Artie Ripkowski

Arthur “Artie” Herman Ripkowski passed away on July 7, 2022 in Katy, Texas after a six-month long illness at the age of 65.  

He was preceded in death by his father, Herman Edward Ripkowski. He is survived by his beloved mother, Mary Jane Hartel Ripkowski of Liberty; daughter, Heather Rawls and her husband Cory of Baytown; son, Brad Ripkowski and fiancée Andrea Buchhold of Houston; brother, David Ripkowski and his wife Natalie of Dayton; two sisters, JoBeth Maxwell and her husband Steve of Park City, UT, and Amy Boles and her husband Russell of Liberty; two granddaughters, Danilynn (DJ) and Lainey Rawls; and several nieces, nephews and many very close cousins.

Artie was born in Liberty, Texas on January 10, 1957. He graduated from Liberty High School in 1975 where he served as student body vice president his entire 4 years and he made many lifelong friends. Artie attended Sam Houston State University and transferred to The University of Texas at Austin and graduated with an Advertising Degree in 1978.  

Artie loved The University of Texas Longhorns and was a passionate and lifelong fan. He embodied the expression that he bled “burnt orange”. His ringtone on his phone played the Texas Fight song and he could talk Texas football for hours on end.

Artie was a lifelong collector. His early collections included an extensive bug collection where he won numerous Science Fair Awards, a comic book collection and baseball cards.  However, the collection that stayed with him for his lifetime and brought him much joy was his love of coin collecting. 

Artie spent most of his adult years in “Beautiful Baytown, Texas” as he called it. He loved where he lived. Artie thoroughly enjoyed attending concerts and watching sporting events. He was an avid Houston Astros fan.

More than anything, Artie loved spending time with his extended family.  There were so many family gatherings for holidays and special occasions.  A family tradition that Artie always organized was the group “Hook ’em Horns” photo. He left us with many memories to cherish and smile about for many years to come.

Artie was known to his family and friends for his infectious smile and positively kind spirit.  One of his favorite sayings was “Keep Smilin’”.

A visitation will be held Wednesday, July 13 at Allison Funeral Service Chapel, 1101 N. Travis St., Liberty from 6-8 pm.

Funeral services will be on Thursday, July 14 at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, 411 Milam St., Liberty at 10am. Burial will follow in the Catholic Cemetery, Liberty.

Pallbearers will be lifelong friends Robert Ward, Michael Odum, Dean Hendrix, Arthur Locke, Jay Arnold, and Rick Detwiler.

Honorary pallbearers are Alan Boles, Justin Boles, Austin Shealy, Joey Root, and Jay Root.

Please feel free to wear Texas Longhorns burnt orange or Houston Astros attire in his honor.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation at www.jdrf.org/memorial.

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