Colorado Springs woman warns travelers after Thanksgiving tragedy

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - In a heartwarming twist of fate nearly a decade ago, Patricia "Patty" Kretzmar found her soulmate in Kevin Kretzmar, thanks in large part to the love and connections of their families. Patty fondly remembers how their grandmothers, who shared a close bond, played an instrumental role in their love story.

Patty says that due to their grandmother's friendship, when Kevin's grandmother suffered an injury, Patty went to check in on her.

"I took my grandma to visit her at the bizarre same time that Kevin was visiting her as well. And so that was when we actually met...when I walked in, she looked at Kevin and said, this is the girl I wanted you to meet. So that kind of started our love story," explained Patty Kretzmar.

She says she even planned a road trip for her grandmother's 90th birthday, and Kevin jumped at the opportunity to help out.

"I figured if he's a man who's going to hang out with me and my grandma...he's the man for me," shared Kretzmar.

The two had 'Thanks Grandma,' inscribed on their wedding rings. The two Colorado natives both went to Doherty High School years apart and eventually bought Kevin's grandmother's home. When Patty's grandmother needed more support, Kevin stood by both of their sides.

"He was over there all the time here, doing all the things and helping with, anywhere from maintenance to just emotional support, having, you know, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or whatever with grandma. And he, he was just a very patient man and allowed people to do what they needed to do...to take care of anybody home, taking care of or allowing other people," recounted Patty.

Patty's grandmother passed away earlier this year.

"So because my grandmother passed away last January, my cousin and I and Kevin decided to take a cruise to Belize," said Patty.

She said it was a way to get away from home for the first holiday since her grandmother passed. The cruise went to many stops, but everything stopped in Cozumel for Patty.

Patty and Kevin went to the beach on Thanksgiving to enjoy the ocean and go for a swim.

"Kevin had talked about body surfing, and he was telling me about how to do it. And so we went out into the water and the waves are coming in," recounted Patty.

She says that although they were in shallow waters, they both got pulled into the ocean by a strong rip current. The couple had even asked lifeguards where a safe area to swim would be.

"As I was swimming and then turning to catch the waves to come in all the sudden I was pulled way far out away from the beach. It was like an all-of-a-sudden thing. And I was swimming really, really hard," said Patty.

Her cousin on the shore said he saw them swimming, enjoying the water, turned and picked up a few shells, and when he looked back, he saw Patty yelling and lifeguards rushing into the water.

"I was raising my hand, yelling help! And the waves kept coming in like a crashing on top of my head and...pushing me down. And then I would try to come back up and... try to breathe and...yell again. My muscles stopped working. My whole body would not. I couldn't function. And I was being pulled, pushed down, pulled under. And I felt Kevin close to me," recounted Patty.

She says she thinks Kevin was trying to save her life as she was drowning. Patty says lifeguards came to rescue them, but she was the only one who made it back to shore alive; tragically, her husband died.

"He was a very, very physically fit, strong man. At least on the outside. He had had five back surgeries, and he had had prostate cancer and was having treatment for that," said Patty.

Patty hopes other families on vacation will wear life vests even if it doesn't seem necessary. Patty's cousin, Mike Dooley, also explained how it's essential to be cautious of microbursts and other wind events that can happen in Colorado.

The family says Kevin did not have life insurance due to his prostate cancer diagnosis. Now they are faced with unexpected funeral costs. If you would like to support the family during their time of grief, you can do so here.

"Anything that was a new experience, he wanted to try. But...with that being said, all of the...things that could have led to bad outcomes, this was not one of the high-risk things that we would have expected there to be anything that could have at all possibly gone wrong. Everything was beautiful and perfect until it wasn't," explained Patty.

The couple is also part of the Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA) Pikes Peak Chapter. Their mission is to empower abused children not to be afraid in the world in which they live.

Each member of BACA gets a rider name; Kevin's moniker is Heisenberg.

"Heisenberg, he was one of those rare individuals who really meant what he said. If he said, if you need something, just let me know. He meant it. He sat in the waiting room of a hospital with me. We're waiting to find out what's going on with my wife. He's been there for every member of this chapter, in some way or another. If a bike breaks down, he's like, bring it over. I'll see what I can do. And oh, by the way, here, take my bike in the meantime. He literally would give you the shirt off his back," shared fellow BACA member Mohawk.

Fellow rider Munk said Kevin was a good man. The entire BACA chapter could not share enough positive memories with Kevin. They say he was a true leader in his role as Road Captain. He would plan all the rides and routes and help organize the ride with the kids they had been there for in court.

One fellow BACA member, Pony Boy, made a video in Kevin's honor, which can be watched below.

"We both are primaries for children and are able...to do that and allow kids not to be afraid. And so Kevin would go to court with kids, and we wrap around those children so that they don't have to face the perpetrators alone. And that's the, the, the beauty of Kevin being able to be a part of a bigger whole," said Patty.

Patty says Kevin was a safe space for so many people. She says he would listen and not judge.

"I think what made Kevin one of the most important, amazing people that was put on this planet, by God, is his passion for relationships and building relationships with people. He listened intently. He knew the person, the person's heart and the found the best in everybody...and brought it out. He also was very patient and didn't ever take anything personally," shared Patty.

Not only did Kevin support children in BACA, but he was also a part of AA. In local groups, Kevin sponsored numerous people in his 17 years of sobriety. Patty says that years ago, Kevin even brought AA meetings to different prisons.

"Kevin spent some time in jail. He was on a work release program. When you know, he ended up. He would say...that's what saved his life is being locked up...having to, physically and emotionally get away from the alcohol and to have time to...focus in on what was important and what was important to him was getting his daughter back," said Patty.

Kevin Kretzmar is survived by his daughter, Blake Kretzmar.

"Kevin wanted to be the best, absolute best dad that he possibly could. And he was a single dad for a really long time, making lots of sacrifices and being able to be that person. Blake was the light of his life. He just beamed when he was talking about her, how proud he was of her, how, how passionate she is for all the things that she's done in her life," shared Patty.

Blake says that she was a daddy's girl from a young age. She says all of her family's earliest memories of her are of her hiding behind her father's leg.

"He was a single dad, and I know that was really hard for him. And he had to make a lot of sacrifices for that, but he never showed it to me. He was an amazing dad," said Blake.

She said even though her upbringing with her father was at times unusual, she always knew he had the best intentions at heart.

"I remember being in high school, and more often than not, there was some guy that he knew from AA who was trying to get sober, sleeping on our couch, you know, so walking downstairs to find that was always interesting. But...it's always nice to know that my dad was just trying to do right by other people and trying to give them the gift that he had managed to give himself, which was sobriety and a good life," shared Blake.

Blake shared fond memories of her father teaching her how to ride a motorcycle and them sharing that love together. She says when she got into the piercing industry, although Kevin had no interest in piercings, he jumped at the opportunity for her to pierce his belly button just to make her happy.

"I was loved so unconditionally by him and so profoundly. And it's just hard knowing that that's in the past now, I was so lucky to have his love like that. And I knew that no matter what I did or no matter what he did or whatever happened, that he loved me more than anything. And I feel so grateful to have had that for 25 years, but I really wish it was a lot longer," explained Kevin's daughter.

Now Blake plans to live her life in his honor, carrying on the lessons he taught her and serving others. A saying they shared is, "Is it odd or is it God?"

"Each time I would call him, having any kind of interpersonal issue, he would try and remind me to think about it from how they were thinking, you know, and that's it. People's reactions to things tend to have a lot less to do with you than they do themselves, and to just try and look at every scenario with how you can be of service and how you can help. And I think that really was kind of how he lived his life. And I'm trying to do the same thing...in his memory now," stated Blake.

Patty shared a writing that Kevin gave her.

"One of the things that he wrote for me is at different times in my life, when I was having a hard time and I have this on the window, area, and he wrote, 'Everything is working out for my highest good. And out of each experience I go through, only good will come to me. I am safe, I am protected, and I am loved. And I was reading that every morning. It's right next to my bed. I think about that every day that those are his words to me. And he wanted people to be okay."

-Patty reading Kevin's writing

She said he would remind others to pause when agitated or doubtful until they know what the next right thing to do is. Now her family and all those who knew Kevin plan to do the next right thing as Kevin would.

"One of the biggest factors in a happy life is having healthy relationships with other people and oneself. In this regard, Kevin’s contributions to BACA and AA helped - and likely saved - a countless amount of lives in the Colorado Springs area," shared Kevin's friend Will.

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