Rita Marie Reznicek – born Rita Marie Turpin on March 13, 1930 in Omaha, Nebraska, Rita passed away peacefully on March 26, 2014 at the age of 84, after a 9 year battle with Lewy Body Dementia. She married the love of her life, Mel Reznicek, in 1949, and their enduring love has served as an inspiration for 64 wonderful years. Rita is survived by 4 sons, Dan, Dave, Doug, and Don. In passing, Rita is now reunited with her loving daughter, Kathy, who less than two years ago succumbed to cancer at a far too young age. She is preceded in death also by her father Arthur, mother Louise, and sisters Margaret and Maureen.

Rita will be remembered by many as a woman with fierce loyalty and unwavering love for those around her. Together, Mel and Rita faced every challenge life had to offer, and truly thrived as a young couple moving from Omaha to Southern California in 1959. She dedicated her life to her husband and children, and was the ideal mother who managed the house with an amazing combination of love and compassion.

In addition to her passion for family, she also enjoyed bowling, cruises, cooking, bingo, dancing, and later in life, developed a fondness for golfing with Mel. She will always be remembered for having a wonderful sense of humor! She loved music and was a gifted singer. Rita overcame the challenge of foster care as a very young child, and as a result, will always be remembered as a woman of character and composure. She was a wife who understood how to support her husband’s effort to build a better life for his family. She also was a mother who modeled honesty, hard work and integrity, a mother-in-law who opened her arms and heart as our family expanded, as an aunt to any family member who needed help, and as a Grammy who shared the fruits of her labor by showering her family with the material gifts she never had as a little girl. Rita gave. She gave of herself to those she loved. She gave with all the emotional, physical and spiritual strength she could muster. She gave every day, and she exhibited remarkable strength until the final moments when the Lord took her to Heaven. Rita is an inspiration of love, generosity and family. We will always have her in our hearts and prayers!