Fred Rivinius, 89, passed away on June 16,2019 in Grants Pass, Oregon.
Fred was born August 13,1929 in Dupree, South Dakota to William J. and Sophia Rivinius. He married Sylvia C Boschker on October 25, 1953 and raised one daughter Karla, and three sons, Mark, William, and Thomas. The family Settled in San Diego, California for over 50 years.
Fred was born on a farm on a Native Indian Reservation in South Dakota and dreamed of becoming an Engineer and raising a family off the farm. In elementary school his teacher noticed he had an artistic drawing ability, so that teacher would bring in newspaper clippings for Fred to draw. The first vehicle he drove was a 1925 Ford TT truck. Fred attended Walla Walla University in Washington, and then Colorado State University where he graduated in 1957 with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering University (B.S.M.E). He also did Graduate Studies at San Diego State University. His Engineering skill brought him to General Dynamics Corp. in San Diego, where he worked for 34 years. In addition, he occasionally worked part-time as a math teacher also in San Diego.
Over the years, Fred took a variety of art classes and enjoyed oil paintings. He discovered Rosemaling, the decorative folk painting of Norway, and painted many items for family and friends. His favorite thing to paint was wooden plates. After retirement he pursued great interest in genealogy & worked diligently at finding and authenticating the branches of the family tree from 1992 to 2014. He was able to develop a detailed bound version of his family tree as a result of his efforts.
At the time of his passing, he was survived by his two sisters Ruth and Dionne, brother Ervin, and his four children Karla, Mark, Bill, Tom and his 9 grandchildren & 5 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his wife of 55 years, Sylvia C. Rivinius.
A memorial reception will be held after the service at 6645 Donaldson Road Grants Pass Or 97526 for the family,
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Service Details.
Celebration of Life Sunday, August 11th, 2019 | 2:00pm Stephens Family Chapel 1629 Williams Highway GRANTS PASS, OR