Jack Nowicki

It is with deepest sadness that we mourn the unexpected death on Sunday, January 22, 2023 in Austin, TX of Jack Nowicki -- cherished husband of Liz; devoted father of John, Shayna and Katie Flack (husband James) and an adoring grandfather of Chloe and James Owen Flack (JJ). Jack was born in Kalamazoo, MI, son of John Nowicki II and Katharine Simmons Nowicki, and raised in El Paso, TX. After graduating from Burges High School, Jack's path took him to California in 1967, and back to Texas where he lived the rest of his life. After graduating from UT El Paso with a degree in Philosophy in 1974, Jack worked for Child Protective Services, moving to complete his MSSW degree at UT Arlington in 1979. In addition to his beloved wife Liz and his children and grandchildren, he is survived by his brother Michael Nowicki and his family, as well as several cousins and their families in Michigan, and a large family of in-laws, including nieces and nephews in Austin, TX and London, England. He is preceded in death by his parents, as well as first wife, Susie (d. 2021), and his second wife, Carol (d. 2010) mother of John and Katie. Jack lived his life with a passion for people. He was an intuitive and compassionate friend and counselor who listened when he was needed the most. He also regaled those around him with stories and info on his multitude of interests. He was an artist who painted, sculpted, and spent hours editing photographs and drawings. He had a love for classic cars, sailing, and gardening, including nurturing plants that are older than his children. His love of live and recorded music was a joy for him, from singer/songwriter Americana to rock and roll. He had countless stories from adventures over his life in El Paso, California in 1967, to Anthony, New Mexico, through graduate school and his life in Austin, TX. Jack maintained friendships from all of these chapters of his life. He devoted May - June to volunteering weekends at the Kerrville Folk Festival, with his beloved wife Lizzie. They threw the best hatch chili roast party in Austin, TX for the past two decades. Jack lived his life passionately dedicated to his work as a proud social worker, working in public and non-profits spheres, including Children's Protective Services, Lifeworks (formerly Middle Earth), and Texas Network for Youth Services. He taught at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work for over 20 years including a course on Solution Focused Brief Therapy. He maintained a private practice over the years, provided therapy services and clinical supervision for social workers pursuing licensure as LCSWs. He will be missed by so many of his colleagues from these many settings. Jack was also a talented writer, who wrote short fiction and contributed to professional articles. He met the challenges of several health conditions over the past 25 years, and maintained blogs - Jack's Kidney Adventure and later Jack's HHT Adventure - that have followers from across the globe. A graveside service will be held on Sunday, January 29, 2023, at 10 a.m. at Eloise Woods Natural Burial Park. A live stream of the graveside service will appear on the Austin Natural Funerals Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/AustinNaturalFunerals a few minutes before 10 a.m. A Facebook account is not required to watch. If a pop-up window appears asking you to log in click "not now" and the live stream will be available for you to watch. If the "not now" button does not appear, scroll down on the page and it will come up for you to select. The family will be hosting a Celebration of Life from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. at the Nowicki home. Monday night's visit has been cancelled due to weather, and the family will now be receiving visitors on Thursday, February 2nd from 7:00 - 9:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations, for those who are able, may be made in Jack's memory to: HHT Foundation -- https://curehht.org/ Kerrville Folk Music Foundation -- https://www.kerrvillefolkfestival.org/meet-the-foundation

Jack Nowicki

July 3, 1947 - January 22, 2023