Douglas J. Rodengen

I left a long tribute on our Facebook wall a long time ago. I guess I forgot to copy and paste it here. I can't remember what I said back then. I knew Doug about as good as anyone could have. He played everything very close to the vest. He would always ask you questions and be really curious about your life, yet often shared very little of his. However, he was a really kind and generous person! The bike shop seem to consume his life. It demanded a constant amount of time that left little time leftover. Doug owned a chrome Paramount bike, yet hardly had time to ride it. Still, he was happy and very much at ease in the bike shop that had been in the family for many years and generations. Doug had some medical issues that he was born with, that eventually showed up later in life. He had some kidney failure issues and I would often visit him during his dialysis times. He was on the transplant list for new kidneys for about five years and finally got new ones. Unfortunately, like many transplant patients the rejection medication you have to take is really hard to overcome the side effects and it made it hard to see him or even talk to him after he had his transplant. While a private person that gave up little about his life while he engaged with good conversation with you, he was a very giving person. He gave me many, many deals at his bike shop. I bought many, many bikes from him and was so appreciated at his generous nature. He often said to me "That's what friends are for!"