Ralph Maynard Keller, 03 Jul 1928 - 31 Jan 2020

KELLER, BURKE, DOEHRMANN, WEDDE, MUNNIK, OTTMAR, BLOMME, SCHROEDER, HINRICHS

Posted By: Sarah Witte (email)
Date: 2/13/2020 at 14:01:58

Ralph M. Keller, age 91 of Williamsburg, died on Friday, January 31, 2020 at the Highland Ridge Care Center in Williamsburg.

A funeral service will be held at 10:30 AM on Tuesday, February 4 at St. James Lutheran Church in Victor with Rev. Michael Kolesar officiating. Interment will be at Victor Memorial Cemetery. A luncheon will follow at St. James Lutheran Church.

Visitation will begin at 2:00 pm on Monday, February 3 at the Smith Funeral Home in Victor and Ralph’s family will receive friends from 4:00 pm until 7:00 pm.

Memorials may be designated to the David Preuss Missionary in Honduras and the Johnson County Hospice. Memorials may be mailed in care of the Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 485, Victor, Iowa 52347. Memories and condolences may be shared with Ralph’s family online at www.smithfh.com.

Ralph Maynard Keller was born on July 3, 1928 on the family farm near Victor, Iowa to John George Keller and Clara (Burke) Keller. He was raised on the family farm and graduated from Victor High School with the class of 1946. He was baptized in 1928 and confirmed in 1942 at St. James Lutheran Church in Victor.

Ralph honorably served in the United States Army as a Private First Class during the Korean Conflict from 1951 until 1953. He was united in marriage to Elda Doehrmann on April 15, 1955 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Williamsburg to this union was blessed with five children: Deborah, Donna, Lois, Linda, and Paul. They farmed most of their married lives until 1989, when Ralph began working at Kinze Manufacturing. He also worked for Ken Blomme, Rohrer Brothers in Victor and Brooklyn Elevator.

Ralph was a lifelong member of St. James Lutheran Church in Victor and was active in the church choir, served as president and vice president of the congregation, served as financial secretary for 18 years, was a Sunday School Superintendent and was a member of the Lutheran Laymen’s League. He also served on the HLV School Board for 13 years.

Ralph’s hobbies included: attending his grandchildren’s activities, carpentry, helping fellow farmers, being the two-time champion of the Keller Christmas Pool Tournament (the latest being at age 90!), Mexican dominoes, amateur photography, attending his annual 304th Signal Battalion Reunion, singing in the church choir, and listening to music. Ralph and Elda took special pride in their annual Williamsburg Christmas display.

Ralph is survived by his wife of sixty-four years, Elda Keller of Williamsburg; five children, Deborah Wedde of Berrien Springs, Michigan, Donna Munnik of Franklin, Wisconsin, Lois (Arlen) Ottmar of Iowa City, Iowa, Linda (Dr. Bob) Blomme of Audubon, Iowa, and Paul (Terri) Keller of Center Point, Iowa; thirteen grandchildren (Steve, Matt, Courtney, Rachel, Jay, Aaron, Ally, Andrew, Sarah, Kole, Jared, Ryan, and Logan); five great grandchildren (David, Caemon, Violet, James, and Benjamin); sister, Elsie (Robert) Schroeder of Des Moines, Iowa; and his brother-in-law, Harlan Doehrmann of Williamsburg.

He was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Edgar Keller; sister, Dorothy Hinrichs; and two sons-in-law, Larry Munnik and David Wedde.

Published in The Journal Tribune on February 12, 2020, an abbreviated version published in The Gazette on February 3, 2020