In Loving Memory of a Dear Friend

Roger Altrock will be remembered for his love of life and for others.
He died Thursday, one day shy of his 70th birthday, today.
He had friends of all ages, drawing people in by his kindness, upbeat attitude and humor.
Roger, who had muscular dystrophy, was a fixture around town, often seen traveling in his motorized wheelchair to or from the home he shared with his sister and brother-in-law, Rogene and Rich Lathouwers.
He lived with them for 33 years, Rogene said.
Most of the time he was out and about he was heading to or from the Old Hamlin Restaurant, whose owners Chris and Marsha Papadakos became like a second family.

See The loss has been difficult, Marsha said today. Roger had become her husband’s best friend.
They saw each other daily, and the Papadakoses even vacationed with him.
What was it about him that made him so well-loved?
“He’s wasn’t bitter,” Marsha said. “He was always encouraging, always friendly and always smiling.”
His disability may have slowed him down physically, but it didn’t stop him from living a full life.
Many former Ludington police officers became close friends with Roger, whom they made an honorary member of the Fraternal Order of Police.
Denny Grams, one of those retired officers, said it was Roger’s faith that set him apart.
“His outlook was based so much on his love for the Lord,” Grams said. “He loved the Lord and loved people and it just came out in the way he was.”
Former Ludington Police Chief Wally Taranko first knew Altrock from high school band, when Roger was a trumpet player. They became close friends, though, when Taranko, as a young cop, was “walking meters” on Ludington Avenue and would see Altrock at the music store where he worked.
Altrock was diagnosed with Lymbirdle, a form of MD, when he was 15. In his teens he was still able to walk, with help, but it became increasingly difficult.
Taranko said he would pick Roger up at home, put him over his shoulder, get him in the car and drive him to work, then do the reverse at the end of the day.
Rogene, Roger’s sister, said her brother enjoyed the ribbing from the Taranko brothers, Wally and Joe, who treated him like a friend, not tiptoeing around his disability, instead joking about it.
Roger always was a bit mischievous, Rogene said, “but he always come out unscathed.”
“He wanted to be one of the guys,” she said.
He was an artistic man, who did detailed cross-stitching of lighthouses and the carferry, creating his own patterns.
Roger was multi-faceted, Rogene said, kind, an excellent listener, and hard-headed.
He made a distinct impression on people wherever he went, including his most recent home at Oakview Medical Care Facility.
After a stint in the hospital, he was heading back into his room at Oakview when the staff lined the hallway and cheered him back in.
“He had a big fat smile,” Rogene said. “He was back where he wanted to be.”
It wasn’t long after he arrived that he passed away.
“He had a beautiful life,” Rogene said.
His motorized chair is being left at Oakview for other residents to use in the future, Rogene said.
Lloyd Wallace, Ludington Daily News sports editor, knew Roger loved sports.
“He was a huge Detroit Lions fan and I used to razz him about that but Roger liked the repartee; he gave as well as he got,” Wallace said. “When I umpired, he was the manager of the Old Hamlin team. They won a championship and after the game a couple members of the team ran Roger’s wheelchair around the bases. Roger liked to laugh but the grin on his face as he was tearing around the diamond is what I’ll always remember the most about Roger.”
Joy Jensen, manager of Grand Valley Co-op Credit Union, met Roger when she was a young girl, then got reacquainted with him at the Old Hamlin. The credit union used to be located downtown, across the street from the restaurant.
Jensen said she would go out to eat with Roger and go for walks with him.
“He was just a friend to so many people in this community,” Jensen said. “I don’t think he had any idea what kind of impact he had. I’m gonna miss him terribly.
“He would just envelope anybody in. He was so excited to see you,” she said. “He had a kind heart and was just sweet.”
Roger collected pennies for the Mason County Relay for Life, raising hundreds of dollars for the cause. So many people he knew and loved were affected by cancer, so fighting the disease was dear to his heart, Rogene said.
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