Teaching didn’t give Sixta the satisfaction he thought it would, so he volunteered for the Peace Corps where he was stationed in California, Mexico and Bogota, Colombia. That was cut short when he developed a brain tumor in late 1967. After being flown to Bethesda Naval Hospital for surgery, he struggled with the after-effects all of his life. He returned to his parents’ home delusional, skinny and unable to walk or feed himself, his siblings said. Doctors predicted he would be mentally and physically incapacitated, surviving only five or 10 years. His parents cared for him as he recovered. He took many notes to remember the routine events of each day, and he developed an exercise plan to regain his strength. A couple years later, he re-entered the work force, taking a job with the social services department of Kansas City, Robards said. He was a social worker, aiding people in cases of child or elder abuse, homelessness or mental disabilities, and he helped many in the aftermath of the Hyatt skywalks collapse in 1981. His health gradually deteriorated because of problems related to the tumor, and he spent the last several years in a nursing home. But he always smiled and thanked everyone, Robards said.
Obituary for Colombia RPCV Rudy C. Sixta Jr.
Rudy C. Sixta Jr. had a sense of humor, determination and drive
By RUSS PULLEY
The Kansas City Star
Rudy Sixta played clarinet in school and later taught himself to play banjo, guitar and trumpet.
Who: Rudy C. Sixta Jr., 62, of Kansas City
When and how he died: Feb. 28 at Blue River Rehabilitation Center after a long illness related to a brain tumor
Always helping: Sixta was born March 4, 1945, in London just before the end of World War II but was raised in Kansas City.
His father was an Army veteran; his mother, a war bride. They had a large family — four boys and five girls.
Mary Robards of Lenexa, the oldest of the nine children, said Sixta would do laundry for their mother and work in the garden for their dad. His sense of humor, determination and drive to help others was remarkable, she said.
“The world wasn’t about him; it was about what he could do to make the family happier,” Robards said.
He paid his own way to DeLaSalle High School and Rockhurst College by caddying at Blue Hills Country Club. He earned a degree in education, with a minor in French.
After college, every weekend he would come home to the neighborhood at 60th Street and Waldron Road to visit. He would take his younger brothers and sisters to Loose Park to play catch with a flying disc or play Whiffle Ball in a nearby yard.
Once he bought the whole clan kazoos to play; he would wear beanies with propellers to Sunday dinner.
“I loved that he made us all laugh,” said Suzanne Zumot of Kansas City, the youngest sister.
Multitalented, he played clarinet in the school band and later taught himself to play banjo, guitar and trumpet. Sixta took a crash course in Spanish when volunteering for the Peace Corps and later taught himself Italian, Portuguese and German.
A crisis and recovery: Teaching didn’t give Sixta the satisfaction he thought it would, so he volunteered for the Peace Corps where he was stationed in California, Mexico and Bogota, Colombia.
That was cut short when he developed a brain tumor in late 1967. After being flown to Bethesda Naval Hospital for surgery, he struggled with the after-effects all of his life.
He returned to his parents’ home delusional, skinny and unable to walk or feed himself, his siblings said. Doctors predicted he would be mentally and physically incapacitated, surviving only five or 10 years. His parents cared for him as he recovered. He took many notes to remember the routine events of each day, and he developed an exercise plan to regain his strength.
A couple years later, he re-entered the work force, taking a job with the social services department of Kansas City, Robards said. He was a social worker, aiding people in cases of child or elder abuse, homelessness or mental disabilities, and he helped many in the aftermath of the Hyatt skywalks collapse in 1981.
His health gradually deteriorated because of problems related to the tumor, and he spent the last several years in a nursing home. But he always smiled and thanked everyone, Robards said.
Generous with time and treasure: Paul Sixta, a younger brother, said that when their parents built a new home in south Kansas City, without air conditioning, Sixta announced that a visitor was coming — Ira Carlten. His parents couldn’t figure out who that would be, until finally he announced he had bought them air conditioning: Ira Carlten is an anagram for central air.
Paul Sixta said his brother took him to Kansas City Athletics games and played tennis or other racquet sports, teaching sportsmanship. “He wouldn’t overpower you; he used trash talk and finesse,” he said.
Zumot said Rudy Sixta taught her how to tell time and to ride a bike.
“He was never one to take or to ask for anything in return,” she said.
Survivors: his mother, three brothers, five sisters, their spouses and many nephews and nieces
The last word: “I’d say to him, I think you’re secretly rich,” Zumot said. “He may not have been rich materially, but he was very rich in character.”
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