Jack Cliff Rucker, after a long fight with Alzheimer’s returned to God on November 5, 2023. He was surrounded by his loving family.
Jack was born January 12, 1944 in Red Wing, MN. He was the oldest of three to Quentin and Doris (Crow) Rucker. He grew up on the Oronoco family farm and attended Coon Grove Country School through 8 th grade. Jack graduated from Pine Island High School in 1962. Football, FFA, and wrestling were his favorite school activities. At 17, Jack started driving truck for his grandfather, hauling livestock to South St Paul. While in high school, he went on his first date with Gail because of a dare from his football teammates. The dare paid off, and he married the love of his life, Gail Gustine, on September 29, 1963. They have two children: Cindy (Brian) Luhman and Ron (Karen) Peterson-Rucker. Jack and Gail are blessed with six grandchildren: Brandon (Tina) Rucker, Kamyn (Cody) PR-Nielsen, Keanan Peterson-Rucker, Mackenzie Luhman, Kaedyn Peterson-Rucker, Alyssa Luhman and 3 great grandchildren: Riley, Rhys, and Ayda Rucker. A fourth great grandchild is due March 2024.
Following high school graduation, Jack took over his grandfather’s trucking and added livestock feed to his business. In 1972, he became an over-the-road truck driver for Midwest Specialized Transportation until 1992. During that time, he put one million miles on just one truck. Jack then became a dispatcher at Midwest for another 8 years. After leaving Midwest, he bought his own dump truck and started Rucker Trucking and worked on the Highway 52 project. He retired in 2010 and recorded a total of over 4.5 million trucking miles.
Upon retiring, Jack enjoyed helping his brother and nephew on the farm with the spring and fall crops. Jack and Gail also enjoyed traveling in their camper. They took advantage of the Arizona weather and enjoyed spending winters there. Gatherings of family and friends was what made Jack the happiest. He is survived by his wife, Gail, his children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, sister Janet Hague, brother Jim (Jeanie) Rucker, and nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be Saturday, December 2, 2023 at the Presbyterian Church of Oronoco from 10:00-11:00 am. Funeral will be held at 11:00 am followed by a Celebration of Life from 12:00-2:00pm at the Oronoco Community Center.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Presbyterian Church of Oronoco or the Alzheimer’s Association of Rochester.
