September 26, 1929 - September 28, 2014
RICHFIELD SPRINGS - Richard ("Rick") William Roediger, formerly of Richfield Springs, New York, and Spring Hill, Florida, passed away Sunday, September 28, 2014, with his family by his side at Valley Health Services in Herkimer, New York. He was 85.
Born September 26, 1929, at Jersey City Hospital in New Jersey, he was the son of Otto Richard and Hattie Sophie (Wassermeyer) Roediger. When he was young, his mother died unexpectedly, and her sister, Anna Wassermeyer, raised him and his sister, Anita, in Bergen, New Jersey.
On March 19, 1955, he married Dorothy Marie Romaine in Teaneck, New Jersey. They lived in Park Ridge, New Jersey, then Hackensack, New Jersey.
An auto mechanic by trade, Rick worked at Ford Motor Company in Mahwah, New Jersey, from 1955 until the plant closed. After moving to Warwick, New York, he worked as a shop mechanic at Stanley Chrysler Plymouth, and then relocated his family to Exeter, New York, in the early 1970s, working at Smith Ford and Don's Ford.
Following his retirement from the auto industry, Rick and Dot pursued their lifelong passion of buying and selling collectibles and antiques. They owned and operated Wagon Wheel Antiques on US Highway 20 in Richfield Springs, New York, where they lived from 1980 to 1994. Rick was never at a loss for words and could talk "shop" for hours. After wintering in the south for a number of years, they moved to Spring Hill, Florida.
Rick is survived by his wife of 59 years, Dot, of Clinton, New York; a devoted daughter, Diane Wells and her partner, Rob Fiorentino, of Springfield Center, New York; six grandchildren, Amber Lange and husband, Jaret, of West Sand Lake, New York, David Wells, Jr. and partner, Amy Wells, of West Winfield, New York, Nathan Wells and wife, Viki, of Endicott, New York, Brian Wells and wife, Mandie, of Sidney, New York, Sarah Wells and partner, Jared Carlton, of Edgewater, Florida, Denise Malyana of Florida; and nine great grandchildren, Mia and Sierra Lange, Kazmira Wells, Brian Wells, Jr., Amir and Sami Malyana, Kaylei Brown, Rena Gail Carlton, and Dennis Carlton.
In addition to his parents, Rick was predeceased by Anna Wassermeyer, a daughter, Gail Marie Wells, and a sister, Anita Roberts.
A memorial service will be held at a later date in Spring Hill, Florida.
Arrangements are under the care and guidance of the Connell, Dow & Deysenroth Funeral Home in Cooperstown, New York.
If you would like to send condolences to the family, send an email to Connell, Dow & Deysenroth. We will forward your comments to the family. If you would like to send flowers in memory of the deceased, contact Mohican Flowers at (607) 547-8822, or A Rose is a Rose at (607) 264-3100.
