July 22, 1958 - Mar. 8, 2010SOUTH BEND - Richard Allen Gaska, 51, of South Bend, died at 12:59 a.m. Monday, March 8, 2010, at Memorial Hospital following a fire in the apartment where he lived. He was born July 22, 1958, in South Bend to the late Joan Rae (Larimer) and John L. Gaska and was a lifetime area resident. He was also preceded in death by a son, Richard A. Gaska, Jr. and his grandparents, Zigmont and Mae Gaska and Ray and Helen Larimer. He is survived by his children, Helen M. Gaska and Maurice D. Gaska both of South Bend, Jennifer Gaska of Florida, April Kyle of Elkhart; a stepdaughter, Rose Auge (Alan) of Rolling Prairie; 11 grandchildren; three sisters, Juliann Unruh (Michael) of LaPaz, Jill Ballard (James) of Havelock, NC, and Jerry Gaska-Straub (Michael) of Lafayette, IN; two brothers, James Gaska (Deatra) of Mishawaka and J.C. Gaska of South Bend; his long time companion, Bev Darling of South Bend; stepfather, Albert Ewald of South Bend; and stepmother Leslie Gaska of Minnesota. Rick was a faithful member of First United Methodist Church where he helped in the soup kitchen and food pantry. He loved Classic Rock and attending concerts, especially with his children. He also was a very good cook and enjoyed tinkering with things and was an accomplished fixer-upper. A memorial celebration of Rick's life will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 14 in First United Methodist Church, 333 N. Main St., South Bend, with Rev. Mary Hubbard officiating. Cremation will take place at Welsheimer Crematory. The family will greet friends in the church on Sunday one hour prior to the service. Family and friends may leave e-mail condolences at www.welsheimer.com. Memorial contributions may be made to the Welsheimer Funeral Home to help defray final expenses.