Eugene Remmick

Minot

Eugene Remmick peacefully entered eternal life on November 19, 2023. A private celebration of his life will be held on August 16th at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Oak Creek, WI with his children, Nathan Remmick of San Antonio, TX (Lela), Beth Van Grinsven (Michael) of Franklin, WI, Jennifer Soucheray (Paul) of White Bear Lake, MN and Ginger Lee Nelson (Jeff) of Grafton, WI.

Eugene was born December 4, 1934 in Streeter, ND, the youngest son of John and Sophia (Wetzel) Remmick. His parents and older brothers Roger, Lester and Melvin preceded him in death. He is survived by his younger sister, Betty Day of Moffit, ND.

His early years were spent in Jamestown and he grew up in Glen Ullin, ND, working as a farm hand on his uncle’s farm every summer from kindergarten until his teen years. Art and music were his favorite subjects in school. His first lessons in life revolved around the importance of hard work. Gene had a lifelong career as an electrician, beginning his apprenticeship at a young age. His first job was with the R.E.A driving a semi-truck hauling poles into the rural areas. The Rural Electrification Act of 1936 provided federal loans for the installation of electrical distribution systems to serve isolated rural areas of the US. Gene began to set poles for the REA and showed skill in that task. During this time, his oldest brother, Roger, was a lineman and is credited for bringing Gene into the electrical field. The REA needed more lineman to bring electricity into small towns across the state. He made his home in Minot and married Betty Lou Gietzen of Glen Ullin in 1959. They settled outside of Minot at Rural Route 4 where they bought a home and raised their family. He took great satisfaction in working on the house and property all the years that he lived there. Gene was a proud member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union, IBEW for 67 years and was one of the longest standing members in the IBEW Local #714 in Minot, in North Dakota and in the US. He worked for over 123 contractors during his lifetime in the electrical field in ND, MT, ID, WA, OR, ME and WI. His favorite work site was at the Coal Creek Power Plant outside of Beulah because he loved that every day was different.

Gene is survived by his 10 grandchildren Zak Remmick, (Katy) and Levi Remmick, Jansen (Rose), Leif Van Grinsven and Elle Van Grinsven Potter (Micah), Clare, Henry and Ben Soucheray, Lindy and Jack Nelson. Grandpa Geno recently became a very proud great grandfather of Reese Remmick (Zak and Katy). As an adult, a source of personal pride was his physical stature, standing at 6’4″ which he passed on to his children and grandchildren. The first time a friend or acquaintance met Gene they were introduced to his ‘vice grip’ handshake that intentionally would never be forgotten!

The last chapter of his life was spent in Wisconsin, spending time with his children and grandchildren telling stories of his childhood and life on the farm in ND. He enjoyed watching the wildlife that was frequently the target of his slingshot and BB gun outside of his Oak Creek patio window. He treasured his truck – a shiny, fire engine red GMC Sierra with “Let’s Dance” wrapped around the license plate. It was loaded with so much technology that it became a regular task for his grandkids to help him navigate all the bells and whistles. He enjoyed a range of music genres, ranging from Engelbert Humperdinck to Michael Jackson. His nemesis was his cell phone with its endless robo calls. He was a proud and generous supporter of the local and national Police Department and was a graduate of the Franklin Citizen Police Academy. His unique phrase of wonder and surprise, “Holy Buckets!” followed by a laugh, will be missed by all who knew him.

Published by The Minot Daily News, August 10, 2024.