This website is a combination of an appendix for the book “A Dry Fly on Pebble Creek”, memories of the life of Richard A Van Sickle, and photos and documents collected over the years related to family and events in the lives of our families, his career and military service.
Richard has gone by the shortened name “Dick” his entire life and has many friends all over the globe. On his 80th birthday, his family put together a birthday party and a birthday video (scroll down for that!) that showcased how loved he is and the tremendously good impact he has had on the lives of many people. His story is amazing and his life has been greatly blessed. Enjoy!
On YouTube, reposted below:
Eulogies and Readings for Richard A. Van Sickle Below
Richard “Dick” Arthur Van Sickle
November 7, 1941 – March 21, 2025
Karen Murray, Niece
I have the great honor of being my favorite uncle Dick’s favorite (and only) niece and spending a lot of time with him in the last few years. I first met him when I was born, he was my father’s younger brother. We lived in Omaha, NE. He always had a sparkle in his eye and a radiant smile that would light up everyone that it shone on.
The real key to his success was his ability to connect and relate to everyone he met along the way. When you were speaking with him, he was paying attention to you in that moment. I’ve watched this happen in many situations – family gatherings, dinners with “business” colleagues, or when I was in my 20’s, going out for a beer to shoot pool and listen to music. Since the 1960’s, I observed my uncle in his interactions with people. It was amazing to behold. Every person felt heard and honored by his attention. At least that’s how I felt – that I mattered to him. And his smile lit up a room- even if he was outdoors!
That sparkle in his eye was born of a mischievous streak. Being the middle brother, son of my grandparents Everett and Susan Van Sickle, he had two siblings (Bob and Ann) to play pranks on and others he interacted with often received his attention. Once when he was a kid, his sister Ann fell asleep for a nap with her shoes on. He tied her shoelaces together. Then he noisily woke her up – she got up and promptly fell down.
He had a neighbor cohort growing up named Gary Miller who helped him to carry out even grander pranks. A city bus was their target, at least twice. They first tried to tie a rope to a tree overhanging the street. Their plan was to swing the rope to hit the windshield and startle the driver. That didn’t pan out. But a grander plan was born with large rotten apples that they picked up from a neighborhood apple tree. “My neighbor, Gary Miller, was my age. We dug foxholes together. There were apple trees in their yard – golden delicious apples that were large. If you didn’t harvest them, you could toss them to your friends and they would mash up in their hands. We threw one towards a moving bus one day and were aiming for a window, but luckily (the bad kind of luck) we succeeded in tossing that rotten apple into where people were riding. We ran. When we arrived home, there was a police car in front of our parents’ houses (we were then the recipients of a stern lecture).”
A few months ago he told me this story about a prank he played on my dad when he was dating my mom: “When Bob was dating Joyce, Greek and I spotted his car when they were out on a date. It was snowing out. We jacked up the car and put some concrete blocks under the axle and hid the evidence with snow. By the time they came out to the car, I was home sleeping peacefully. Well Bob started the car and tried going forward and then in reverse and finally he got out to look. As soon as he saw our work, he knew it was me. I was awoken, when he arrived home, with a punch. He knew it was me because “it smelled” like me. (pause)
His life took a turn after a principal at school (in 8th grade) saw his potential. He was called into the principal’s office after making some classmates laugh during a lecture. His principal, named Mr. Tournquist, sat him down and looked him in the eye and said “you have the potential for leadership”. This is when he started looking for leadership roles -he led – in Boy Scouts, at his church, then at college, the Marine Corps and in his career. He led with his ability to reach out to anyone.
With either a kind word, kind deed or an introduction to someone else, he lifted up so many of us and I’m sure that everyone who knew him had this experience with him. He was my rock and always had time for me whether near or far away.
I can sum up who he was for me through the titles of two books I found on his bookshelf when my family visited them in Minneapolis when I was a bored pre-teen. I read parts of those books then and I read them again much later. They were
“The Power of Positive Thinking” and “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. Uncle Dick embodied these titles. His attitude and presence in my life greatly influenced and supported me.
– Karen Murray (born Karen Lou Van Sickle)
Scott Stangeland:
Look at all of you here. All here for Dick. He would have loved to be here to see all of you. He loved social gatherings. And he loved you. You felt it in his friendship, and you felt it in his leadership. He was a true servant leader. He was both a student of leadership and a mentor. He was a special relational man. When you talked with him, he gave you his full attention. He made you feel important and special to him. It seemed like he really cared about you. That’s because he did. It was authentic. And it didn’t matter if you were a new acquaintance, a close friend, an employee or one of his Marines. You felt this.
The first time I met Dick was 30 years ago. He said he wanted to meet over lunch. Typical. Dick just though food and meetings went together. After a few minutes of talking, I thought this is my kind of man. He’s authentic, he’s visionary, he’s unselfish, and I could learn some things from him. He wanted to talk with me about merging my little structural engineering firm with his. The thing is, I believed him. Right away. He looked me right in the eye, was enthusiastic and I could just tell he was telling the truth. Then he started telling me about the firm he and Chuck Allen started back in 1978 when I had just barely graduated from high school. He said he and Chuck, and their partner Reg Silverthorne realized they weren’t going to work forever. They wanted the firm to live on and not just close the doors when they retired. Dick said he wanted me to become part of the next generation of firm leaders. A few years later I became President and then CEO of Dick’s firm! I could never have done those jobs without Dick. He mentored me personally, led by example, gave me leadership books and sent me to seminars. In the process, we became very close friends, and we trusted each other completely.
Ann reminded me recently that one of the things she loved about when Dick and Chuck started Van Sickle, Allen and Associates, which later became VAA, is that they literally wrote their business plan on the back of an envelope. Classic Dick. It was very simple:
1. Hire people smarter than you.
2. Give them the tools they need to do their job.
3. And then get out of their way.
One more important concept from Dick’s Marine Corps influence is that the troops come first. A story he told me early in our relationship is that a Marine Corp leader is expected to let his troops go through the chow line before him and make sure they have what they need. Those kinds of servant leadership concepts factored heavily into the culture that Dick and Chuck started and are still part of the VAA culture.
Dick loved to talk about leadership. Well, Dick just loved to talk. But he also liked to talk about fly-fishing and its symbolism in his life. Dick and I fished for steelhead on the Kalama River and for salmon on the Columbia in Oregon together. And brown and rainbow trout in the Willow and Kinnickinnic in Western Wisconsin. But our first time fly-fishing together was in Yellowstone for cutthroat and brookies. It was a business development trip with some of our best customers that year. Again, building personal relationships. The highlight of that trip was when lightning struck a tree close by while we were on horseback. One of our biggest clients’ horse reared on a steep side-slope. We almost lost a client that day.
The bottom line is that Dick was not only my mentor, but he was also my best friend. He gave me opportunities and helped me learn how to lead. Dick was the consummate people connector. He would constantly be connecting people that he thought might have some common interest, whether it benefited him or not. He called it connecting the dots. He taught so many of us how to be better people and created opportunities for so many. He made the world a better place because of who he was and how he lived his life. I loved Dick like a father. –
Scott Stangeland
Grandchildren–
TOTAL TIME (rn): 01:45.15
April/Lilly:
For those who don’t know us, I am April and I am Lilly. We would like to say a few words in memory of our grandfather.
April:
My grandpa lived an extraordinary life that continues to inspire me. His optimism, good stories, and way of greeting everyone as a potential friend made him a wonderful person to look up to. His sense of adventure and stories of his world travels encouraged all of us to go on our own adventures. I will carry with me his unwavering faith that every problem can be solved. He encouraged us grandkids to have no fear in taking on new challenges and to humbly enjoy life’s many opportunities.
Lilly:
Grandpa always loved a good story. I could always find a stack of his books by his favorite chair, and when he wasn’t reading someone else’s story he was telling or writing his own. He saw these stories as an opportunity to learn about the world, and how to live in it with compassion for others. I will cherish the stories he shared with me, and continue to be inspired by how he never stopped trying to be a better version of himself.
Our grandfather loved all of his grandchildren very much. To further celebrate his lasting effects on all of us, we would like to conclude by sharing what our cousins have to say about our grandfather.
April/Lilly’s Eulogy together
Levi: Levi liked grandpa’s sense of humor, his stories, and eating desserts with him. Levi wishes he could’ve talked to grandpa more.
Charlotte: Charlotte loved grandpa’s smile, and going for rides in his green truck with him.
Noah: Noah liked making jokes and laughing with Grandpa.
Aaron: Aaron admired Grandpa’s ability to tell stories and will remember his kindness.
Olivia: Grandpa was Olivia’s favorite visitor in the NICU, always bringing his brightest smile just for her. She loved waking up to the same smile after her naps, and had a great time helping him untie his shoelaces.
Reading by Timothy Van Sickle, son:
Desiderata by Max Ehermann
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
by Max Ehrmann
A Dry Fly On Pebble Creek 