Ronnie "Buck" Fairchild

Ronnie (Buck) Fairchild, age 85, passed away peacefully on Sunday, July 17, 2022, at Country Villa in Little Chute. He was born on September 26, 1936 to the late Emma and Flavous Fairchild. He graduated from Appleton West High School in 1954.

Buck went on to meet the love of his life, his best friend, Mary Lou; and made her his forever fishing partner on September 15, 1959.

He was drafted in 1959 to the United States Army. He served in Korea for 12 months and was recalled to serve during the Berlin Crisis where he served 6 more months at Fort Carson in Colorado. After his time of service, Buck was employed at Kimberly Clark Paper Mill until 1976. He started in Combined Locks post office and later went to Green Bay as a postal carrier and finished his career at the Kaukauna post office in 1996.

Buck was an avid fisherman. He spent the next 16 years on the water with his greatest catch, Mary Lou, reeling in perch and walleyes. First at Lac View Desert then to Lake Gogebic in Michigan. Only extremely bad weather could keep Buck out of the boat. He was a dedicated sports fan, never missing a Brewers, Packers, or Badger game. If the game wasn’t on TV, he was listening to it on the radio. 

No one loved his kids and grandkids more than Buck. He was in the stands near and far for every sporting event they participated in and was their biggest fan. He had a deep love for baseball as he played, coached, and was an umpire.

Buck is survived by his wife Mary Lou and his three children; Scott (Sue) Fairchild, Stacey (Jeff) Thein, and Ronnie (Jeni) Fairchild. He is also survived by his grandchildren; Logan (Jackie) Thein, Luke (Carolyn) Thein, Lexi (Drake) Owenby, Chase Fairchild, Amanda (Chris) Belville, and Tammy Keen (Dan Steidl). And his great-grandchildren; Atticus & Ezra Thein, River Owenby, and Easton, Kenlyn, and Amara Belville. Buck was also survived by his sister-in-laws; Irene Tiedemann, Joyce Mader, Carol (Tom) Bogenschutz, and Mary Fairchild. And his brother-in-laws; Bernie Van Roy, Hank (Jan) Peerenboom, Jim (Pat) Peerenboom, and Tom (Sheri) Peerenboom. He is further survived by many nephews, nieces, and other relatives.

Buck is preceded in death by his siblings; Jack Fairchild, Mary (Harold) Perrault, Wanda Fairchild, Judy (Gene) Kaddatz, Omeida (Bill) Tordoer, and Peggy Holcomb. He is also preceded in death by his brother-in-laws; Donald (Dorothy) Peerenboom, Clarence (Betty) Peerenboom, and Russell Tiedemann. And sister-in-laws; Marlene Peerenboom, Marge Peerenboom, Rita Van Roy, and Barbara Peerenboom.

A special thank you to the wonderful and caring staff at Country Villa Memory Care in Little Chute. To know Buck was to love him and to have loved him was to be one of the lucky ones.

Grandpa, we look so fondly upon our childhood because so many of those memories were with you. Thank you for being there, for supporting us, for loving us, and for showing us the power of kindness and patience. We promise we will try to keep Grandma Beego out of trouble as best we can for you, and when we inevitably fail, we will lovingly roll our eyes, just as you did so many times! We know you’ll be in Heaven cheering on all your great-grandkids in all that they do, and we will be right here cheering with you for those dang Brewers to FINALLY win us that World Series! Love you Grandpa Bucko - Your Grandchildren

To honor Buck’s wishes, his immediate family will be having a private celebration of his life.

Buck’s family welcomes all those who knew him and loved him to celebrate his life in their own way.  For online condolences please visit www.verkuilenfh.com.

“I pray that I may live to fish until my dying day. And when it comes to my last cast, I then most humbly pray: when in the Lord’s great landing net and peacefully asleep; That in his mercy I be judged ‘Big enough to keep.’

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.