Ronald Dean 'Ron' Rodemeyer,, 08 Sep 1932 - 23 Apr 2020

RODEMEYER, WOLFE, BRANDT, WYANT, SLATTERY, ANDERSEN

Posted By: Sarah Witte (email)
Date: 4/30/2020 at 12:58:58

Ronald "Ron" Dean Rodemeyer, 87, of Cedar Rapids, died peacefully in his sleep on Thursday, April 23, 2020, at UnityPoint-St. Luke's Hospital.

A Celebration of Life will be held in September. A private burial will be held at St. Joseph Cemetery. Teahen Funeral Home is serving the family.

Ron is survived by his children, Rona (William) Wyant of Marengo, Mark of Cedar Rapids and John of Amana; six grandchildren, Elle Wyant, Cassie (Zach) Bott, Bret (Jaime) Wyant, Nicole (Chad) Slattery, Blake (Ashley) Rodemeyer and Lucas (Joy) Nielsen; 12 great-grandchildren; and siblings, Judy Andersen and Michael Rodemeyer, both of Hampton.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Leona, in 2003; two sons, David and Michael; his daughter-in-law, Leslie Rodemeyer; and his parents.

Ron was born on Sept. 8, 1932, in Hampton, the son of Ellsworth "Bub" and Ferne Wolfe Rodemeyer. In 1950, he graduated from Hampton High School, where he was an eight-time letterman with honorable mention in football. Ronald married Leona Brandt on April 17, 1953, at the Little Brown Church in Nashua.

He was employed by Goodyear Tire for 30 years, retiring in 1976. He then went on to spend the next 20 years as president of RUD Chain USA / Rud Kettenfabrik, Germany, retiring in 1999. In later years, he worked part-time for VES and L.L. Pelling. His knowledge of the tire and chain business offered him an opportunity to travel to more than 40 countries.

In 1995, he became active in the Iowa Elks Lodge. During his time in Elks Lodge, he was elected exalted ruler of Cedar Rapids Elks Lodge and president of Iowa Elks Association, as well as trustee. Ronald helped to start up Cedar Hills Booster Baseball Club. He also helped bring 16-inch slowpitch softball to the Cedar Rapids area, and was elected to the Iowa Softball Hall of Fame. Ron's passions included fishing, bowling, golf, dogs and a good drink.

Instead of flowers, memorials may be directed to a charity of the donor's choice . Online condolences can be left at www.teahenfuneralhome.com.

Published in The Gazette on April 26, 2020