Wenzel James Kovarik

He entered the world on August 24, 1932 in Mitchell, South Dakota, to Rudolph Kovarik and Margaret May Bradley Kovarik of Red Owl, South Dakota. As a boy he labored on nearby farms and ranches, in turn developing his love of the prairie and ranching. He received his early education in Red Owl, in one room schoolhouses where he excelled in making teachers miserable. One notable retaliate act was putting a live skunk in the pot belly stove of the schoolroom. He attended St Martin’s Academy in Rapid City his first year of high school and then transferred to Conception, Missouri for the next 2 years. While his mother determined he should be a priest (actually enrolling & attending the seminary in Conception, Missouri), that plan failed. He instead enlisted in the army at 19, hoping to be a clerk in Germany. Arriving in Germany to find an overwhelming number of clerks, he became a medic and found his calling. With his 2 years of required service complete, he returned to the states to pursue a medical degree. He graduated from Creighton University School of Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska in 1962. While in Omaha, he met Frances Eileen Sullivan. Succumbing to his wit and Catholic charm, she married him on August 17, 1957, and together they had 7 children.

In July 1962, he started his internship at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, Washington, as one of 15 interns, the largest internship class at the hospital to date. Upon completion of his internship, the family settled in Rapid City, SD, where he joined the practice of Dr. O’Toole. In 1967, he joined the Medical Arts Medical Professional Association where he practiced until retiring in December, 1992. During this time, he was Chief of Staff at both Bennett-Clarkson Memorial Hospital and Rapid City Regional Hospital. He didn’t stay retired for long and in 1996 helped to open the Family Medical Center Clinic in Sturgis, SD where he practiced for a year.

Over the years he constantly volunteered his medical services to Boy Scouts, Boys Club, Sky Ranch, AA groups and public schools, and strangers in need. It was more than once that the family vacation was interrupted to assist a roadside accident. On one ski trip to Colorado, he gave up family ski coats to the victims and followed behind the ambulance to communicate a message to the ER staff! He served on numerous local boards including West River Mental Health, RC Boys Club, Central States Fair, Sky Ranch for Boys, and Friendship House. One of his last acts of community service before retirement, was as State Representative to the South Dakota Legislature.

He was a man of his word and believed that honesty was always the best policy. Everyone was a neighbor to help (and get a free meal from if you timed your stop well). He believed you were only as good as your word and anyone could be straightened out with a bit of hard work. In 1973 a ranch near Hereford in Meade County was purchased. The meaning of “true work” was a lesson to pass on, and meant: to move cattle, fix fence, cut the hay, and “repair that broken tractor”, all before noon. No one was immune from that lesson. His ranch produced many crops and provided for many animals over the years, however mules eventually became his passion. Several of his mules were trained to work as a team and he enjoyed showing them off in parades or just giving rides. He became a regular at wedding celebrations with his buggy, top hat and tails.

He was a connoisseur of cookies, never meeting one that he couldn’t warm up to, especially when paired with ice cream.

He was preceded in death by his sisters, Joanne and Jeanne; his brother, Richard; his parents, Rudolph and Margaret; and Polly (of his original team). 

Surviving Wenzel are his brother, Joseph; sisters, Patricia, Karen, and Sister Carol; former wife, Fran, and his children, Anne (Dave) of Eagle, ID, Wenzel D (Kristin) of Lyme, NH, Donald (Lori) of Seattle, WA, Margie (John) of South Lake Tahoe, CA, Susan (Colin) of Seattle, WA, Kathy (Jeff) of Minden, NV, and Ed (Emily) of Boise, ID, and all of their children. Additionally, he is survived by Molly (who loved his ear rubs), Danny Boy and Daffy Dan, Jacob, and Odie. He is further survived by a plethora of nieces and nephews, and more friends than you can shake a stick at. Wenzel’s favorite saying was “there are no guarantees, only opportunities”. 

Visitation will be held at Our Lady of the Black Hills Catholic Church, Piedmont, SD, Wednesday, May 4, 2022, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m., with a rosary following. Funeral services will be Thursday, May 5, 2022, at Our Lady of the Black Hills, 10:30 a.m. Burial, with military honors, will follow at Black Hills National Cemetery.

Our family would like to thank Sandstone Senior Living Facility, in Spearfish, for their compassionate care of Wenzel. Please honor his memory in whatever way speaks to you, sending flowers, buying an extra cookie for someone else or giving to your favorite charity in his name.