Nick CRNKOVICH

CRNKOVICH, Nick George Nick George Crnkovich is at peace. He passed away Friday, October 9th, surrounded by family and spent his last days telling stories, sharing memories and putting every last duck in a row. Raised in the West Virginia coal fields, Nick was the fourth of eight children born to Croatian immigrant parents. He quickly learned the importance of hard work, family, and the sustaining power of faith, as everything else during the great depression was in short supply. Nick came of age as World War II was drawing to an end, and he enjoyed telling stories of his service in the "islands"-- Coney Island, Long Island, Staten Island. The GI Bill brought him to the University of Dayton. While studying accounting there, he met his future wife of 66 years, Marge Wittmann, who drew his attention as the "smartest girl in the class." They would marry and raise five sons and a daughter, and, just as the house emptied out, their 7th "child" arrived, a cousin's son fleeing the civil war in Croatia. Nick spent his entire professional career with the Dayton Rubber Company (later Dayco) where he started as an accountant in 1951 and would ultimately retire as controller in 1990. He made lifelong friends at the company and earned the respect of many. An early adopter of the "side gig," one job was never enough for Nick. This took the form of tax and accounting work for Carl's Body Shop, Bundy's Body Shop and Denny's Body Shop where, coincidentally, he could take advantage of the employee discount, quite handy with years of teen-age drivers. In the seventies, he and some colleagues opened Nutra Foods South, a health food store, which Marge ran successfully for over 20 years, providing a solid boost to the college savings of many of their children, nieces, nephews and family friends who worked there. Nick always took a keen interest in others, and many of his enterprises represented an investment in people. He was willing to take a risk on a venture when he believed in the people behind it. He served on advisory boards for The University of Dayton, Catholic Social Services of the Miami Valley and was a long-time Parish Council member for St. Albert the Great Parish in Kettering, OH. Despite his work, his large family, and community engagement, Nick always made time for friends, and he had lots of them. He enjoyed playing in tennis, softball, bowling and golf leagues. He loved a good party, and could command the room with his story telling. When he and Marge became Florida snowbirds in Naples, they collected a whole set of new friends, fostering camaraderie in their building by starting men's coffees, cocktail evenings, and their famous Super Bowl party. In 2015, Nick and Marge left Dayton to move to a retirement community closer to family in the Chicago area. Once again, Nick gathered new admirers with his kindness, thoughtfulness, and that twinkle in his eye. His extreme generosity is the quality most cited by all who knew Nick. He loved giving gifts to family, but that spirit also extended to just about anyone he encountered, from the landscaper to the café workers in his building who always saved him his favorite doughnuts. He frowned upon greed and seemed to best enjoy his success when he could put it to use for others. Like his famous namesake, Nick found true joy in giving, and Christmas always lived in his heart. Nick is survived by three sisters in West Virginia: Toni Paas, Katie Caldwell, and Sr. Annette Crnkovich, S.A.C.; his sons Phillip, Mark (Debbie), Peter (Kay), Paul (Dina), Andrew (Jackie), and Carla (Lee), and "extra son" Karl (Jenn); his grandchildren, Nicole (Ross) Camara, Sean (Karin), Jessica (Glenn) Schatz, Kirsten (Benjamin) Au, Nick, Sarah, Matthew (Michelle), Brian, Alexis (Spencer) Gordon, Tori, Sofia, Sam, Alex, Nick, Evan and Peyton Carry, as well as seven great-grandchildren. He will also be greatly missed by his dear brother-in-law Tom (Carol), and a host of nieces and nephews. A funeral mass will be celebrated at 10:00 am CST on Monday, October 12, 2020. You can view the Mass via live stream by going to www.donnellanfuneral.com and going to Mr. Crnkovich's obituary.