Duane Arthur Roehrick

Duane Roehrick passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 88 on 27 July 2024 in San Diego, California, after watching the Men's US Olympic team win their first gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Born on September 15, 1935, in Bismarck, North Dakota, Duane was the pride and joy of John Anton Roehrick and Rosalie Alice Roehrick (née Davis). In 1970, Duane married Kaye Lenore Roehrick (nee Willard) in Rapid City, South Dakota. Duane has now joined his parents, John and Rosalie, his brother Richard "Dick" Roehrick, and his beloved wife Kaye in the great beyond.
Duane leaves behind his sister, Sharon Cink of Madison Lake, MN; his son, Steven Roehrick of San Diego, CA; his stepdaughter, Suzanne Frasier of Nashville, TN; and his stepson, Scott Wellman of Miami, FL.
A gifted athlete and baseball player, Duane once led his high school baseball team to the North Dakota state championship game, where they triumphed over a team led by none other than Roger Maris.
Duane was also a maestro and music teacher extraordinaire. For his master's thesis, he composed a four-work symphony and could play every instrument in it. But his heart always belonged to the tuba, his first musical love.
Duane always said his favorite job throughout the years was coaching. He held various head coaching positions, serving as head coach of boys' and girls' basketball teams, tennis, track, football, golf, and cross country. He coached several high school teams and even spent several years coaching at the collegiate level at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.
Known for his sharp wit and humor, Duane was a favorite of local journalists. He often downplayed his skills, jokingly claiming he was uniquely qualified to coach high school football because he was "the fourth-string quarterback, dressed for home games." As the music director for the high school in Bison, South Dakota, he humorously described his greatest high school musical achievements as "second chair tuba in pep band, voted best lateral pursuit of music sheets dropped during the homecoming parade."
Duane's diverse career led some to suspect he was a CIA Case Officer. Besides his superintendent roles across South Dakota and Wyoming, he ran a flower shop in Canton, announced play-by-play on the radio for KTOQ in South Dakota, was the lead announcer for Black Hills Greyhound Racing Association, and even worked with the legendary Tom Brokaw at an NBC affiliate in Rapid City. During his twelve years at the South Dakota School of Mines, Duane wore many hats, including Director of Admissions, sports information director, radio play-by-play announcer, and director of Surbeck Center, all while teaching in the liberal arts department.
Duane found his true calling in education, earning a master's degree in education from Dickinson State University in North Dakota. After moving to South Dakota, he started as a primary school teacher and worked his way up to Principal and then Superintendent of schools in various South Dakota towns. As Superintendent in Chamberlain, South Dakota, Duane led efforts to secure much-needed financial aid for the state as the spokesman for the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools. He frequently traveled to Washington, DC, either for CIA assignments (as some suspect) or to meet with South Dakota Senator Larry Pressler, whom he convinced to sponsor legislation for federal impact aid to school districts in need.
In 1990, Duane and Kaye moved to Pavillion, Wyoming, where he became Superintendent of the Wind River School District. Five years later, he reached the pinnacle of his career when he was elected President of the Wyoming Superintendents Association by his peers.
Duane was a devoted husband, a loving father, an exemplary educator, and an outstanding mentor and coach. He will be forever loved and deeply missed by those he leaves behind as he joins back up with his wife Kaye in the afterlife and resumes teaching and coaching immediately after entering the pearly gates.
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