Chet & Karla Roshetko

Hometown: Cleveland & Toledo, OH
Place of Residence: South Hill
Occupation: Retired Air Force Commander, homeschoolers and professional volunteers

Spokane was just another stop in a 30-year tour of duty for the Roshetko family – until it came time to leave.

In their Air Force career, Chet and Karla Roshetko lived in 20 homes in 27 years, all over the U.S. and Germany. In each new city they talked about what they liked and what they were looking for long-term, trying to figure out where they’d want to retire. In July 2010, they moved here with their four children and, according to Chet, “Spokane happened and everything changed.”

Colonel Roshetko was Commander of the 92nd Medical Group at Fairchild Air Force Base for three years. He was struck by the warm welcome. “We’ve lived in other patriotic cities, but the love for the military here is unmatched. The over-the-top kindness and respect for those in uniform and their families is an eye-watering experience.”

As they rounded out their second year at Fairchild the Roshetkos really started thinking about staying. They asked for input from those who would know best about real life in Spokane – the people who live and work here.

“We asked a lot of questions and were amazed at how helpful everyone was. When our orders came to move, within 30 minutes we decided to retire from the Air Force and stay. Just 120 days later we were beginning our new life as citizens of Spokane.”

“We’ve traveled all over the world, but found our home in Spokane,” said Chet. “This is the only place I know where you can ski on a mountain, canoe on a river, hike in a forest, milk a cow and go to the symphony all in the same day, and all within a 45-minute drive.”

Karla loves the seasons and the feeling that Spokane is a small city with big city amenities. “There are theaters, sports teams and organizations. Outdoors there’s the river and skiing, and Green Bluff with cherries, apples and pumpkins.”

Speaking of food, if you need restaurant recommendations, ask the Roshetkos. They have a lot of local favorites. “Chaps for breakfast, Gordy’s for Chinese, South Perry Pizza, Churchill’s for steaks, Azar’s for Greek…”

Each year the Roshetkos look forward to events that are unique to Spokane, like Hoopfest and Bloomsday, and they actively support the Lilac Festival. Chet teaches classes at Whitworth University, and he and Karla volunteer and are active in their church. They have annual ski passes and a long Spokane bucket list they plan to complete – something Chet says they were never able to do before because they moved so frequently.

When asked what he would tell someone else considering moving to Spokane, without missing a beat Chet replied, “Hurry.”