Duane Warren Kitch

DUANE WARREN KITCH

Laguna Vista, Texas

Duane Warren Kitch, 73,

of Laguna Vista, TX, passed away Saturday January 15, 2022, at Baylor All Saints Medical Center in Fort

Worth, TX.

He was born April 17, 1948, in Mt. Pleasant, IA, to Earl Kitch and Ruby Lamb Kitch. He graduated from Mt. Pleasant High School in 1967, and continued his education at Southeastern Community College in Burlington, IA.

In June 1968 he enlisted with the U.S. Army Security Agency, completing basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, MO, and advanced training as an aircraft mechanic at Fort Rucker, AL. He was quickly sent to Vietnam, where he was a member of the 146th Aviation Co. Radio Research Unit stationed at Tan Son Nhut, Cam Rahn Bay and Long Thanh North air bases. The best memory of his service was being crew chief for a V.I.P. aircraft, which included flights with General Norman Schwarzkopf. After two tours in Vietnam, he returned to Fort Hood, TX, where he was honorably discharged in 1972. Duane married Deborah Lynn Rembetsy in 1971. They divorced in 1981. After his service he returned to Mt. Pleasant where he worked as a police officer and a sheriff for Henry County in 1973. From 1974-1977 he was the automotive service department manager for Montgomery Ward in Mt. Pleasant. In 1977 he transferred to Chanute, KS to become the store manager. When Montgomery Ward closed in 1983, he began a career in the insurance claims business. He spent four years with Farm Bureau, and two decades with Farmers Casualty and State Auto. In 1989 he married Nancy Merritt. They divorced in 2003. Due to an acquisition, he moved to West Des Moines, IA in 2004. He retired from State Auto in 2010. In 2015 he moved to Laguna Vista, TX. His favorite pastime was golf. He learned to play from his father-in-law, George Rembetsy and Walter Morgan (then club pro at Fort Hood, later a PGA Champions Tour winner). Over the years he made many friends through golf, and served a term as President of the Chanute Country Club. He was an avid fan of Kansas Jayhawks basketball and the Kansas City Chiefs. He was a member of the Kansas Freemasons, American Legion, DAV, and the Southeast Asia ASA Veterans Association "Old Spooks and Spies."

Duane was preceded in death by his parents; infant brother, Paul; sister, Carol Peterson; and granddaughter, Rebecca Kitch.

Duane is survived by sons, Ted (wife, Alejandra) Kitch, Glendale Heights, IL, Trevor Kitch, Copperas Cove, TX, Trenton Kitch, Arlington, TX, and Jarrett Kitch, Fort Worth, TX; daughter, Dana (husband, Kevin) Sepulveda, Denver, CO; grandchildren, Zoe, Izabella and Austin Kitch, Glendale Heights, IL; brother, Ralph (wife, Valerie) Kitch, Cedar Rapids, IA; sisters, Linda Brock, St. Petersburg, FL, and Mary (husband, Jerry) Zerm, Fort Worth, TX; and brother-in-law, Merrill Peterson, Charlotte, NC.

Duane will be interred at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery in Adel, IA, at 2 p.m. Friday, May 6, 2022. More details to follow. Memorials are suggested to the Disabled American Veterans Charity.