Arnold Joseph Uhrina, 72 of Valparaiso, passed away Saturday, July 23, 2022. He was born June 8, 1950 in Chicago, IL to the late Arnold and Mary (Lazar) Uhrina. Arnold was a graduate of St. Francis De Sales High School and was a Veteran of the U.S. Air Force. He continued his service for our country working as an intelligence analyst for the CIA, retiring on October 31, 1997. Arnold also worked at the Valparaiso Wal-Mart for 15 years retiring in 2019 and at the Hammond Technical School teaching automotive classes, retiring in June of 2022. In his free time, you could find him maintaining his yard and in-ground pool. He also enjoyed listening to the blues and was a guitar hobbyist, but most of all Arnold loved spending time with his family.
Arnold is survived by his sons, Arnie (Lara) Uhrina and Aaron Uhrina; sisters, Anne Uhrina and Mary Jane (Mark) Gloudeman; sister-in-law, Pamela Uhrina; and many nieces and nephews. He was also preceded in death by his brother, Paul Uhrina; and his loving dog, Ryno.
Visitation will be held Thursday, July 28, 2022 from 3:00-7:00 PM at Moeller Funeral Home 104 Roosevelt Rd., Valparaiso, with a Funeral Service on Friday, July 29th at 11:00 AM. Cremation will follow with a private burial of ashes. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, michaeljfox.org.
I am so sorry to hear of Arnie's death. I shared an office with him at work in the early 80s. We enjoyed talking about our new baby boys, and sometimes we talked about work. He was a great guy. Prayers for all of the family. -Glenda Funk
Big Arnie you will be very much missed. I'm sorry I didn't have a chance to get to see you before your passing. But I'm glad I was in your life for many years. May you rest in heaven. Love your sister-in-law -Nancy Doherty
We are still in shock that you aren't here anymore. We just saw each other a few days ago and spent a lot of time catching up with you. From day one you were the nicest person and we are so glad that we knew you. Sending love and prayers to your family and your wonderful sons. -Gloria and Dominic Notaro
I am grateful to have this opportunity to extend my sympathy to my sons on the passing of their father and also to all the Uhrina family on this sudden loss of Arnold. I am also grateful for my time as Arnold’s wife. He gave me two wonderful boys and was Mr. Mom to them as I pursued my own academic and professional goals while we were married. I loved being part of the Slovak heritage and customs that he and his family brought to our own family. As a young man, he had to overcome the hardship of being the child of immigrants, living in one of the poorer neighborhoods of Chicago. He was quite proud to have achieved an aeronautical engineering degree and then become an officer in the Air Force. He always reminded people “I flew a jet-fighter before I even had a driver’s license”. He was truly a self-made man. He was a person of great integrity and loved by his friends and family for his sharp wit and personality. May he be at peace in the hands of the Creator, who made him a part of our lives. -Deborah M. Uhrina
I always wanted to be more like Arnie. Great family man, always on, sharp and funny, never any idiocy. He'll be missed by me and the rest of the Carroll family. Our children grew up together & we were close enough to be one big family. When little Arnie brought Laura home for the first time I think our house was the second stop. Aaron was at my daughters wedding in Ireland. My son actually had an assignment in 8th grade to write about someone he admired. He wrote about little Arnie. There couldn't have been better neighbors, friends, and extended family than the Uhrinas. Arnie leaves a big gap in a lot of lives.
Vaya con Dios Arnie. -Bill Carroll & family
Oh my goodness. I am so so sorry to hear of Arnie’s passing, and sorry that I could not attend the wake today. May the love and grace of God carry you all through this difficult time. Much love to Annie and especially to my BFF from the old neighborhood, Mary Jane. -Beatriz Cervantes
My memories of Mr. Uhrina are from the nineties and although he could put a good scare into us occasionally, he was handling everything with care and made us laugh, too. The affection he showed for Ryno in the house, hearing him practice guitar while we were watching something like Police Academy 3, telling us to get our butts outside since it's nice. He was a memorable character from my childhood and left an impression on me and the old neighborhood, and I know he's already very missed. -Danny Carroll
