DakotaDocMartin
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I received an email from Roger Henrich's son in law informing me that Roger passed away at 1:15 pm today, October 31, 2015.
Roger was keeping it a secret from mostly everyone but he had been battling lung cancer all summer. He went through the chemo and radiation therapy and he was looking forward to a PET scan in November telling him he was cancer free. He was a tough guy and fought it until the last. He would go for a chemo treatment and then go wax the truck and mow the lawn!
I think he really figured he could beat it. But, Nancy told me it was considered terminal all along. She said Roger didn't tell anyone that... not even to himself.
I talked with Roger two weeks ago and he sounded very tired and groggy. He spoke with sort of a thick tongue. He didn't sound like his normal self. He said he felt "about 60%". But, he was still planning on finishing his Sterlingworth shotgun. He was having fun doing some sculpted scroll with his Enset. He was planning on bringing it to the next FEGA convention.
I spoke with his wife Nancy on Monday the 26th and she told me Roger hadn't eaten in two weeks and was sleeping about 22 hours a day. The family were all waiting for him to pass at any minute.
Unfortunately, he lingered another week and passed on today. But, he's no longer suffering.
I lost a good friend and, I was glad he took the time to take me under his wing and teach me some design and engraving.
Good bye Roger.
Boulger Funeral Home Obituary: Roger Henrichs
Roger Henrichs
Aug. 3, 1941 - Oct. 31, 2015
FARGO, N.D. - Roger Henrichs, 74, Fargo, died Saturday, Oct. 31, in his home under the care of Hospice of the Red River Valley.
A graveside service will be 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, at Riverside Cemetery in Fargo.
Arrangements by Boulger Funeral Home and Celebration of Life Center in Fargo.
A little bit about Roger: A lot of people knew Roger as an engraver who not only took commissions from individuals but he was the contractor engraver for Ahlman Guns in Morristown, Minnesota. Roger was an engineer in his "real life" and was the designer of several large pieces of commercial equipment and several factories. For example, he designed a sand bag filling machine for the City of Fargo, North Dakota that helped them save much of the city when it flooded a few years ago. He was featured on the TV a couple of times about that machine. I think he got in more than 15 minutes of fame.
He designed a factory that produces egg cartons from recycled paper. In fact, he did it twice... the first one ended up burning down.
He would work all day as an engineer and then after dinner at around 6:00 PM, he would engrave until around midnight. That guy had more energy than any two or three normal people! He was always hunting, fishing, mowing the lawn, polishing his truck and boat.
He contacted me when he first saw me on this forum and came to Grand Forks to show me some of his work and to encourage me to do more engraving. After all, North Dakota has a very small population so everybody knows everybody it seems. I would help him out once in awhile with some of my own skills. Many of his published photographs came from my camera. I know Master Engraver Mark Hoechst did some for him too.
Anyway, I just wanted to say a few more words about Roger. It's difficult to put into words what it was like to know him and a little bit about his life.
Roger was keeping it a secret from mostly everyone but he had been battling lung cancer all summer. He went through the chemo and radiation therapy and he was looking forward to a PET scan in November telling him he was cancer free. He was a tough guy and fought it until the last. He would go for a chemo treatment and then go wax the truck and mow the lawn!
I think he really figured he could beat it. But, Nancy told me it was considered terminal all along. She said Roger didn't tell anyone that... not even to himself.I talked with Roger two weeks ago and he sounded very tired and groggy. He spoke with sort of a thick tongue. He didn't sound like his normal self. He said he felt "about 60%". But, he was still planning on finishing his Sterlingworth shotgun. He was having fun doing some sculpted scroll with his Enset. He was planning on bringing it to the next FEGA convention.
I spoke with his wife Nancy on Monday the 26th and she told me Roger hadn't eaten in two weeks and was sleeping about 22 hours a day. The family were all waiting for him to pass at any minute.
Unfortunately, he lingered another week and passed on today. But, he's no longer suffering.
I lost a good friend and, I was glad he took the time to take me under his wing and teach me some design and engraving.
Good bye Roger.
Boulger Funeral Home Obituary: Roger Henrichs
Roger Henrichs
Aug. 3, 1941 - Oct. 31, 2015
FARGO, N.D. - Roger Henrichs, 74, Fargo, died Saturday, Oct. 31, in his home under the care of Hospice of the Red River Valley.
A graveside service will be 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, at Riverside Cemetery in Fargo.
Arrangements by Boulger Funeral Home and Celebration of Life Center in Fargo.
A little bit about Roger: A lot of people knew Roger as an engraver who not only took commissions from individuals but he was the contractor engraver for Ahlman Guns in Morristown, Minnesota. Roger was an engineer in his "real life" and was the designer of several large pieces of commercial equipment and several factories. For example, he designed a sand bag filling machine for the City of Fargo, North Dakota that helped them save much of the city when it flooded a few years ago. He was featured on the TV a couple of times about that machine. I think he got in more than 15 minutes of fame.
He designed a factory that produces egg cartons from recycled paper. In fact, he did it twice... the first one ended up burning down.
He would work all day as an engineer and then after dinner at around 6:00 PM, he would engrave until around midnight. That guy had more energy than any two or three normal people! He was always hunting, fishing, mowing the lawn, polishing his truck and boat.
He contacted me when he first saw me on this forum and came to Grand Forks to show me some of his work and to encourage me to do more engraving. After all, North Dakota has a very small population so everybody knows everybody it seems. I would help him out once in awhile with some of my own skills. Many of his published photographs came from my camera. I know Master Engraver Mark Hoechst did some for him too.
Anyway, I just wanted to say a few more words about Roger. It's difficult to put into words what it was like to know him and a little bit about his life.
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