Harry Louis DIETRICH Jr.

DIETRICH, Jr., Harry Louis (Deke)
Deke was born on July 1, 1921 and made his transition to Heaven peacefully and gracefully on January 2, 2011 at the age of 89. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife Virginia (Spoor) Dietrich, and grandson Carlo Cuccia. He lived a full and joyful life full of music, outdoor adventures, work, love, and commitment to family.

Deke was born in Fort Smith, AR to Harry L. and Bobbie Dietrich. He went to grade school and high school in Fort Smith and showed a keen interest in the jazz, swing, and western swing music of that time. He played trumpet in the swing band at Hendrix College in Conway, AR and moved on to Columbia, MO where he graduated with a degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri in 1942.

He served in the Navy in WWII on the battleship USS Nevada assigned to the Pacific Fleet as a gunnery officer during the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and lived through kamakazi suicide attacks on his ship. At the end of WWII, he returned to California where he first met Virginia (Gee Gee) Spoor on a blind date at her sorority house in UCLA. Deke and Gee Gee were married in 1946 and had a six-month honeymoon starting in a remote cabin in the Northern California mountains, then to Mexico and Arkansas before settling in the Los Angeles area.

Deke worked for Sears as a buyer for 33 years and had experience in supplying the West Coast Sears stores with a variety of products including draperies, house furnishings, sporting goods, and his favorite work assignment being garden supplies. In the forties and fifties, Deke would drive the family up to Gee Gee's father's (Tac Spoor) ranch in Grass Valley, CA for vacations centered around deer hunting and cattle ranching. In 1955 Deke and Gee Gee moved to Sierra Madre, CA with Deke transforming his suburban backyard into a 'mountain meadow with creek and waterfall pool' landscape that was featured in the November 1965 edition of Sunset Magazine.

In his spare time, Deke continued to play music with bands including the 'Tin Lizzie Stompers' who played at dances and local Southern California events. He was also a cigar-smoking Little League Baseball coach and Dodger fan. Deke and Gee Gee purchased a real mountain meadow in Plumas County, CA where they would spend their summer vacations working on the 100-year-old cabin and marching in the local 4th of July parade. In the 1970s they moved to Corona Del Mar, CA and enjoyed life by the ocean. Upon his retirement from Sears, Deke and Gee Gee moved to Grass Valley, CA and spent the winter months in their condo in Manzanillo, Mexico and summer trips to their mountain cabin in Franks Valley.

Deke's constant joy was his family as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. Deke is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Dede and William Hutcheson of Fort Smith, AR; his stepsister and stepbrother-in-law, Marilyn and Dick Hulquist of Los Angeles, CA; stepbrother William Powell of Dallas, TX; son and daughter-in-law, Wyatt and Marie Dietrich of Cameron Park, CA; daughter and son-in-law, Dale and Gary Miller of Grass Valley, CA; daughter and son-in-law, Juli and Buzz Cuccia of Mission Viejo, CA; grandchildren, Kristen Welch, Luke Cuccia, Matt Miller, Sarah Dietrich, Annie Dietrich; and great-grandchildren, Tate Welch and Allie Welch.

A memorial and life celebration event will be held on July 1, 2011 (Deke's 90th birthday) at the family cabin in Franks Valley, Plumas County, CA.