Dennis George Fuchs (Denny to his friends) was born on Christmas day in 1942 at St. Mary's hospital in Richmond Heights, St. Louis County, Missouri. He was the first child of nine to be born to George Henry Fuchs and Ann Louise Strawhun. His father was shipped out to serve in WWII just days before Dennis was born and it was two years before he met his father for the first time. They lived in Kirkwood, Missouri for many years along with many other family members. He was baptized at St. Peter's Church on March 28, 1943. Dennis even attended the same school as his mother, Pitman School. After 2nd grade, he attended Sacred Heart Catholic school until 8th grade. Then he attended Northwest High School until he graduated in 1961. He was active in basketball, football, and track. For years, Dennis has been organizing and attending many Reunions for Sacred Heart Catholic School and Northwest High School (NHS) even serving as Chairman for his 45th and 50th class reunions at NHS, He was often a resource to other graduating classes helping them plan their reunions and has maintained many friendships throughout the years from the graduating classes.
After Kirkwood, the family lived in a few places including Times Beach and High Ridge. Their home in High Ridge was situated on a farm off Antire Road and all the nine kids helped their dad maintain the land. Dennis would recall that while they didn't always have a lot, cause the family was so large, there was always plenty of togetherness. Family meant the world to him.
In the 1960s, Dennis answered the call to serve his country by enlisting in the Army National Guard of Festus, Missouri, and a few years after that was sent to fight in the war in Vietnam as part of the 1st Infantry Division, 1st Engineers Battalion, Company B. His service in Vietnam left a lasting impact, and it wasn't until recently that he spoke of some of his experiences while over there. The honors Dennis received include the National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with 1 Bronze Star, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal with 60 Device. He was honorably discharged on March 30, 1970, as a Sergeant.
He met his wife, Margaret Ruth Wheeler (Maggie) back in the 1960s (an NHS Alum herself) when they both lived in High Ridge, Missouri. Dennis was close with the family for years. They began dating around the 1970s and were married at Sacred Heart Church in Eureka, Missouri on June 14, 1980. Soon after, they had their one and only child, Jennifer Ann Fuchs, born in 1982.
In 1995, Dennis and his family worked hard to start the VFW Post 5468 in Eureka, and he was elected their first Post Commander that same year. Their post has won all-state honors several times because of their contributions to the community. In 2014, he received the Bronze Award as a Legacy Lifetime Member, presented to him by the National Commander.
Dennis had such a giving spirit. He was proud of his 50-year commitment to his church as well as many community organizations. He actively volunteered for St. Vincent De Paul, and served on the Distress Committee for his Union, helping families who are in desperate need, especially around the holidays to make Christmas brighter for families, even though they were strangers he never met. His work also extended to organizations such as the American Legion, Circle of Concern, Knights of Columbus, Eureka Senior Center, and the Agape House in Pacific. He also spent every Lent at the Sacred Heart Church helping with their annual Fish Fry, breading fish that would serve over 2,000 dinners each week. The work he has done for the town of Eureka and the community awarded him the honor of being chosen as Citizen of the Year for 2006.
Dennis worked in Construction all his life; a trade he learned from his father. His specialty was concrete and he became known as “The Concrete Man”. He was a 53-year member of his Union, the Laborers Local 110 in St. Louis. He worked on many projects around the St. Louis area and surrounding counties. He was always so proud of the work he did that he wouldn't hesitate to point out the jobs they worked on. He retired early on from an injury that occurred while working, but stayed very active in his Union, becoming president of the Retirees and working hard to take care of their members. Unfortunately, it was his work in construction (along with factory and automotive work) that contributed to his exposure to Asbestos.
Dennis was diagnosed with Pleural Mesothelioma in 2017, a terminal cancer of the lining of the lungs; the same cancer that took his mother. He fought a great battle, always doing his best to keep a positive attitude. During his treatments, he would talk to the other patients, joke with his brother and nurses, and just did his best to make the environment more comfortable for everyone. That was his gift. The great thing was he never experienced pain the whole time during treatment. Sadly, this past year was really rough on him, as it was with everyone. As much as he loved people, the isolation from this pandemic put a lot of strain on him. He was in and out of hospitals, suffering from the complications from the Chemo he was receiving, and by the end of the year, there was nothing more than could be done. When asked what he wanted for Christmas and his birthday this past year, all he said was he wanted to be with his family. So he got to spend his last birthday and Christmas with his family.
Dennis is survived by his wife of 40 years, Maggie, his daughter Jennifer Rickards (Mark) and granddaughter, Sancia; along with all his siblings: Mike Fuchs, Patty Hunt, Sandy Huber (John), Kevin Fuchs (Diane), Karen Stark (Rick), Marty Fuchs (Melinda), Shelley Ploetze (Bruce), and Chris Fuchs (Kim). Not to mention all of the nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was a loving Husband, Father, Papa, Brother, Uncle, and Friend to many. He was preceded in death by both of his parents.
Services: Funeral from the SCHRADER Funeral Home - Eureka, 108 N. Central Avenue, Tuesday, January 12, 2021, at 10:45 a.m. to Most Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Eureka for 11:00 a.m. Mass. Interment Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Most Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Eureka. Visitation Monday 4-8 p.m. Friends may sign the family’s on-line guestbook at Schrader.com.
To attend the Mass virtually, click the link below on Tuesday Morning around 11am.
Please take some time to leave comments, stories, memories, etc. about my dad. They will be preserved for the family. Thank you all!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
No comments:
Post a Comment