W.L. Roenigk co-owner remembered as humble driver and loving family man

Most people dread it, but Dave Roenigk died doing what he loved: cutting grass.

On Wednesday morning, he was mowing and waving to passing cars near the Buffalo Township headquarters of his family’s school bus company, W.L. Roenigk. He was trimming along a pond, with plans to teach his grandchildren to fish there.

That’s when a pickup veered off Ekastown Road and fatally struck the Harrison resident. He was 62.

When news of his death broke, those who knew him took to social media with an outpouring of grief. Some knew him as the waving groundskeeper, always willing to stop and say “hello.” Others knew him as the friendly bus driver in Freeport Area, Burrell and other school districts in the Alle-Kiski Valley.

Family members and coworkers — a loose distinction at W.L. Roenigk — knew him as a kindhearted, even-keeled man who would “go to bat for anybody,” as his sister Susan Roenigk put it.

Dave Roenigk grew up in the home that doubles as the company’s office in Buffalo Township with seven other siblings. His father, Bill, founded the company in 1945. When Bill died in 1991, Dave Roenigk took over the company along with his siblings and mother, Jeanne, who also likes to cut grass, even at 92 years old.

After graduating from Freeport Area High School in 1979, he joined the family business. He did it all, over the years, driving buses and keeping the grounds, but also getting behind the wheel for the company’s excavation business at times.

“The kids on the bus liked him because he let them get away with everything,” Susan Roenigk said.

Along the way, he became known for his almost-endearing habit of running late and a humble demeanor. Family members noted new employees sometimes didn’t realize he was part owner until someone told them.

Chad Palko, who manages W.L. Roenigk’s Cheswick garage, can attest to Dave Roenigk’s down-to-earth persona.

“He wasn’t the guy that would come in and be like, ‘You need to do this, you need to do that,’ ” Palko said. “He was just an unbelievable, good human being.”

Yet, in intimate settings, Dave Roenigk came alive, according to Palko. He recalled some gut-busting tales told on trips to Canada, including one where he got smart with a state trooper over seat belt laws decades ago.

Another one of Dave Roenigk’s quirks, according to those who knew him, was him penchant for remembering birthdays.

“He was always the first one to wish me a happy birthday,” said Tom McCracken, manager at the company’s Melwood garage. “I don’t think my wife even said anything to me before Dave did.”

He also made a few appearances in local newspapers over the years, including when a reporter wrote a story about the simultaneous births of two cousins at the same hospital. And, as reported by the Valley News Dispatch in 1981, he once held the unusual distinction as the world record holder for the cow chip toss. He earned his spot in the Guinness Book of World Records at the Butler County Fair.

Susan Roenigk attributes the record to his years of playing Little League baseball.

Throughout everything, W.L. Roenigk remained the center of his life. He was so intertwined with the company, in fact, that he requested his cremated remains be spread using a fly ash truck on Freeport Road. It would be a fitting tribute for a man so devoted to the family business, his siblings said.

“He was willing to do anything,” his brother Michael said.

“Not fast,” his sister Patricia Roenigk chimed in with a smile.

Dave Roenigk is survived by his two sons, Matthew and Joseph; his mother, Jeanne; wife, Michelle; four grandchildren, Lane, Blake, Grant and Willa; and his siblings Richard Keville, Barb Myers, Butch Furer and Patricia, Susan, Michael, Andrew and Nancy Roenigk.

Family and friends will be received from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday at Fox Funeral Home in Saxonburg, 410 W. Main St. Funeral services will begin at 10:30 a.m. Monday, also at Fox Funeral Home.