Ronald Edward Karlich, beloved husband of Jo Ann ( Joni ) Karlich, was born on Sunday, July 27, 1947 at 6:05 PM in Columbus, Ohio, and he went to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Sunday, May 20, 2018 at 6:20 PM in Houston , TX after a battle with lymphoma of the pancreas and myelofibrosis. He was the 5th of five boys, born to Joseph and Julia Karlich. Ron was preceded in death by his father, mother, an infant brother (Jerry Karlich) and by his sister-in-law, Connie Karlich, wife of his brother, Frank. Ron is survived by his wife, Jo Ann (Joni); his son, David and granddaughter, Hannah, of Katy: his daughter, Gina and 4 grandchildren of New Mexico, as well as his children's mother, Nancy Ruiz Karlich, of Rosenberg, TX; his step-daughter, Rachel Fruin of Houston and his step-son, Erik Fruin and his wife, Nickie, and their children, Nadia and Elena of Katy, TX. He is also survived by his 3 older brothers of Columbus, OH: Frank Karlich, John and Karen Karlich, and Jim and Lora Karlich, as well as numerous nieces and nephews and their children.
Ron was a remarkable person who had a wide array of interests throughout his life, including painting, playing an acoustic guitar and keyboard, photography, astronomy, computers, studying Hebrew and Bible prophecy, and golf. He accomplished so much more than he would have thought possible coming from an ordinary family of 1st & 2nd generation immigrants from Hungary. However, Ron’s drive to succeed was born out of a family who had known hardship through World War I and the devastation it had inflicted upon many people and places in eastern Europe. Of his Hungarian heritage, Ron loved his mother’s cooking of traditional Hungarian food the best and often tried to duplicate the wonderful tastes he remembered from home.
The Viet Nam war was being fought as Ron graduated from high school, and Ron enlisted with the Air Force and spent his four years of service (Dec.1966-Dec 1970) as an aircraft mechanic with the 437th Military Airlift Wing (MAC) in Charleston, SC as a crew chief maintaining C141 aircraft. He loved that class of aircraft, excelling in the performance of his duties to keep them running and safe, and attained the rank of Staff Sargeant. The picture below is Ron leaving for Air Force assignment in Charleston, SC.
When he returned home to Columbus, Ohio, he decided to pursue a career as a machinist, as his father had been a Tool & Die maker, and his older brother, Jim, had also become a machinist and secured an apprentice position for Ron at his place of employment. Ron had a great talent for machining and loved the outlet it provided for his creative/artistic aptitude. When Ron moved to Rosenberg, TX with his wife, Nancy, and their children, David and Gina, his machining excellence led him to a job he truly enjoyed with Welex, which later became Halliburton. Ron excelled again and rose to the position of foreman of the engineering prototype shop for the research department at Halliburton, gaining much respect from the engineers for whom he created the prototypes of their designs. He also developed wonderful friendships with friends from work with whom he played golf...another of his many interests in life. His greatest regret from that period of his life was the dissolution of his marriage and family...a heartache that stayed with him the rest of his life. It was a great joy to him in his final days to have the comfort of many visits from his beloved son, David, of whom he was so proud and for whom he had so much respect. Though circumstances had strained their relationship, Ron's love for his children, while not easily verbalized, had never failed. The picture below is Ron in his mid 30's in Rosenberg.
When Halliburton moved their location to the North Belt facility, Ron decided to retire and open his own machine shop, Karlich Prototype Machining, rather than face a long commute to the new location. He was able to successfully run his business for 15 years. As he built his business, he met and hired his present wife, Joni, whom he married July 7th, 2007 and who worked with him until the big downturn in the industry in 2015 forced him to close the doors on the business because of the lack of work in oilfield research. This was a devastating blow to lose his wonderful "playground"...his workshop and machines that had provided him with a purpose and the ability to provide a living for himself and Joni, as well as the ability to make and fix whatever he needed.
Ron tried to settle into retired life and hoped to find an outlet for his active and creative mind, but his health was beginning to fail. We now know that his health problems could probably be traced to his exposure to many toxic chemicals throughout his life in the military and metal-working. After suffering from impaired health for over a year without diagnosis, he was admitted to the hospital on April 8th, 2018 where test results showed the presence of lymphoma of the pancreas and a type of bone marrow cancer. His condition was so weakened at that time that aggressive cancer treatment was not a viable option and he came home to be cared for until his body succumbed to the ravages of his illness on May 20th, 2018. He loved the Lord Jesus Christ in Whom he placed his faith and trust, and he is now free of the pain he suffered and is, instead, rejoicing in the Presence of his Savior. I love you dearly sweet one and will miss your presence here, but I look forward to seeing you again when I am called to join you. Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow!
Services
Graveside Service
Thu. May. 24, 2018
1:30 pm
Houston National Cemetery
10410 Veterans Memorial Drive
Houston , TX 77038.
Houston National Cemetery
Houston , TX 77038.
Houston , TX 77038.
Ronald Edward Karlich, beloved husband of Jo Ann ( Joni ) Karlich, was born on Sunday, July 27, 1947 at 6:05 PM in Columbus, Ohio, and he went to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Sunday, May 20, 2018 at 6:20 PM in Houston , TX after a battle with lymphoma of the pancreas and myelofibrosis. He was the 5th of five boys, born to Joseph and Julia Karlich. Ron was preceded in death by his father, mother, an infant brother (Jerry Karlich) and by his sister-in-law, Connie Karlich, wife of his brother, Frank. Ron is survived by his wife, Jo Ann (Joni); his son, David and granddaughter, Hannah, of Katy: his daughter, Gina and 4 grandchildren of New Mexico, as well as his children's mother, Nancy Ruiz Karlich, of Rosenberg, TX; his step-daughter, Rachel Fruin of Houston and his step-son, Erik Fruin and his wife, Nickie, and their children, Nadia and Elena of Katy, TX. He is also survived by his 3 older brothers of Columbus, OH: Frank Karlich, John and Karen Karlich, and Jim and Lora Karlich, as well as numerous nieces and nephews and their children.
Ron was a remarkable person who had a wide array of interests throughout his life, including painting, playing an acoustic guitar and keyboard, photography, astronomy, computers, studying Hebrew and Bible prophecy, and golf. He accomplished so much more than he would have thought possible coming from an ordinary family of 1st & 2nd generation immigrants from Hungary. However, Ron’s drive to succeed was born out of a family who had known hardship through World War I and the devastation it had inflicted upon many people and places in eastern Europe. Of his Hungarian heritage, Ron loved his mother’s cooking of traditional Hungarian food the best and often tried to duplicate the wonderful tastes he remembered from home.
The Viet Nam war was being fought as Ron graduated from high school, and Ron enlisted with the Air Force and spent his four years of service (Dec.1966-Dec 1970) as an aircraft mechanic with the 437th Military Airlift Wing (MAC) in Charleston, SC as a crew chief maintaining C141 aircraft. He loved that class of aircraft, excelling in the performance of his duties to keep them running and safe, and attained the rank of Staff Sargeant. The picture below is Ron leaving for Air Force assignment in Charleston, SC.
When he returned home to Columbus, Ohio, he decided to pursue a career as a machinist, as his father had been a Tool & Die maker, and his older brother, Jim, had also become a machinist and secured an apprentice position for Ron at his place of employment. Ron had a great talent for machining and loved the outlet it provided for his creative/artistic aptitude. When Ron moved to Rosenberg, TX with his wife, Nancy, and their children, David and Gina, his machining excellence led him to a job he truly enjoyed with Welex, which later became Halliburton. Ron excelled again and rose to the position of foreman of the engineering prototype shop for the research department at Halliburton, gaining much respect from the engineers for whom he created the prototypes of their designs. He also developed wonderful friendships with friends from work with whom he played golf...another of his many interests in life. His greatest regret from that period of his life was the dissolution of his marriage and family...a heartache that stayed with him the rest of his life. It was a great joy to him in his final days to have the comfort of many visits from his beloved son, David, of whom he was so proud and for whom he had so much respect. Though circumstances had strained their relationship, Ron's love for his children, while not easily verbalized, had never failed. The picture below is Ron in his mid 30's in Rosenberg.
When Halliburton moved their location to the North Belt facility, Ron decided to retire and open his own machine shop, Karlich Prototype Machining, rather than face a long commute to the new location. He was able to successfully run his business for 15 years. As he built his business, he met and hired his present wife, Joni, whom he married July 7th, 2007 and who worked with him until the big downturn in the industry in 2015 forced him to close the doors on the business because of the lack of work in oilfield research. This was a devastating blow to lose his wonderful "playground"...his workshop and machines that had provided him with a purpose and the ability to provide a living for himself and Joni, as well as the ability to make and fix whatever he needed.
Ron tried to settle into retired life and hoped to find an outlet for his active and creative mind, but his health was beginning to fail. We now know that his health problems could probably be traced to his exposure to many toxic chemicals throughout his life in the military and metal-working. After suffering from impaired health for over a year without diagnosis, he was admitted to the hospital on April 8th, 2018 where test results showed the presence of lymphoma of the pancreas and a type of bone marrow cancer. His condition was so weakened at that time that aggressive cancer treatment was not a viable option and he came home to be cared for until his body succumbed to the ravages of his illness on May 20th, 2018. He loved the Lord Jesus Christ in Whom he placed his faith and trust, and he is now free of the pain he suffered and is, instead, rejoicing in the Presence of his Savior. I love you dearly sweet one and will miss your presence here, but I look forward to seeing you again when I am called to join you. Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow!
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