Rodger Lynn Owen

Rodger Lynn Owen, 90, of Battle Creek, MI, passed away peacefully at his home with his wife, Patricia Owen, at his side on February 17, 2025. Rodger was born in Battle Creek on January 2, 1935, to Addison and Mabel Owen. He was the second of two children. His older brother Robert predeceased him. Rodger’s father passed away when he was ten years old. As a result, at a very young age Rodger learned to be very independent. He lived by the motto, rather than spending money to pay someone to fix things, instead I’ll use that money to buy the tools needed and learn to fix them myself. Rodger was adept at car repair, plumbing, electrical wiring and most handyman skills. One of Rodger’s favorite hobbies was genealogy. He traced his family origins all the way from Wales with our first known family member arriving in Windsor, CT. just 10 years after the Mayflower arrived. Rodger graduated from Battle Creek Central High School in 1953, earning a scholarship for the automotive mechanic program at Ferris State University. Rodger met the love of his life, Patricia (Pat Maturen) shortly after graduating high school and they were married on June 11, 1955. They had four children together, Rodger G. (Patt) of Lexington, KY, Jim (Cindy) of Plainwell, MI, Mike (Michelle) of Lexington, KY, and Tim (Michele Meyer) of Grand Junction, MI. Rodger is the grandfather of eleven grandchildren (Jennifer, Grace, Kimberly, Olivia, Phillip, Emily, Connor, Mae, Mitchell, Ally, Tyler, and five great grandchildren Colton, Emma, Jordyn, Holland, Stevie Lynn. Rodger’s career was almost entirely spent with the Clark Equipment Company in Battle Creek as well as in Georgetown, KY. Without any formal college education, Rodger was able to work his way up to a senior management role with Clark Equipment, eventually overseeing their global purchasing operations. One of the things most remembered by Rodger was his experiences traveling around the world for his job, including Germany, England, Spain, and South America. He was very proud to have been able to include Pat in some of his travels, with the most memorable trip being to Italy. In August 1974, Rodger accepted a position with Clark at their new Georgetown, KY facility. The family moved to Lexington, KY that summer. Rodger was a proud and very involved father of his 4 boys. He spent time coaching their Little League baseball teams and eventually became president of the South Lexington Little League Baseball Association, which produced an all-star team that went to the Little League World Series in 1978. Although he was a lifelong Battle Creek Central Bearcat, he was in the crowd supporting all of his sons’ events as a Lakeview Spartan. After work related moves back to Battle Creek for several years and then back to Lexington, Rodger retired from Clark after 38 years. Following a brief work stint in South Carolina, Rodger officially retired in 1999, with he and Pat moving back to Battle Creek to be closer to their elderly parents. They both enjoyed spending time with childhood friends, playing tennis and golf, and taking care of their parents. Rodger and Pat traveled regularly in their motorhome throughout the country, including the New England coast, Florida, Alabama, and the greater southwestern United States. In the last few years of his life, Rodger was diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease and being the devoted husband he was, began performing at home dialysis so he did not have to leave Pat, who suffers from dementia. He fought a noble battle until his body finally wore out. Rodger was an inspiring man, and his presence will be greatly missed. The family will receive friends on Friday, March 28, 2025 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Richard A. Henry Funeral Home & Cremation Services, followed by a committal service at 2 p.m. in the chapel at Memorial Park Cemetery.