George Phillip "Phil" Janicke passed away suddenly at home on March 1, 2023, just shy of his 80th birthday. Phil was born in Minneapolis, MN to George and Irene Janicke on April 2, 1943. His father was a baker and owned a bakery in Minneapolis and Irene was a stay-at-home mother but also assisted in the bakery. In 1950 the family moved further north to the small town of Grand Rapids, MN, and George Sr. opened the Janicke Bakery. In his youth, Phil would help in the bakery making donuts early in the morning and overfilling the Bismarck donuts. He attended Grand Rapids High School, lettering in football, and graduated with honors in 1961.

As a child, he suffered an injury which was successfully treated by a family physician, prompting his dream of becoming a doctor. After high school, he entered the pre-med program at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He gained early acceptance into the U of M's medical program, also joining the medical fraternity, Phi Beta Pi.

During his college years, he met the love of his life, Carole (nee Ryan), at the Sugar Hills Ski Resort in Grand Rapids, MN. On June 8, 1968, Phil graduated from medical school and he and Carole were married that very same day. They moved immediately to Orange County, CA, where Phil started his internship at the Orange County Medical Center. He then worked in private practice and later at the Artesia Medical Clinic before deciding to escape the big city and move to Auburn for a more small-town, family-friendly environment.

In 1974, Phil became a partner in the Auburn Medical Clinic on High Street, which later became part of the Sutter Health System. He was passionate about treating families and especially loved caring for his young patients and seeing them grow up to be successful adults. Phil retired early in 1995 due to health reasons.

Throughout his life, Phil liked being physically active and took full advantage of Auburn's proximity to Tahoe and skiing. He was also an avid water skier and loved to go back to Grand Rapids, MN in the summer to the Janicke family cabin to water ski and teach his children to water ski and fish. Phil enjoyed going to the gym nearly daily to work out and socialize, relishing his friendships with his fellow gym members, often giving advice on technique and nutrition.

One of his other favorite pursuits was landscape oil painting being an early watcher of Bob Ross's shows. Phil loved to enter his paintings in the Itasca County Fair and win the blue ribbon for best landscape, which came with a $6 prize! He was particularly proud of learning how to successfully paint the snowy landscapes with birch trees that he grew up with in Minnesota and would give away his paintings to anyone who wanted one.

In retirement, Phil also acted as a docent at the Gold Country Medical History Museum in Old Town Auburn until it closed, and enjoyed giving tours explaining to guests, particularly the children, the various 19th century medical devices and artifacts, often "treating" them with the strange devices. Additionally, Phil was a lifelong DIYer, teaching himself plumbing, carpentry, electrical installation, and how to lay tile, among other skills. He put this interest to great use in retirement by doubling the size of the family cabin in MN and making it a true second home, spending the warmer months at the lake, and the winter in CA. Through each road trip back and forth across the country with Carole, they always brought a dog, sometimes two. Phil loved his rescue dogs and had a special fondness for German Shepherd Dogs and Shepherd/Husky mixes. Phil also enjoyed traveling. Some special trips were to Central and Eastern Europe, including a week in Kyiv, Ukraine in the 1990s, "cruising", particularly two Mediterranean cruises and one to Alaska.

Phil will be sorely missed by friends and family for his inquisitive mind, quirky sense of humor, caring nature, and enthusiasm for his interests and projects. Phil is survived by his wife of 54 years, Carole; daughter, Julie (Jason) Muhsmann; son Mark; sister, Judy (Kent) Macalpine; and cousins, nieces, and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, George and Irene Janicke.

A Celebration of Life reception will be held June 30, at 2:00 PM, at Timberlake Lodge, 144 SE 17th Street, Grand Rapids, MN.  In lieu of flowers, a donation could be made to Phil's favorite charity, Homes For Our Troops. ( www.hfotusa.org )