Teresa Annette (Marchek) Richcreek

Teresa Annette Richcreek, of Boise, Idaho, by way of Garden Valley and Homedale, went to be with the love of her life, Skip, on Monday, June 12, 2023, at the age of 84.  Her children and sister were with her right to the end.

Terry was born in Ontario, Oregon, on March 24, 1939, to Joseph & Ethel Marchek.  She was the oldest of three children.  She lost her brother, Philip, but loved to “mother” her baby sister, Teena, 13 years younger while they grew up in Homedale, Idaho.

Terry was a dancer at heart and performed and taught ballet, tap ballet and hula as a teen and young adult.  She was also an accomplished horsewoman (like her Mama) and competed twice in the Snake River Stampede Queen competition.  She traded all that to marry her high school sweetheart, Ralph Richcreek, at St. John’s Cathedral in Boise, ID, on August 31, 1957.  They moved to San Diego, CA, where their first daughter was born.  They moved back to Homedale and a son was born.  After moving to Boise another son and daughter rounded out the family.  Terry always said she had the perfect family – two boys and two girls – so each child had a brother and a sister.

Terry started her working career as a waitress at a lunch counter in a drugstore.  She would take her break to go pick up the kids when they got out of school and then bring them back to “hang around” until closing time.  She attended a secretarial training school in the evenings to improve her career options.  It worked and she began her career with the Federal government which lasted for the next 30 years.

Even though Terry worked hard all day, she was never too tired to attend her kids’ school events and always tried to use her precious vacation time to spend with her husband and children.  Whether that was a Disneyland trip, a camping trip in the mountains or a backpacking trip to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, she was always up for an adventure.  She was never, however, put in charge of taking pictures.

One of Terry’s favorite activities was sitting behind Skip on a motorcycle traveling through the mountains or even into Canada with friends from their motorcycle club or close friends.  And she never met a person she didn’t like!  She could strike up a conversation with a total stranger and have a new friend when she was done talking.  She loved to listen to music and, later in life, was able to enjoy dancing again with her friend, Darwin.  She was always the first to welcome a new resident to her floor at The Terraces of Boise where she lived for the last five years of her life.

Survivors include her sister, Teena Marchek; daughter Tammy (Dale) Gray, of Grand View, ID; son Dana (Linda) Richcreek, of Sarasota, FL; son Kellen (Nadine) Richcreek, of Caldwell, ID; and daughter Tenli (John) Caldwell, of Boise, ID.  She is also survived by nine grandchildren and fourteen great-grandchildren.  She was preceded in death by her brother, Philip, her parents Joe & Ethel Marchek, and her husband, Skip.

A Memorial Service is planned for Monday, August 28, 2023, at 10:30 am at Alden-Waggoner Funeral Chapel, 5400 Fairview Avenue, Boise.  Interment will be at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery with family only.  In lieu of flowers, memorials  may  be made in Terry’s name to the Alzheimer’s Association of Idaho, Ballet Idaho, or the American Cancer Society.