Melvin J. "Mel" Repka's Obituary
Melvin J. Repka, always called “Mel” by his family and friends, of Cape Coral, Florida passed away suddenly on Thursday, August 18, 2016. He was 79 years old. Mel fought a tough battle with Congestive Heart Failure and kept beating the odds to the surprise of his family and Doctor’s. Mel survived being hit by a car twice when he was very young, having a heart attack in 1983 while vacationing in Florida, bladder cancer, Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair, and a second heart attack that landed him in the hospital for 9 days in July of this year. The strength and determination of how well he fought all life dealt to him earned him the name of “Superman” with his family. There didn’t seem to be anything that could bring him down, until his heart finally gave out on him before he was ready to say goodbye. He will be greatly missed by his family, leaving a void that will never completely be filled.Mel was born on October 19, 1936 in Donora, Pennsylvania, the proud son of Sophie (Skrabut) and Peter Ripka. He was a veteran of the United States Army, graduated from Wilmington College (in Wilmington, Ohio), with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. He went on to start his own Employment Agency called Paramount Personnel. He then started working with Adrian Construction as a superintendent and later left to pursue starting his own company with two business partners and became the Owner/Operator of Miami Valley Contractors, Inc, in Vandalia, Ohio from 1978 -1999, specializing in water and wastewater treatment plants in the Tri-State area of Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky. Mel always enjoyed gardening and working outside, as he took pride and pleasure in his home. You could always engage him in any type of conversation with politics and Wall Street being a few of his favorite topics. His vast amount of knowledge was quite impressive. There didn’t seem to be much he didn’t know; as he was always reading, researching and learning every day.He was married to and is survived by his loving wife, Phyllis (Summers) Repka, his daughter Melanie Repka DeStout, grandson Blake DeStout, and grandaughter Summer DeStout. He was the proudest father and grandfather. Also surviving is his brother Frank Ripka of Bellevue, Ohio; brother in law, Paul Summers; sister in law, Laura Summers; sister in law Audrey (Richard) Repka; nieces and nephews; Jodi (Roger) Howard, Jeff (Heather) Summers, Linda (Terry) Brake, and Royce Repka. He is preceded in death by his brother Richard Repka (2010), from Fayette City, Pennsylvania.Military Honors for Mel will be rendered by the Harney Point Post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars at 11:00 AM on Monday August 29, 2016 at 11:00 AM inside the Chapel at Fort Myers Memorial Gardens Funeral Home, 1589 Colonial Boulevard, Fort Myers, Florida 33907, (239) 936-0555. Friends will be received for a Memorial Gathering an hour preceding the Military Honors also inside the funeral home chapel beginning at 10:00 AM.To share a story, leave a tribute or offer condolences to the family, please visit Mel’s memorial webpage at www.fortmyersmemorial.com and sign his guestbook.
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