Joshua Allen Rickey

Joshua Allen Rickey was born on October 4, 1984, to Larry Gene and Roxanne Marie (Ella) Rickey in Watonga, Oklahoma, and passed away peacefully in a hospital in Vienna, Austria, on January 11, 2025. 

Josh attended Watonga Schools and graduated in 2003.  He then went on to attend the University of Oklahoma and spent one of those semesters at the University of Stuttgart in Germany.  In 2007 Josh received his bachelor of arts, cum laude, in history from OU, with a minor in philosophy and a minor in German. 

After working a few years in Norman and locally, he moved to Michigan and then Ohio for a  time until he was accepted into graduate school in Vienna, Austria.  He began studying there in 2012, where he soon met the love of his life, Claudia, a native Austrian.  

After their marriage in March of 2014 Josh and Claudia made their home in Vienna.  Josh loved the beauty of Austria, its rich culture, history and many museums.  While baseball was the sport Josh most loved to play, he was an avid fan of many sports, especially OU football, baseball, basketball and softball.  Josh enjoyed reading, was a huge history buff, and could beat almost anyone at trivia. 

Josh was preceded in death by his father, Larry Rickey; grandparents John and Flo Rickey, and grandfather Rodney Ella. 

Survivors include his wife, Claudia, of Vienna, Austria; his mother, Roxanne Rickey, of Watonga, OK; a brother, Tyler Rickey (Allison) and children of Arapaho, OK; grandmother Dolores Ella of Worthington, MN; a sister-in-law, Julia Aigner (Martin), and father-in-law, Gustav Pajnik, of Vienna; as well as several aunts, uncles and cousins.  Josh is also survived by his beloved four-legged companion, Ronja. 

Condolences to the family, through Wilkinson Mortuary, are welcome and appreciated. 

A celebration of life will be held at a later date by the family.