces and nephews.
Duane was preceded in death by his parents, Eugene and Mary Irene, and brother, Loren.
Duane has been cremated with internment to be at St. Philip Neri Catholic Church in Empire, MI at a later date.
Duane loved the forests of Glen Arbor and was devastated by the loss of so many trees during the storm of 2015. Suggested memorials are to St. Philip Neri Church, Empire or the charity of one's choice, or planting a tree in his honor.
The family is being served by Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home.
Please visit www.reynolds-jonkhoff.com to share your thoughts and memories with Duane's family.