Rich Witek:
CLASS OF 1966
Bergen County Technical High SchoolClass of 1966
Hackensack, NJ
Tarrant County Junior CollegeClass of 1993
Hurst, TX
Fair Lawn High SchoolClass of 1966
Fair lawn, NJ
Rich's Story
OK here it goes....graduated
from high school, went into the Marines, got married, got divorced, got saved, got remarried, retired from the Marines, moved to the U. S. Virgin Islands and Hawaii, diagnosed with cancer, medically retired, cured of cancer, son moved in with us. Now I guess I'll fill in the blanks in-between the events.
Well of course we all graduated from Bergen Tech and went our different ways. 1966 was a year that the government drafted a lot of us guys into the armed services. I thought I would outsmart the government so I joined the Marines. Actually two more of our classmates joined the Marines right out of high school, Bob Sweet, Bo Laven. We all ended up in the same boot camp platoon at Parris Island, SC. I ran into Bob Sweet four years later at Cherry Point, NC. He was getting paid so he could go home after leaving the Marines and I was getting paid for reenlisting in the Marines. I never saw Bo again? Two years later I got married to my wife Jan. A year later we had a son, Rich Jr. Our marriage lasted twelve years and we got divorced. The reason for our divorce was my drinking, drugs and running around. No surprise there. One November evening in 1980 I got home and I had an encounter with Jesus. Jan had already been saved for a couple of years. I called Jan and met with her the next day and told her what had happened to me. Needless to say she was very surprised and very happy. The next day I went to see our pastor at church and he led me in my prayer of salvation. My life (our life) has never been the same since. November 27, 1980 Jan and I got remarried and we've been happy ever since. We will celebrated forty-nine years together in August of this year (except for a couple of months apart in 1980 during our divorce). In 1986 I retired from the Marines as a Master Sergeant after twenty years of service. I went to college and earned an associate of arts degree. I worked many different jobs after retiring from the Marines and enjoyed every one of them. While working for Consolidated Freightways, they transferred us to St Thomas, US Virgin Islands to run the terminal operations in 1995. I also trained and worked with our agents in Jamaica and Barbados. We stayed there for two years before returning to Ft Worth, TX. I lost my mom in 1999 and my uncle in 2001 (s...Expand for more
ome of you might remember I lived with my mom and her brother in Fairlawn while in high school). In 2002 we sold everything we had in Ft Worth, TX and moved to the island of Oahu, Hawaii along with our 1970 Corvette Stingray convertible. I tell everyone that I only have one regret about moving to Hawaii.....I didn't move here sooner!!!! We just love it here. Our local TV weather man always says we have the best weather on the planet and I have to agree with him. Just perfect for driving a classic Corvette droptop year round. In 2012 I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. June 2013 I was forced to retire medically. Multiple Myeloma is a non-curable cancer of plasma cells. Non-curable medically speaking. As a Christian I believe in the healing power of Jesus Christ. In 2014 I attended a healing service at our church and the speaker asked for all people with cancer to come to the front and I jumped out of my seat and ran up to the front. After being prayed for and being slain in the spirit I believe that I have been healed of cancer. I have had many tests since then and my doctors can't find any trace of cancer in my body. I continue to be treated by my doctors because I know God works through doctors and that doctors will validate my healing. Those of you reading this who are Christians know what I am talking about. In April 2014 our son, Rich Jr. moved from Ft Worth to Hawaii to look after his mom and me. He's not married so it was not a big deal for him to move. He is living with us and he is a big help to us. My wife and I continue to enjoy living in paradise. If you have never been to Hawaii and you keep saying that you will someday.... don't wait until it's too late and you can't travel. You aren't getting any younger. Just do it! November 12, 2014 we celebrated our Yorkie named Bentley's 17th Birthday. November 20th we had to bid him farewell. He couldn't hang on any longer and the vet said it was time. We all thought we were prepared for this but we weren't. My wife has been especially hit hard because she has spent 24/7 with Bentley since he came to live with us. He was a Christmas present in 1997 for Jan. She said it was the best Christmas present she ever received! Although Bentley is gone he will always live in our heart. Thanks for reading my story and may God bless you.
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