Sam Gilbert Van Sickle

Sam Gilbert Van Sickle Jr., the son of Sam G. Van Sickle and Nelle Shinn, was born in Indiana and raised amidst the corn fields of Kokomo. As a teenager, Sam took charge of his challenging childhood and broke away to forge a new beginning in the big city of Indianapolis. He attended Indiana University, took a job with Standard Oil of Indiana that would grow into a forty-plus year career, then made the best decision of his life--marrying his wife of 64 years, Martha Magdalene Foernzler, who pre-deceased him in 2013. Sam, who left this world on July 14th, 2023, at the great age of 95, is now reunited with his love Martha and undoubtedly rediscovering the smooth golf swing that earned him a reputation as a great golfer and made him a popular playing partner with friends and co-workers on many of the world’s legendary courses. Big Lefty, as he was nicknamed, always enjoyed sharing a joke or two. He never met a stranger, was always there for friends and gave 100% to the company he was dedicated to, Amoco Oil, as well as the wife and family he cherished and loved above all else. Sam’s career at Amoco was a steady rise to the top and truly a road show--the family relocated nine times, with stints in Indianapolis, Evansville, Chicago, Baltimore, Detroit--finally ending up in a bird’s eye office high above Chicago in the iconic Standard Oil building, where he was promoted to Senior Vice-President of Marketing before retiring in 1986. Thriving in the competitive world of Fortune 500 corporations, Sam has repeatedly been remembered by friends, clients, and co-workers as generous, fair, honest, loyal, and trustworthy – for being a patient teacher and a giving mentor to countless others over the decades. Sam was often honored by industry organizations and always strove to use his position to support numerous charities in Chicago and other communities. As a Hoosier native and a gasoline man, Sam naturally had a love for the Indianapolis 500 and served for several decades on USAC’s Tech Committee on race day. Later, as he rose through the ranks of Amoco Oil, he was able to merge two loves in 1969 by spearheading Amoco Oil’s sponsorship of Mario Andretti’s Indy 500-winning car. For some fifty years, Sam and the family attended the 500 in style, enjoying personal visits with the greatest drivers of the time and front row seats at the start/finish line (a tradition that lives on today through his sons and their families). But golf was truly Sam’s leisure time passion. A scratch golfer for many years, he competed and won club championships at nearly every one of his home courses and was honored to have played multiple rounds with such golfing greats as Arnold Palmer, Fuzzy Zoeller and Lee Trevino. Sam’s steady, beautifully rhythmic golf swing was his trademark and playing from the left side made his golfing style even more impressive. He loved his home course for the last 37 years, Turtle Creek Club in Tequesta, Florida, serving as club President and continuing to play daily rounds of golf deep into his eighties. He is survived by his three sons, Mark Lee Van Sickle (Holly Hyatt) of Palm City, FL, David Scott Van Sickle (Joni Matthews) of Evansville, IN and Craig William Van Sickle (Wendy Ferren) of Long Beach, CA and leaves behind five grandchildren: Jessica Van Sickle Chavez (Nick), Ryan Patrick Van Sickle (Stephanie), Aridae Van Sickle Brown (Austin), Samantha Noel Van Sickle and William Albert Van Sickle. He will also be missed by his loving companion, Patrice Millman of Tequesta, FL, his sister Clare Nash (John), half-brother David Van Sickle (Loretta), brothers-in-law William Foernzler (Linda), Don Eubank and numerous nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Salvation Army, where Sam served on the board for many years.

Sam Gilbert Van Sickle

November 13, 1927 - July 14, 2023