Obituary of Joseph Francis Rychnovsky

Joseph Francis Rychnovsky, 49, passed away on July 20, 2017, at his home in Toledo, Ohio, after a courageous and heroic battle with cancer. Joe was born on January 18, 1968, in Great Lakes, IL, to Francis and Joyce Rychnovsky. Joe grew up in Moberly. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a degree in broadcasting and spent his career working in both television and radio. He worked in markets in Missouri, Wisconsin, Florida, and Nebraska before going to Toledo about 17 years ago. In 1999, he started locally with WTOL-Channel 11, and a short time later debuted his “Hey Joe, Try This!” segments, which became a viewer favorite and a Sweeps Week bonus. Joe later worked for the local FOX affiliate WUPW-Channel 36 and most recently covered a wide range of assignments for BCSN. To those who knew him, Joe was much more than a broadcaster. He was one of those rare individuals who always made everyone he talked to feel like they were the most important subject on that evening’s news. His charm, that twinkle in his eye, and his engaging personality put his subjects on a pedestal. Joe could make fifth grade CYO volleyball players feel like Olympians. He had a unique story-telling skill and could make sports stories interesting for the whole audience. As he would often tell it, Joe’s life received a significant upgrade in 2005 when, on an assignment at a local golf instructional facility, he met Janet Flack, an LPGA teaching pro from Toledo. The couple married in 2006. Joe is preceded in death by his father, Francis. He is survived by his wife, Janet (Flack); mother, Joyce; sister, Mary Dianne; brother, Tom (Alisha); nephew, Jack; niece, Natalia; and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Tuesday, August 1, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Pius X Catholic Church with interment to follow at St. Mary’s Cemetery. Visitation will be held Monday, July 31, 2017 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Pathway Memorial Funeral Home. A rosary will be said at the conclusion of the visitation. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations would be appreciated to the Joe Rychnovsky Scholarship BCSN, Attn: LeAnne Markins, 2700 Oregon Road, Northwood, OH 43619, the PKD (Polycystic Kidney Disease) Foundation, P.O. Box 871847, Kansas City, MO 64187-1847 or the American Cancer Society, 2409 Hyde Park Rd, Jefferson City, MO 65109.