Obituary of Alan Louis Rohrecker

Alan Louis “ Big Al” Rohrecker

Born on February 8, 1931 in Richmond Hill, NY to Louis and Claire Rohrecker.  He died on September 16, 2018, from complications of Parkinson’s disease.  

No one is quite sure how the legend of Big Al began, but while it may not have described his physical stature, it sure did describe his heart.  He never met a person who wasn’t a friend, and he had many lifelong best friends.  Big Al loved Baskin-Robbins chocolate chip ice cream, the Brooklyn Dodgers, the New York Mets, and any other National League or American League team except for those damn Yankees.  He also loved his children and grandchildren, the Toledo Mudhens (mostly for the name), World War II history, travel, tidbit steak, Broadway and local theatre, especially Goodspeed Opera, attending many sporting events for many grandkids, and singing enthusiastically, though not necessarily in that order.  To the end, he could tell you the starting lineup of the 1955 Dodgers, and the name of every Met player from 1962. 

He married Valerie Joan Blauert in 1956, and they were married for more than 44 years until her death in 2000.  Together they raised six children who in turn married and produced nineteen grandchildren and one great grandchild, giving him his most favorite name of all – Poppy. He is survived by his children and their spouses: Laurie (Ken), Pam (Mark), Chris (Karen), Allison (John, d. 2001), Lance (Kathleen), and Andrea (Kurt); his grandchildren:  Matt, Justin (Danielle), Tim, Amanda (Dan), Lance, Alex, Kyle, Annie, Jack, Mick, Allison, Christian, Kristin, Liam, Patrick, Olivia, Reid, James and Ian, his great-grandson Leo, and many best friends, especially Ray and Mary Mahon, Buzz Murray and Richie Maikis.  

Grower older often comes with illness and pain.  Big Al was no exception to this, but he never complained.  His final illness was insidious and slowly robbed him of his independence and sometimes his dignity.  Throughout it all, he was determined to do as much as he could for as long as he could, and every day showed us all grace and acceptance.  We will miss him dearly.