Roger Duane Wick passed away peacefully at Kadlec Hospital in Richland, WA on March 2, 2026, just one month shy of his 89th birthday.
Roger was born in Effie, Minnesota to hardworking Norwegian immigrants Martin and Signe Wick. He had 2 older half-brothers. When Roger was a young boy, the family moved to Burien, Washington for his father’s work in the shipyards. Roger attended Highline H.S., then after graduation in 1955, he joined the Air Force.
Roger honorably served his country as a cold war patriot, a chapter of his life he carried with pride, as well as for all those who served our military, especially the family members for which he was an inspiration.
After his service in the Air Force, Roger joined the WA State Patrol Academy in 1959, and a short time after, he met the “love of his life”, Janice A. Mulroy. By the time he became employed with the WA State Patrol, he was already imagining a different future with a new family and a less stressful career. Roger married Janny in June 1960.
In 1962 and 1963, Roger and Janice adopted Theresa and Thomas, then soon after purchased their first home in Richland, WA to settle down and raise their family.
It wasn’t long before Roger found new employment on the Hanford Patrol. He then landed a position in Chemical Operations, and from there he was promoted to a position as Facility Management Supervisor for Hanford Nuclear. He did well in his career and was able to retire early in 1992 at the age of 55 years.
Roger’s rich and active life included traveling, camping and boating at the Deer Lake property, and spending summers on the Columbia River with his wife, his family and his friends. After he retired, he enjoyed staying connected by attending family events with his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Roger also enjoyed staying connected with those he knew and respected, including having weekly coffee meetups with his local State Patrol buddies. Those were often a highlight of his day.
Roger’s entertainment has always remained with the game of baseball. He loved the game, would happily coach anyone who wanted to learn and got great joy from watching his grandsons and great-grandsons not only play the game but succeed at the game he loved. Roger was a huge fan of the local little league teams and often attended games played in the area and followed the team stats.
Roger will be remembered by the stories he often told, for being a role model, a caring husband to his wife during her decades-long illness, for his soft smile, his hearty laugh, and his warm, welcoming and caring spirit that he had for everyone around him. He will be missed by all who knew and loved him and by those whose lives he touched.
He is survived by his daughter Theresa (Marla), his son Thomas (Anna), his grandchildren Marlanna Bullock, Aaron Bullock (Jully), Ashley Gonzales (Jason), Joshua Wick (Kellie) and Patrick Wick, his 19 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great grandchildren.
He was proceeded in death by his wife Janice, his Father and Mother Martin and Signe Wick, and his 2 half-brothers.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital at stjude.org, the American Cancer Society at cancer.org, to the Wounded Warrior Project at support.woundedwarriorproject.org, or any veteran based organization.