Clifford Buchta

Nick Buchta, of Eagle River, Alaska, died Friday, December 9, 2022, at the Kansas City Hospice Care

facility in Kansas City, Missouri. He was 77. Nick was born on March 5, 1945, in Spooner

Wisconsin to John Carl and Marietta May (Wade) Buchta.

Nick attended school in Spooner, Wisconsin and moved to Anchorage, Alaska with his brother Bob Buchta and his family in 1957. He joined the service in 1964 and was stationed Germany.  Later, he joined the Alaska National Guard.  Nick was an Army cook and retired after 20+ years of service in the Army.  Nicks also worked on Elmondorf Airforce base first as a meat cutter at the commissary and then as a cook at the Airforce dining hall where Nick helped trained the airman on how to prepare meals.  Nick retired after 30 years of service as a civil service employee of the Airforce.

Nick was married to Alda Buchta, and they had 2 children, Mark and Tammy.  Nick has 2 grandchildren, Olivia and Jacob and a grand dog, Asher.

Nick loved Alaska and all the excitement that comes with living in the “Land of the Midnight Sun”.  Nick loved to go camping in one of his many motorhomes that he owned over the years.  Camping was a family bonding time that he valued and would always invite other family members to join. Camping destinations around Anchorage were always exciting and we never knew which direction we were going till he got home from work.  Might go north to Enchanted Forest or South to Seward or Kenai.  Nick never let the weather be an excuse not to go camping.  Snow…. Rain…. Didn’t matter it was always time to go camping.

Along with camping Nick loved to drive his 6-wheelers that he had for numerous years. He had a Max 6-wheeler and a Hustler 6-wheeler.  He eventually purchased 3 wheelers and 4 wheelers for his family to ride and have endless fun.

You can’t forget all the fun we had in the winter riding snowmachines. Most fun of all was being pulled by the snowmachines on sleds.  Nick enjoyed taking family and friends on Fort Richardson to go sledding.  We never had to walk far because Nick would pick up all the sledders with his truck, drive us to the top of the road or hill and pick us up at the bottom.

Nick was an active member of the Eagle River, Ak VFW Men’s Auxiliary Post 9785 where he helped with the Friday night steak dinner.  Nick and his brother Glenn also helped prepare the wild game stew for the Iditarod Sled dog race that would stop at the first checkpoint which happened to be the Eagle River VFW.  They served hundreds of people including the mushers competing in the Iditarod.

He was an active member of his church in Eagle River, Alaska, as well as, the American Legion Post 33

Nick is survived by his former wife, Alda, his children, Mark (Carrie) Buchta of Overland Park,

Kansas and Tammy Buchta of Anchorage Alaska; grandchildren, Olivia and Jacob of Overland

Park, Kansas; brothers and sisters, John Lynn (Sandy) Buchta of Salem, Oregon, Glen Buchta of

Anchorage, Alaska, Estie Murphy of Duluth, Minnesota, Marie Buchta of Traverse City,

Michigan and many nieces and nephews and many great nieces and great nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, one sister, Betty Rose McCulloch, and one brother, Bob Buchta. Memorial services will be at 11 AM Saturday, April 29, 2023, at the Spooner United Methodist Church in Spooner, Wisconsin

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