Roger Theodore Reetz

Roger Theodore Reetz, born December 13, 1939, in Thayer, Nebraska, and called home on March 11, 2026, in Seward, Nebraska, lived a life rooted in faith, family, and quiet adventure.

The fourth of six children born to George and Irene (Vorderstrasse) Reetz, Roger entered the world during a snowstorm at the family home. His mother fondly recalled his newborn hair as feeling “like a kitten’s fur.” Baptized at Zion Lutheran Church in Thayer just weeks later, he grew up on the family farm, attended Zion Lutheran Elementary School, and graduated from Thayer High School in 1958. He served in the Nebraska Army National Guard, enlisting in 1960 and being activated during the Berlin Crisis of 1962. Stationed at Camp Carson, Colorado, he was recognized for his marksmanship with the M-1 rifle and honorably discharged in 1966.

In 1965, Roger married Bernadette (Bernie) Walsh in an elopement filled with love and laughter in Belleville, Kansas, with his parents along for the ride. Together they built a home that Roger himself designed, raising their children there for 35 years before moving to Holcomb, Kansas, to be near their granddaughters. Roger worked as a loader driver, firefighter, and construction worker before spending many years at the CF&I Steel Mill in demanding roles until health concerns led to his retirement in 1985.

He found deep joy in the outdoors—skiing, sledding, and biking in the Colorado mountains, water skiing on Lake Pueblo, whitewater rafting the Arkansas River, and camping with his family. He cherished travels west with his brothers, family reunions in Oregon, sampling beer in Germany, and cruises through the Caribbean, Panama Canal, and Alaska.

Roger is survived by his wife of 60 years, Bernadette; his children, Kenny Reetz and Katy (Paul) Pauley; granddaughters Bethany (Trevor) Colson, Brianna (Tristen) Barton, and Bailey Pauley; great-grandsons Jett and Wells Colson, and Brooks and Beau Barton; his youngest brother, Mark Reetz; and many other dear relatives. He was preceded in death by his parents and five siblings.