'A leader of leaders': Former Yuba County Sheriff Gary Tindel is remembered

Feb. 6—Former Yuba County Sheriff Gary Dennis Tindel, a beloved family man and member of the Yuba-Sutter community, passed away last week at his Yuba City home at the age of 75.

Noted by many for his dedication to the community and its people, Tindel also was a man of great faith who, according to his family, was always willing to go above and beyond to not only raise his children the right way and be a good husband, but also give back to the area he grew up in.

"He was the love of my life, my partner in life, my best friend. A wonderful father. He was a strong person and he was just very giving. He gave to the community all the time. He just loved people. He loved talking to people. For me personally, he was my person in life," Irene Tindel, who was married to Gary Tindel for 47 years, said of her late husband on Monday. "He was so giving to the community partly because of his faith. He loved to talk to people. He was so interested in other people's lives or families. He just knew families and wanted to talk to people about that."

Irene Tindel said faith was very important to her husband, who was a devout Catholic.

"He had a very strong faith and was devoted to his faith," Irene Tindel said. "... He was a strong servant to God and a strong servant to his family and community."

Gary Tindel's family said he often prayed, usually with a rosary in hand. And along with fishing, Tindel loved to get in a swimming pool as soon as the weather allowed it.

"As soon as it gets warm enough, March or April, he just loved getting in the pool," Irene Tindel said. "He'd just hang in there, in the pool, he'd pray while he was in there. He prayed with a rosary every day."

Gary Tindel was born Oct. 24, 1947, to Marvin and Antonette Tindel in Marysville. According to his family, he grew up mostly in Linda with his sister, Carolyn, and his younger brother, John. He attended Cedar Lane Elementary School and Alicia Middle School.

As a youth, he was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church.

"His early learnings of faith and service, along with his parents' love and strong moral code, set him on his path of public service from a young age," according to his family.

A 1965 graduate of Marysville High School, Tindel attended UC Davis before eventually graduating from Chico State with a degree in engineering. In 1971, Tindel was hired by the Yuba County Sheriff's Department to work at its jail. During this time, Tindel attended Butte College Police Academy and ultimately progressed in his career.

While working undercover in the narcotics unit of the Yuba County Sheriff's Department, Tindel met his wife, Irene, in 1973. Two years later, they were married.

Together, the pair have three children: Josh, Michelle, and Alicia. Each of them spoke about how much they loved their father and the impact he had on their lives.

"Early on, he was always involved, always paying attention, even though he was busy. Always involved in mine and my sister's activities," Josh Tindel said of his father. Josh Tindel now lives in Manakin-Sabot, Virginia, with his wife Jessica Tindel. "Whether it was little league, Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts, he was coaching, he was very involved. As kids, we were very unaware of how he was able to do all this stuff and work. He was always committed, always wanted to help. He was our disciplinarian as well, so we didn't want to get in trouble. He was sheriff while we were in high school. Looking back, it was probably the best thing that could happen to us. And fishing. We used to fish all the time. I realized on the boat and going fishing, it wasn't about catching fish, it was about spending time with the people we were on the boat with and the conversations we were able to have and our experiences together. That was really what life's all about, for me."

Josh Tindel said his father's faith helped the family throughout the years, especially after he passed so suddenly last week on Feb. 2.

"He wanted to give back what he didn't have in his youth. It wasn't bad. But, every generation wants to do more for their family, community and church than the prior generation. He fully leveraged any opportunity he got and didn't expect anything in return. Described as a 'gentle giant,' he hugged everybody," Josh Tindel said. "I remember Boy Scouts. ... We went out on a camping trip in the snow and he was there. We dug a shelter and then we built an igloo. He didn't care, he didn't want to sleep on the ground, but he did. I think back to a lot of those experiences early on. He was very involved after high school. People would always ask why we want to go home for the holidays (during college). Why wouldn't you want to go home? It's fun to want to see our parents, grandparents and cousins."

Gary Tindel remembered everything, his son said, and was a huge sports fan.

"He was a big 49er fan. Always on at home, all the time," Josh Tindel said. "We used to go to so many 49er games as kids. Went to Kings games and Giants and A's."

Alicia Tindel, the youngest of Gary Tindel's three children, currently lives in Yuba City. She echoed many of the same sentiments shared by her family.

"God and family were most important. Strong foundations in faith and family," Alicia Tindel said of her father. "He loved to go to Lake Tahoe and just be. We spent a lot of time in Tahoe the last five years. We've had a home away from home where we can all be together. We're all going to value those memories so much. He did so much service for the community, and now it's in our blood."

Michelle Tindel, Gary Tindel's middle child who lives in Yuba City with her husband Vish Sharma, said her father was a big talker.

"He was a very loving father and papa. And he was always such a good talker. You know if you got on the phone you were on there for 20 minutes just listening to stories," Michelle Tindel said. "... He loved to talk to our friends. Anytime we brought friends, he loved to talk to them. He was so funny. One of his favorite things to do was to interview them about who their family was. Because at some point he was going to know them from someone else."

As he continued to move through the ranks of law enforcement, Gary Tindel earned his master's degree in criminal justice from CSU Sacramento in 1980. In 1990, he was elected as the sheriff for Yuba County and served two terms.

While teaching law enforcement classes at Butte College, Tindel also was active in both the California State Sheriffs' Association and California State Coroners Association. Irene Tindel spoke about the impact her husband had on others.

"I've been getting a lot of calls and messages from law enforcement. They talked about him being a mentor. He hired a lot of law enforcement in our community," Irene Tindel said. "He was involved in the California State Coroners Association. Someone from that organization said he was an innovator, as far as trying to make sure they were current on what they needed to do to get their classes certified. They had to go through this whole big process, and he started it. They were not accredited until he and others worked to get those classes certified. He spearheaded that. He taught classes at conferences as well after he retired."

After his second term as sheriff, Gary Tindel went on to work for the Marin County Coroner as an assistant coroner. He and his wife moved to Petaluma for about 10 years while he worked in Marin County. During that time, he continued to be involved with the California State Coroners Association, including a stint as its president for four years.

After retirement in 2010, he moved back to Yuba City.

Along with his dedication to his faith, family and profession, Tindel was a proud member of the Kiwanis Club. John Cassidy, the former CEO of Sierra Central Credit Union, had known Tindel since 1985.

"For 30-plus years, he was the community icon here. He cooked thousands of meals for the needy. In the '86 and '97 flood, his work was unbelievable, what he did to make sure people got back to it. He was a leader of leaders. Just a class act. He mentored so many people here," Cassidy said of Tindel. "He was one of the most respected people in this community. A selfless human being of the utmost. Truly one of the community service icons. He was just one of those people that was there for somebody. Absolutely selfless person."

Cassidy said Tindel helped start a Marysville Kiwanis Club fundraiser called Italian Night back in 1987. Something his family remembered fondly.

"The whole Kiwanis thing was a big part of his life, and we were very involved throughout the 80s and 90s," Josh Tindel said.

In his obituary, Gary Tindel's family highlighted that he was an "active member of the Kiwanis Club for many years, helped with local little leagues, was involved in Boy Scouts, coordinated many spaghetti dinner fundraisers for so many causes, and connected with so many more people."

Tindel is survived by his wife, Irene; his son, Josh, and his family, Jessica, Addison, Emily, and Leo; his daughter, Michelle, and her family, Vish, Zachary, Luke, Kayden, and Serena; his daughter, Alicia, and her family, Amelia; his sister, Carolyn; and other members of the Chesini and Tindel families. He was preceded in death by his parents and younger brother.

There will be a private family viewing at 4 p.m. on Thursday at Ullrey Memorial Chapel, located at 817 Almond St. in Yuba City. A public viewing will follow at 5 p.m. with a rosary scheduled for 6 p.m. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday at Saint Isidore Catholic Church, located at 222 Clark Ave. in Yuba City. A graveside service at Sutter Cemetery will follow. After the graveside service, a celebration of life will be held at Peach Tree Golf & Country Club in Marysville.

Shortly after her father's death, Alicia Tindel, on behalf of the family, thanked the community for their support.

"Our family would like to express our sincere appreciation for all of the support we've been given as we grieve the loss of our dad/husband," Alicia Tindel posted on social media. "We are lovingly overwhelmed with the outpouring of support, endearing comments, and personal stories that so many people are sharing. Please be assured that we are reading all of them, even if we don't get a chance to respond. And we are particularly touched by the condolences of the law enforcement community."

Tindel's family said he went by sheriff, dad, pops, or papa and when a good song came on the radio, he usually said it was a "good tune." With a positive outlook on the world around him, his family also recalled that papa would let everyone know, "life is good."