Ralph 'Geno' Geldrich, 71

Ralph “Geno” Geldrich passed away Jan. 25, 2020, at his home in Kalispell.

He was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, in 1948 to Ralph and Minnie Geldrich. Soon after, the family moved to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, where he attended school until the family moved to the Flathead Valley where he graduated from Flathead County High School and met and married Jan Bergmann in 1968. They had two wonderful children, Janice (Dave) Hedeman and Russ (Keri) Geldrich, all residing in Kalispell. They also have six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. He also leaves behind siblings E. Russell Geldrich (Leona), and Ann MacCary, also of Kalispell, and numerous nieces, nephews and in-laws.

In the early ’70s Ralph worked for American Asphalt and then for Pack and Co. He bought a logging truck and hauled logs until 1978 when he went to work for McElroy & Wilken where he retired in 2006. They called him “Gene Gene the digging machine” because of his ability to dig basements with ease and had the gift of holding grade like very few could. In his later years at work he drove lowboy and hauled heavy equipment throughout the valley and every logging road in the Northwest. His last few years at McElroy & Wilken he ran the D-8 dozer in the pit until his retirement.

He was a die-hard fisherman and enjoyed fishing for bull trout at Foy’s Bend, pike at Swan Lake, and perch wherever the bite was on.

Memorial services will be scheduled later in the spring when the grass is green, the birds are chirping, and the fish are biting.