Roger D. Detches

Roger D. Detches, 87, of Sioux City passed away on Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at a local care facility. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, April 29, 2022 at St. Boniface Catholic Church. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m., with a Vigil Service at 7:00 p.m., on Thursday at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel. Online condolences may be directed to www.meyerbroschapels.com. Roger was born on January 16, 1935 in Sioux City, to Paul L. and Pauline D. (Oesterich) Detches. He was a lifelong resident of Sioux City, and lived in the South Bottoms neighborhood of Sioux City growing up. Roger attended Hobson Grade School, Woodrow Wilson Middle School, and Central High School until 11th Grade. He went on to earn his GED from Central at approximately age 35. He joined the 185th Air National Guard in 1952, and attended Cook and Baking School in Amarillo, TX. He was discharged from the Air National Guard in 1956. On April 14, 1956, Roger married Juanita Rose Medina at the St. Jean the Baptiste Catholic Church in Sioux City. Roger was drafted into the Army in October 1957. He attended basic training at Fort Carson, CO. He then went to Fort Leonard Wood for 8 weeks, where he trained to become a Wheel and Half Track Mechanic. He was stationed at Port of Whittier, Alaska, where it was discovered when he disembarked, that he had gone to Cook and Baking School and they put him on kitchen duty for approximately 9 months, until they learned his most recent MOS was mechanic, so he was transferred. While being a mechanic, he applied for and received dispatcher which he did until his tour of duty was up. He returned in September 1959. He rejoined the 185th Air National Guard in 1964, and returned to cooking and baking. He was deployed to Korea with the 185th from 1968-1969. He remained with the 185th until 1982. Roger worked in the local meat packing industry for most of his life, while also doing construction work sporadically to fill in the holes. He retired from the meat packing industry in 1997. Following his retirement, he volunteered at St. Boniface Catholic Church as a handyman. In his free time, Roger enjoyed fishing, cooking for family and friends and large family meals, and was a member of a bowling league for many years. He also enjoyed reading books of many genres, including fiction and action. He especially liked Lee Child’s Jack Reacher series of books. His favorite foods were burgers and beer, homemade soup, Snickers bars, and Diet Coke. He loved spending time with all his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and was so proud of all of them. He enjoyed watching cutthroat games of cribbage between family and friends, and could often be found giving advice to the underdogs. His favorite tobacco was Skoal Long-Cut, and he loved having a dip. He also enjoyed having a cigar with his sons and grandsons. His favorite TV show, by far, was NCIS. He also enjoyed old western series, several British TV shows on PBS, as well as action, sci-fi, western movies, and sports. He was a regular at Mercy Cardiac Rehab from 2013 after his heart surgery, until Covid stopped that. Survivors include his three children: Rhonda Scott; Rodney Detches; and Rick Detches (Jeannine Corey); grandchildren: Jordan Scott (fiancée Caitlin Woolley), Nathan Detches, Audrey Detches (fiancé Kyle Benson), and Brian Detches; great-grandchildren: Evangela Heyward and Auralia Heyward; siblings: Carol May (Detches) Hendricks, Mary Louise (Detches) Cole, and Patrick Arnold Detches (Genevieve); brother-in-law, Terry Medina; and numerous loving nieces and nephews, cousins, and in-laws. He was preceded in death by his wife of 57 years, Juanita “Mickey” Detches in 2014; his father Paul Detches in 1951; his mother Pauline Detches Kennedy in 1993; brother Rodney Leon Detches in 1955; and brother Arthur Daniel Detches in 2010.