PAUL OCKO

1933-1997

Paul Ocko’s parents were immigrants who came from Europe. They came into the U.S. in Pennsylvania and from there they went to Lennon, Michigan, where Paul Ocko and his two sisters were born. Back then babies were born at home. He was born on Tuesday, May 30, 1933. When he started school he couldn’t speak any English, as the only language at home was Slovoke. His first year of school was very hard. Paul’s family then moved to Maple Grove, Michigan, where he went to New Lothrope School in 1944. Next they moved to Flushing, Michigan, where he went to a country school from grades one to twelve. He used to have to flip the fire at home before going to school. Paul only went to the tenth grade.

His classes were farming, English, reading, spelling, and science. His favorite class was farming. Because he had so many chores at home, he didn’t have time to get into any trouble. When Paul went to school, his attire was a pair of knickers with long socks to the knee. He used to have to walk to school a mile everyday one way, because there wasn’t any school buses then. He had to do chores on the farm, morning and night. He had a big black and white dog named Butchy, a black dog called Fritz, and a black and white holstein calf that he got from a farmer for helping him.

He had a job at a filling station in Flushing where he was a mechanic and pumped gas. Then in 1950 he met his wife to be. They married on February 13, 1954.

Paul then worked for General Motors in Flint, Michigan, the graveyard shift. One night there was a really bad tornado in Flint which took a mile wide destruction path killing hundreds of people. As Paul was going to work, they stopped him and took his truck and used it to put bodies and body parts in. He said he had never felt so sick in his life.

Paul Ocko had seven children, Mary Ocko born in 1954, Richard Ocko born in 1955, Sharon [Ocko] Pattison born in 1956, Thomas Ocko born in 1958, Michael Ocko born in 1959, James Ocko born in 1961, and Susanne Ocko born in 1962. In 1972 the Doctors told Paul he had to move to Arizona or the U.P. At that time he had a lot of braces on, like a brace over his left leg and a back brace, plus he used a cane when he walked which he used for the rest of his life. All these handicaps were caused when he was working in petroleum and they left him unable to work.

He moved his family to the U.P., Engadine to be exact. He moved up here on February 6, 1973, to what was known as the old Clark place. They went to the Catholic Church in Engadine. Paul and his family worked for the D.N.R., putting wood in parks for people to use, and he worked at the Engadine Consolidated School as a custodian for a while.

Then in 1980 he ran the gas station in Engadine known today as Danny’s Auto Value. But in 1984 he had a heart attack and had to sell out. After that all he could do was drive tractors for his sons, planting corn, wheat, oats, and hay. Then in 1986 he wasn’t even able to drive a tractor, so he taught himself how to use the computer. He loved the computer very much.

Paul had eight grandchildren. They were Danny Taylor born in 1974, Sandra [Ocko] Willison born in 1974, Michele [Ocko] Bigelow born in 1977, Lisa Ocko born in 1979, Andrew Ocko born in 1982, Adrianne Pattison born in 1982, Christine Ocko born in 1986, and Matthew Ocko born in 1989. He had one great grandchild, Cord Willison, born in 1994. Since his death there was another great grandchild born, Cheyenne Bigelow, in 1999. Paul really loved his grandchildren.

Paul Ocko went to have cateracks taken off his eye and never came out alive. He died November 6, 1997. He is buried in the Engadine Cemetary.

Matthew Ocko

Fifth Grade

Engadine Elementary

Thank you to my Grandma [Joan Ocko] for sharing information about my grandpa (Paul Ocko.)