Duane Joseph Jauch

Duane Joseph Jauch passed away peacefully at home on Friday April 24, 2026. Born on April 10, 1954 Duane was the third of four sons born to Frank William Jauch and Harriett Heuer Jauch. He attended local schools in Plymouth and Sutter Creek. He was active in 4-H and FFA from the age of 10 and along with his family raised and showed milking shorthorn cattle at Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, and San Joaquin County Fairs as well as Jr Grand National Cow Palace in San Francisco and California State Fair in Sacramento. He was selected Amador County 4-H Allstar in 1970. He also showed market sheep and beef at the county fairs and earned many Grand Champion Awards. During his High School Years he worked at Fiddletown Stables and rode green broke colts. He also was a star center on the Amador High Jr Varsity and Varsity Football Teams. He along with several local youths and their parents created a Boy Scout Club in Plymouth creating the Plymouth Roping Club and built a roping arena behind what was “The Frostie” and “ Bar T Bar” at the time. They competed and hosted many timed team roping events and he continued to compete in the sport of Team Roping throughout his life.

After High School Graduation he moved to San Ardo Ca and went to work for Wes Eade driving a cattle truck and working on the 20,000 acre Eade Ranch and Feedyard. He hauled fat cattle up and down the central coast to processing plants from San Leandro to Los Angeles. He also hauled many cattle for horse show cutting events such as The Snaffle Bit Futurity in Reno, The Grand National Horse Show Cow Palace in San Francisco and The Salinas Rodeo.

In 1974 he married Cathy Gianandrea and they made their first home on the Eade Ranch in San Lucas. In a few short years they saved up and bought their own cattle truck and he hauled fat cattle as well as feeder and stocker cattle over 8 western states. He and Cathy bought their first home in King City along with adding 3 children to their family over the course of the next 20 years.

After several years in the trucking business, he sold his cattle truck and went to work for Dick Bryan and Zenkyku Cattle Company of Fat City Feedlot in Gonzales CA. He hauled Wagu Beef cattle to the San Francisco International Airport to be loaded and shipped live to Japan. In 1989 he went to work for LA Hearne Company in King City hauling bulk livestock feed to ranches on the central coast. He kept up with his love of Team Roping and competed in several events. He and his partner won The Parkfield Rodeo Team Roping during that time. To fund his team roping habit he started shoeing horses in his spare time and built up a clientele of 10 or 15 clients.

In 1995 he and his family returned to Amador County and he went to work managing Plymouth Sand and Gravel and raising Sim Angus Cattle in Amador and Sacramento County.

He showed many years at the Amador County Fair Pen Cattle competition and won several champion pen lot awards. He was a volunteer member of the JLAC committee at the Fair helping with putting on the Junior Livestock Auction. He helped his 3 children for over a decade raise and show champion market beef at the Amador County Fair. In the year 2000 all three steers of the children took the Awards of Champion and Reserves for the Market Beef Show. He was also an avid gardener and raised Italian Sweet Onions and took many awards at the county fair over the years for his onions and preserved Wax peppers.

In 2023 he had an accident at work resulting in Traumatic Brain Injury. He re-covered from 2 months in ICU Kaiser and Neuro Restorative in Granite Bay for 6 months to return home to his family and enjoy retirement and caring for his cattle herd along with his wife Cathy and his children and grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by 3 siblings and his wife Cathy and children Brett Barkell, Jenna (Erik) Heerhartz and Christopher Jauch. He is also survived by 6 grandchildren, James Jr Barkell, Samuel Barkell, Lauren Barkell, Emma Baker, Nora Baker, and Eva Jauch.

The family would like to thank Bristol Hospice of Stockton for their excellent in home care during his brief illness.

There will be a Celebration of Life at Daneri Mortuary, 415 Broadway in Jackson CA on Friday May 22, 2026 at 11:00 AM

Donations in Duane’s memory may be made to Bristol Hospice at 2800 W. March Lane, Suite 110, Stockton, CA 95219.