Andrew “Andy” Batcho, 90, died Sunday at the Mountain Laurel Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Clearfield. A resident of Goldenrod, he was born Feb. 6, 1922, in Morrisdale, one of 13 children of John and Mary (Minarich) Batcho.
Mr. Batcho was the owner and operator of Batcho Business Machines, which he started in 1951. He began business in his basement and it grew to offices in Clearfield, Philipsburg and State College. He loved working with the public and was well known in the business community.
An avid bowler, Mr. Batcho loved taking bus trips with his wife and spending time with family. He will be loved for his kindness and the generosity that he showed to many. In his earlier years, he quit school in the eighth grade to work in the coal mines to help feed his family of 15.
He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, receiving an Honorable Discharge in 1945. For his combat service in the Battle of the Bulge, he received the European African Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon with Two Bronze Battle Stars. A lifetime member of the Clearfield American Legion John Lewis Shade Post #6 and the Fraternal Order of Police Post #51, he was a past Clearfield Hospital board member. Raised in the Catholic faith, he later became a member of the West Side United Methodist Church.
He is survived by his beloved wife of 67 years, Betty Lou (Visnofsky) Batcho. Also surviving are four children, Betty Jean Gormont and her husband, Walter; Andrew Glen Batcho and his wife, Linda; Diane Kesner and her husband, Kim, all of Clearfield and Doris White and her husband, Charlie of Curwensville; and one brother, Paul of Florida. He has 10 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren who he adored.
He is preceded in death by his parents; four sisters and seven brothers; his son, Ernest Jack Batcho; one great-grandson, Damian Gormont; and a nephew, John Batcho.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Kevin A. Beardsley Funeral Home, Clearfield with the Msgr. H. Desmond McGee Jr. officiating. Interment will be in the Crown Crest Memorial Park, Hyde.
Friends will be received from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.
The family suggests that memorial contributions be sent to the Alzheimer’s Association, 1128 State St., Suite 301, Erie, PA 16501 or the Clearfield Foundation for Health – Hospice, PO Box 992, Clearfield.
The family thanks all of those who shared in his life and were there in time of need.
To sign the online guestbook, go to www.beardsleyfuneralhome.com.
