August (Gus) Frederick Rankey of Grafton passed away on the evening of Wednesday, March 20, 2019 at the age of 78, surrounded by his family. He was born to August and Florence (nee Smith) Rankey in Milwaukee, WI on June 7, 1940. He married Darlene Ann Cera on April 4, 1964. When he married Darlene, her family became his. Together, Gus and Darlene had four children. Gus worked hard, loved life and people, and was always on the go. Gus was employed at American Motors as a tool and dye maker and later as a Process Engineer. He also worked at Bolen's and Trak in Port Washington as a maintenance and building supervisor. His first priority was to be a loving husband and raise responsible and respectful children. He showed his children how proud he was of them as adults by saying often, "Mom and I sure did good!" The career path he took the most pride in was being a Charter Boat Captain in Port Washington. He was the owner of Fishing Pox Charters for over 30 years. It was his dream job; he could be out on Lake Michigan fishing, while meeting new people. Many of those people became lifelong friends. He was generous with his knowledge, always willing to teach fishing strategies and also prepped other fishermen to pass their Captain's licensure. Gus also owned "Gus's RV Camping", a camp ground in Port Washington. It was another opportunity to meet friends. He enjoyed putting on fish boils there or at "the shack" on the West slip where his 3 boats were moored. Outside of work, Gus lived a rich life. He enjoyed all sports and watching his children and grandchildren participate in them. Many years of family Christmas parties were held at his home. His favorite pastime was hunting and fishing. He owned land in Northern Wisconsin. He enjoyed spending time there, and at the cabins, fishing, and hunting deer, bear and grouse. Gus took yearly fall hunting trips where he would travel to Wyoming or Montana and hunt antelope, mule deer, and white tail deer. He would travel to Iowa and South Dakota with many of his beloved friends and Labrador retrievers chasing pheasants, as well as goose hunting at Horicon and Grafton, with his dogs at his side. In springtime, he was either hunting turkeys in Muscoda, or fishing for walleyes on the Mississippi River near Trempealeau. Gus went on the trip of a lifetime, going fishing for Billfish in Costa Rica. He spent winters ice fishing all over Wisconsin. He enjoyed having extended family and friends out to the house for parties. Gus worked extremely hard, and played even harder. He lived his life to the fullest without regrets. Gus is survived by his loving wife of 55 years, Darlene (nee Cera), his children: Sara (Steve) Lubner, Sherri (Steve) Kultgen, Lori (Eric) Swanlund, Mike (Renata) Rankey, his grandchildren: Carly and Faith Lubner, Megan (nee Kultgen; Dan) Flieschman, Lauren (Michael Foley) Kultgen, Ben (Meghan Learned) Kultgen, Courtney, Tyler, Scott and Sophie Swanlund, Kristina Rankey, and his great grandchildren: Gus, Remira and Simon Fleischman. Further survived by his in laws: Paul (Bonnie) Cera, Larry (Carol) Cera, Shawn Cera, Jim (Chris) Cera, Mary (Jim) Pokrop, many loving nieces and nephews, and family friend, Richard Mielke. Gus is preceded in death by August and Florence (nee Smith) Rankey. He was also preceded in death by his in laws, Lawrence and Caroline (Harner) Cera, and his brother in law and good friend, Don Cera. On Saturday, April 6th, 2019 a Visitation will be held at St. Joseph's Parish (1619 Washington St. Grafton, WI 53024) from 11am-1pm followed by a Memorial Mass. In lieu of flowers, memorials are encouraged to St. Joseph Parish, Grafton, WI. The Eernisse Funeral Home of Port Washington is assisting the family with arrangements, On-line condolences may be left at www.eernissefuneralhome.com