Roger Deppe, who Indianapolis Motor Speedway President and COO Joie Chitwood described as a true part of what the Speedway is all about, died July 14 while driving to his vacation home in Minnesota. Deppe worked over a half-century at the Speedway handling credentials and later other assignments and was one of the last employees dating back to the 1950s. His final race was the United States Grand Prix on June 19. Deppe was 83. Ive known him since 1996 when I came up here, Chitwood said. I would go to lunch with he and Robert McInteer (then Speedway safety director). At the lunches, he and McInteer would just go at each other, and I would just laugh. I think about the people who have been around the Speedway forever. Roger fit into that mode. He would be here whether he needed to be or not. Thats how much he loved the Speedway. Deppe and his wife, Bea, were making their annual summer trek back to his native Minnesota when he suffered an apparent heart attack on the highway in Wisconsin. His wife was not injured. Deppe came to Indianapolis in 1952 as an engineer with Eli Lilly & Co. He worked with Lilly until his retirement in 1985. His involvement included construction of buildings in Greenfield, Ind., when the pharmaceutical firm expanded its facilities. He joined the Speedway in the mid-1950s as a part-time assistant to public relations director Al Bloemker handling media credential requests. Deppe still was doing media credentials when Gloria Novotney took over credential distribution in 1988. In later years, Deppe was in charge of the pit timing crew for races at IMS. Deppe maintained a desk in the Hall of Fame Museum following his retirement from Lilly and was a familiar figure to most of the Speedway employees and veteran media representatives. At the United States Grand Prix, Deppe helped feed information to foreign radio broadcasters. Hailing from Minnesota, Deppe held a deep passion for hockey and developed one for auto racing. Deppe was a Navy flier during World War II. He also was a life member of the 500 Oldtimers Club. Survivors include his wife and sons, David and Paul. Services are pending.(more at the IMS site)(7-15-2005)
