RITZ, Royal D.

RITZ, FIDLER, YORK, MELBY, POWERS, SCOTT

Posted By: Lynette Edsall (email)
Date: 1/18/2008 at 14:21:41

Royal D. Ritz, 77, of Aurelia passed away Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008, at Cherokee Regional Medical Center in Cherokee, Iowa, following a brief illness.

Services will be 2 p.m. Saturday at First Congregational Church in Aurelia, with the Rev. Bruce Rapp officiating. Burial will be in Afton Township Cemetery, rural Cherokee. There will be a family prayer service at 1:45 p.m. Saturday at the church. Visitation will be 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, with the family present 6 to 8 p.m., at Boothby Funeral Home in Cherokee.

Royal was born Jan. 30, 1930, in Troy, Iowa, to Lester and Beulah Mae (Fidler) Ritz. He attended country school in Davis County and graduated from Bloomfield High School in 1948.

He was married to Emma Mae York on Dec. 14, 1948, at her parent's home in Bloomfield, Iowa. The couple had lived in Aurelia since 1982, and prior to this, in various towns including Newell, Storm Lake, Turin, Onawa, Odebolt, Ottumwa and Bloomfield, Iowa. He had worked as a carpenter and had been the manager of Green Bay Lumber in Odebolt. He owned and operated Ritz Paint and Glass for seven years. After that, he became manager for Great Plains Lumber in Odebolt. He then was transferred as a manager to Great Plains Lumber in Onawa, Iowa. He was a Farmer's home building inspector in Onawa and Storm Lake before retiring in 1992.

He was affiliated with the First Congregational Church in Aurelia. He had been a member of the Jaycees and Kiwanis. He enjoyed reading, spending time on the computer, bowling, golfing, fishing, camping, spending time with his family and especially enjoyed attending his grandchildren's events.

He is survived by his wife, Emma; three daughters, Connie Rae and her husband, Marty Melby of Lakeside, Iowa, Cathie Dee Ritz of Aurelia and Kellie Sue and her husband, Les Powers of Spencer, Iowa; seven grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; a sister and her husband, Evelyn and Dowe Scott of Drakesville, Iowa; a brother and his wife, Carl and Darlene Ritz of Bloomfield, Iowa; and several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and three brothers, Richard, Benny and Keith.