Roger Gene Belohlavy was born July 15, 1949 at St. Elizabeth's hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska to Joseph F. Belohlavy and Evelyn (Karl) Belohlavy. Roger grew up on a farm on Turkey Creek near Pleasant Hill, Nebraska and attended Pleasant Hill Elementary School.

His youth was spent fishing, hunting, and trapping. At an early age, he decided that someday he wanted to buy furs from hunters and trappers. Roger's cousin Dennis Belohlavy spent much time at the farm and the two grew up together like "brothers". Sunday dinners at the farm always included an overflowing table of Uncles and Aunts speaking Czech.

Roger learned to pick corn by hand and watched his Dad farm with horses until replaced by tractors. When Roger attended Wilber High School he was an active member of FFA (Future Farmers of America) graduating in 1967. It was at this time, he convinced his Dad to start flood irrigating.

Majoring in Animal Science at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, Roger graduated at the top of his class in 1971. Roger participated in the Meats Judging Team. He developed many longtime friendships and was given the nickname Igor. He received his Master's in Meat Science in 1975 and participated in the research that led to the development of the McDonald's "McRib".

On February 8, 1975, Roger married Janice Kay Rasmussen. The couple made their home in the Westwood residential development in Crete where Roger served as Chairman of the SID (Sanitary Improvement District) before being annexed to the city of Crete. To this union were born two daughters, Cindy and Amanda.

Roger had a strong entrepreneurial spirit and decided to fulfill his childhood dream of buying furs. Roger worked at Alpo Pet Foods in Crete for 17 years and then turned his attention entirely to his small business, Turkey Creek Furs. In 1987, he and his wife Janice purchased a store front property on the west edge of Crete. In addition to buying furs, Roger bought deer hide and had one year where he bought nearly 30,000 hides. His small business sold livestock feed, cellular phones, hunting and trapping supplies as well as bait and tackle. The business also included a U-haul dealership and a recycling center for aluminum cans and batteries as well as manufacturing and distributing Bowker's Catfish Bait. Roger later became a licensed real estate broker, operating Turkey Creek Realty with his wife. In 2014, he sold his business and moved Turkey Creek Realty to a location on Main Street in Crete.

As an entrepreneur, Roger based his business ethics on honesty and keeping his word. He believed in working hard and that his word is his bond.

Roger and Janice loved to travel and joined the Doane tour to the Czech Republic in 2012. In 2014, Roger and Janice took a train trip across Europe visiting their ancestral homes and meeting many relatives. They celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in Hawaii and returned in 2017 to celebrate Roger's recovery and remission from leukemia. Roger loved spending time with family and friends and making many trips to visit Cindy in Florida with Janice. He enjoyed camping, fishing, and deer hunting at the farm he grew up on. He was very proud of the fact that the farm had been in his family for over 100 years. He especially enjoyed spending time there with his daughters and watching his grandchildren catch fish.

Roger was at his realty office on August 19, 2015 when he suddenly lost his eyesight and was diagnosed with ALL Leukemia later that day. His eyesight gradually returned and he eventually had a bone marrow transplant which failed. He entered a clinical CAR T-cell trial which resulted in neurotoxicity. After spending a week on life support in July of 2016 and another week non-responsive, the cutting edge CAR T-cell clinical trial brought remission until Thanksgiving weekend of 2017.

Roger watched the new Buffet Cancer Hospital being built from his hospital room at UNMC and served as a Patient Ambassador at its opening. Throughout this battle Roger and Janice received exceptional support from their friends Dave and Sylvia Tyser who were with the family in every stage of the illness.

It was during his hospitalization for his second bone marrow transplant that Roger lost his battle with leukemia on June 15, 2018.

Roger is survived by his wife Janice (Rasmussen) Belohlavy, daughters Cindy Belohlavy of Windermere, Florida, Amanda (Belohlavy) Karr and son-in-law Jeremy Karr of Lincoln. Three grandchildren Emmett, Kaylynn, and Hazel Karr, sisters-in-law Ruth McMaster of Nebraska City and Nina Kavich of Fremont, nephews Paul Kavich of Denver, Scott (Shu) McMaster, and Brian (Vicki) McMaster for Seattle, cousins and friends. Roger was proceeded in death by his parents and brother-in-law David (Skip) McMaster.

Services will be held at Grace United Methodist Church in Crete on Thursday June 21, 2018 at 10:00 am with Dr. Reynolds officiating. Pallbearers are Paul Kavich, Al Hynek, Lynn Schleuter, Dale Hauserman, Lyle Hayek, Bob Krull, and Gene Kyhn. Visitation will be on Wednesday from 5:30 – 7:30 at Kuncl Funeral Home in Crete. Burial at Wilber Czech Cemetery in Wilber, Nebraska. Memorials to the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, Crete Area Medical Center, and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Kuncl Funeral Home in Crete is in charge of arrangements.