Ronald A. Czinki

Ronald A. Czinki, 82 of Elmira, passed away at home on Saturday, October 20, 2018 surrounded by his family.

Born on July 12, 1936 in Detroit, Ron was the son of Alexander and Helen (Der) Czinki.  He grew up in the Detroit area and was a graduate of MacKenzie High School.  He attended Henry Ford Community College for two years where he was active as stage manager for theatrical productions.  Ron also served in the Michigan National Guard and went up to Camp Grayling several times for training.  It was probably love of the northern Michigan area that prompted him to move to Gaylord several years after he was married.

While working at Kinney’s Shoes, Ron met Carol Rutkowski, a fellow employee at the store.  They began dating and were later married on May 31, 1958.

Ron was very mechanically inclined, motivated and hardworking throughout his life.  As a young man he worked for Bendix Corporation from two different airports.  He also worked at Ford Motor Company for a time before joining Progress Patterns as a pattern maker, receiving numerous awards for his efforts there.

Later, while building their cottage on Huffman Lake near Gaylord, Ron and Carol became interested in relocating their family here.  Through a local builder he was acquainted with, Ron learned the Gaylord area was lacking a glass company.  This is how Gaylord Glass Company came to be, opening in the spring of 1967.  At one time, Ron and Carol also owned Grayling Glass and Petoskey Glass.  Through the growth of the business, Gaylord Glass developed from a local glass retailer to a regional wholesaler of glass to other glass companies and became North Pointe Inc, which Ron and Carol still currently owned and operated.

For several years Ron was involved in Hudson Township government as Supervisor and Assessor.  He was passionate about boating, especially trips to the North Channel and he enjoyed taking their boat to Florida.  A longtime photographer, many family and friends have Ron’s photos to treasure.  He enjoyed helping others by mentoring young people to develop their own interests and passions.  Ron also enjoyed attending Walloon Lake Community Church.

Surviving is Carol, his wife of 60 years; his children, Cynthia Ordway of Elmira and David Czinki of Coldwater; grandchildren, Megan (Joshua) Mickle of Virginia Beach, VA, Dave Czinki and Danny (April) Czinki of Wolverine; several great grandchildren; and his brother, Alex Czinki of Petoskey.

Visitation will be held from 4:00-7:00 PM Thursday, October 25, 2018 at Gaylord Community Funeral Home & Cremation Service.  Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM Friday, October 26, 2018 at Walloon Lake Community Church, 4320 M-75 North in the village of Walloon Lake.

Those who wish are asked to consider memorial contributions to Right to Life or to Samaritans Purse.  Please share your memories and personal messages with Ron’s family at www.gaylordfuneralhome.com