Josef “Joe” Rieping died in the presence of his beloved son Bernie and daughter-in-law Betty in Madera at 1:10 AM, July 18, 2023, after battling Alzheimer’s disease for more than two years. The eighth of 11 children, he was born in Klein Karlshoeh, Germany (now Poland), on August 30, 1936, to farmers Heinrich and Helene. In July and August of 1945, Helene and her remaining eight children fled to West Germany to escape imprisonment by Soviet authorities, who deported German civilians to the USSR for forced labor and had taken away his father earlier that year. He turned 9 during the escape across the heavily fortified and patrolled border, and his youngest sibling was only 3. He and his siblings were divided among relatives. He attended a minor seminary at age 12. His father died on September 21, 1955, soon after his release by the Soviets, and Josef immigrated to the United States on January 10, 1957, to help support his mother and sisters. He initially milked cows in New York and worked in the summer at the Rieping Lodge, a lakeside mountain resort in Roscoe, N.Y. He served in the U.S. Army from 1959 to 1961. He moved to Sanger, California, in January of 1962 to work at an uncle’s dairy. He first saw his future wife, Teresa Lozano, when she performed with her folkloric dance troupe for a charity dinner in Sanger, and they first talked at a young adult gathering at St. John’s Cathedral in Fresno. They later married in St. Alphonsus Church in Fresno on January 18, 1964. Spurned by his uncle for marrying a Mexican, he worked as an agricultural pest control advisor. When their first child arrived in December, he asked for a raise and was denied due to being “unskilled labor.” So he quit and the company had to hire three “college boys” to replace him. A job offer from Noble’s Independent Meat Company, a meat packing and processing plant in Madera, led the growing family to move from Sanger to Madera. Eventually his arm muscles grew so strong they separated from the bone, which forced him to change careers to landscaping in and around Madera. For years this included gardening and custodial work for St. Joachim Church (and at first its school as well). But he later quit his job with the church to open a vacancy so a particular man in need could fill the job. His wife Teresa died on Feb. 23, 2016, but he was blessed to find love again with a fellow daily Mass attendee and married Sharon Caruana at St. Joachim Church in Madera on January 23, 2021. He loved horses and mules. His wagon and buggy won awards in area parades, and carried Monroe School children for carnivals and history projects. He served as Grand Knight for the St. Joseph Marello Council of the Knights of Columbus in Madera, and attained the charitable organization’s highest degree, serving in the Our Lady of Mercy Assembly in Merced. He embraced the spirituality of the gospel-centered Focolare Movement, and repeatedly welcomed the homeless into his home. He is survived by his wife, Sharon, his son Anthony and his wife Noel, his son Bernard “Bernie” and his wife Betty, his son Eugene “Gino” and his wife Angelica, his daughter Maria-Helena Uribe and husband Hector, his son John and his wife Viviana, 18 grandchildren, and six great grandchildren, one of whom is in the womb. Visitation will be Wednesday, July 26, from 3 to 6 PM at Jay Chapel, 1121 Roberts Ave. The rosary will be prayed July 26, at 6 PM at Jay Chapel. A Mass of Christian Burial will be Thursday, July 27, at 9:30 AM in St. Joachim Church, 401 W. 5th St., with a reception afterwards at Holy Spouses Hall, 320 N. I St.
2 Comments
Linda Lamaack
7/20/2023 09:07:04 pm
The Rieping family overall are a beautiful family that started from a couple who fell in love and created good values in life. We are blessed to have them as our friends. All the struggles in life at the end was worth the hard work and bonding.
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Michelle
7/20/2023 10:09:56 pm
Opa will be dearly missed, but certainly never forgotten 💗 He left an impact not only with his family, but everyone he's ever come in contact with. We are blessed to have known him and to continue to know the beautiful family members he's left behind. 💗
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