<VV> Passing of Ralph Staske of IL

[Dale Dewald]

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Hello All,

It is with sadness that I must report that a long time Corvair enthusiast
from central IL and good friend of mine, Ralph Staske, has passed
away. You may check out his obituary at this link:

http://www.owensfuneralhomes.com/index.cfm

I first met Ralph in the fall of 1983 when I was a new graduate student at
the University of Illinois-UC. One afternoon I was driving my '66
Corsa along University Ave and spied a LM coupe parked in front of a
nondescript warehouse in the older business district of downtown
Champaign. The overhead door was open and I found Ralph finishing the
installation of a turbo carburetor he had rebuilt for the '65 Corsa of a
university professor. I spent the whole rest of the day there as he showed
me his many Corvair projects and his boat, a 37' wooden Owens cruiser
which had a Ford 6-cylinder engine also using the Carter YH.

Ralph has to be the absolute nicest person I have ever known. He was
constantly fixing his children's and other peoples cars and helping others
so much that he was rarely able to finish many of his own personal
projects. He gave me plenty of good tips and advice for keeping my
Corvairs running, but encouraged me to do as much my own work as
possible. He kept an extensive stash of Corvair parts; mostly LM and FC as
they were his favorites. The least I could do was help him with repairs on
his "workshop." He was eternally grateful for me scrounging up a used
3-phase motor to power an old trailer-mounted air compressor and thereby
set up a shop air system.

I understand that Ralph got into Corvairs in the early '60's when he began
using Corvans and Greenbriers for his wholesale foods distribution
business. He found it more economical to do the maintenance and repairs
himself after becoming dissatisfied with service from the local
dealers. This vocation of necessity then evolved into an extensive
hobby. I know he attended the '79 Convention in Detroit and perhaps some
others. He was a member of the PCCA for many years. In 1999 he arranged
to fly up here to the Upper Peninsula, and rode with us in our '64 GB to
attend the Detroit Homecoming. We have had the opportunity to visit him on
a couple of occasions when returning from CORSA Conventions the past
several years. Sadly, we were not able to drop in upon our return from
Jacksonville.

The world has lost one fine, selfless individual and Corvair enthusiast.

Dale Dewald
Hancock, MI