Uncle Duck Stories and Family

Robert Hopka, known fondly as Uncle Duck, has had quite a life.

Jack interviewed Duck and documented a few things during the Summer of 2016.  Here is what he noted:

After school he once bought a hot dog and a pop for ten cents.
He skipped the third grade.

How he courted Dolores (Aunt Dodo) - Dolores was "going with" a boy who dumped her for another girl.  Duck had his eye on Dolores and seized the opportunity to ask her out on a date.  He started "going with" her and ultimately married her.  She was good Catholic girl who made him go to devotional.  He wasn't that keen on it but did it for her.  Duck was a veteran and served as a mechanic for B-24 Liberators in the Air Force.  Duck's Dad served in World War 1 and Duck served in WWII.

Duck had one sister - Betty.  Betty had 3 kids.   Betty died as the age of 75.  One of them died when hit by a car at the age of 18.

Stuff found in newspapers.
Mrs. Betty M. Homa, age 75, passed away Monday, May 20, 2013. She was born in Holland, MI on March 6, 1938 and at age 4, she was adopted by Steve and Vera (Breno) Hopka. Betty graduated from Muskegon Catholic Central High School in 1956. She married Edwin J. Homa in Muskegon on June 13, 1959. He preceded her in death on November 3, 2008. She was a former member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church and was a current member at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church. She was a member of the Altar Society, Catholic Daughters of the Americas and the Catholic War Vets Auxiliary. She is survived by 2 children, Thomas (Karen) Homa of N. Muskegon and Mary (Alan) Anderson of Muskegon; 5 grandchildren, Holly Homa, Autumn (Craig) Fulco, Sarah, Michael and Elizabeth Anderson; 1 great-grandson, Chase Boucher; 1 brother, Robert Hopka of N. Muskegon. She was also preceded in death by her son, Michael E. Homa on October 10, 1980 and her natural brothers, Henry and Robert Alderink.  She will be laid to rest in St. Mary’s Cemetery. 

Duck was married to Dolores

Mrs. Dolores G. Hopka, age 87, passed away Sunday, September 4, 2011. She was born in Muskegon, MI on May 12, 1924 to Walter & Alexandra Kulesza and married Robert Hopka on July 7, 1965. Mrs. Hopka had been employed in many various capacities for the Muskegon County Court System for years until retiring. Dolores was a long time member of St. Michael's Catholic Church. She loved travelling and particularly enjoyed several trips to Europe, in addition to Poland. She also enjoyed cooking, baking, knitting and sewing.

SURVIVORS

Husband of 46 years, Robert; sister, Henrietta Kulesza; sister-in-law, Betty Homa; many nieces & nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, 3 brothers, & 5 sisters. Entombment at St. Mary's Cemetery.

Remembering Uncle Paul

Paul Curtis Tangeman, 72, died Monday, June 24, 2019 after a truly heroic battle with cancer. He died peacefully surrounded by his loving family to whom he was so deeply devoted.

He is survived by his wife, Debbie, of forty-nine years, two daughters, Karen and Jennifer, and their families including husbands Jason and Brad, respectively, and five grandchildren: Luke (13), Anna (11), Nate (8), Nora (3) and Remy (3 months). Paul also leaves nephews, cousins, and many loyal friends.

Paul was born on September 5, 1946, in Clear Lake, IA. As a child he was a clarinet-playing Midwestern Eagle Scout, living in Iowa, Kansas City, Alabama, and Nebraska. He attended the University of Nebraska where he majored in chemical engineering and played on the tennis team.

Paul worked at DuPont for thirty-five years, initially as a chemical engineer and ultimately as a business development executive, with honorable loyalty and an exemplary work ethic. He was a dedicated member of the Catholic church, serving as a Eucharistic and homebound minister, and an active volunteer at United Way. He ran multiple marathons, enjoyed Mozart and jazz, loved baking and cooking, and cultivated rose breeds at each of his homes. He loved dachshunds, body surfing, and history. Paul was a patient conversationalist, appreciated his life, gave more than he took, rarely sought recognition, unquestionably helped those in need, and cherished his relationship with God. As a devoted father and grandfather, he could often be found playing on the floor with the kids.

Tropical Storm Fred!

Fred didn't really amount to much in Gainesville last year.  Hopefully this year's hurricane season doesn't amount to much either!

Culver's Walleye

The Walleye was back and it was tasty. 

Spring Break at Breckinridge!

Day Two was snowy! You can see a flake in the pic. Jack was on the other side of me!

Dad and Elle Ski Afternoon

Quicksilver and A-Chair lifts!

Cool Plate!

Worn out Kids!

Bobcats Fighting Back Against Pythons!

 

A camera trap captured a bobcat facing off against a Burmese python. Photo: U.S. Geological Survey

Ecologists with the U.S. Geological Survey collected first-of-its-kind photographic evidence last year of a bobcat devouring python eggs in the Big Cypress National Preserve. Driving the news: The finding, published last month in the journal Ecology and Evolution, suggests there's finally hope that a predator could halt the python's creeping dominance — by eating its eggs. Why it matters: Tens of thousands of invasive Burmese pythons are spread over more than 1,000 square miles of South Florida and compete with native wildlife for food, causing severe population declines in Everglades National Park and Big Cypress. What happened: Ecologists trained a camera trap on a python nest to observe reproductive biology, but the camera caught a bobcat arriving to snack. The cat came back three times that night, then returned the next morning to bury extra eggs in the ground. The next day the camera caught the cat and snake in a fight. Yes, but: It's possible that this interaction was an isolated incident. Though it could also be possible that native species are beginning to respond to the presence of the python, and this could be a learned behavior that starts to happen regularly, the New York Times reports.

41 Degree Variance Forecast for March 12

 

Certainly the coldest night in March we have seen since moving here!

Coke with Coffee!

You guessed it…not very good.

Sitting Animals!

We were able to get both animals to sit!

Christmas 2021 - Photo Recap

Christmas 2021!    

The big gift was a spring break trip to go skiing!

The first Christmas with a cat hanging around!

 

A Lazy Christmas Afternoon

Watching Christmas Vacation….

1972 Christmas Snaps!

Bill sent snaps of these Christmas shots from 1972.  He was only 1 month old!  Other observations include our tree which seems a little sparse and the famous "buggy seat" in the top left of the 2nd pic.  Note the popcorn garland on the tree too.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Finds

Curiously, these were hard to find this holiday season!  I scored the stamps at Office Depot of all places.

Elle Turns 11!

Elle wasn't feeling great so we had to postpone her party…but cake was still made. An Oreo cake featuring a crumbled cookie center!  Puff, the elf, broke out his birthday attire as well.

Go Gators Christmas Lights

Celebration Point includes some nice Gator themed Christmas decorations.

Merry Christmas from the Solo family!

Ready for Christmas Dinner!

Here's a pic from Elle last year anxiously awaiting Christmas dinner!