Ronald Theodore Wilson
November 17, 2017
Ron was born in Los Angeles, California to Theodore and Virginia (Butler) Wilson. He was baptized at First Baptist Church in Redondo Beach, California and confirmed at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Clear Lake, South Dakota.
He attended schools in Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach, Calofirnia. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1956 and was honorable discharged in 1964.
In 1959 he met Janice Hofland and they were married on June 25, 1960 at Marble Lutheran Church in rural Canby, Minnesota. They lived in California for two years returning to the Minnesota-South Dakota area where they farmed for about six years near Clear Lake, SD. In 1968 he attended Lake Area Vo-Tech in Watertown, SD where he earned his FFA licenses as an Aviation Airframe and Power Plant Mechanic. The family moved to Minneapolis, MN area where for 25 years he pursued his career in corporate aviation field, including a brief time in Little Rock Arkansas. A move to Hot Springs, SD in 1994 included a career change whereby he obtained a CDL license and worked for Nelson's Oil and Gas delivering propane until his retirement in 2004.
At this time, he and his wife, Janice, pursued their love of travel and camping. They became volunteers for Federal and State Parks in the panhandle area of Florida spending 14 winters being "snowbirds" until moving to Florida in 2014.
Ron was a Boy Scout and shared this outdoor activity with his sons becoming a Cub Scout Leader and Assistant Scoutmaster. He served in the Police Reserve of Savage, MN for ten years and was a volunteer firefighter for the Cascade Volunteer Fire Department in Hot Springs, SD for fifteen years. He loved to travel and did a lot of it. He visited England and Netherlands while employed as an aviation mechanic; he thoroughly enjoyed a "Tiger" cruise on the aircraft carrier, Saratoga, with his son Eric, traveling from Spain to Jacksonville, FL . A trip to Copenhagen, Denmark while daughter in law Ann was stationed at the American Embassy was a as well as many family travels to Canada and almost every state.
Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Janice; sons: Eric (Ann) of Burnsville, MN and Darin (Heidi) of Springfield, IL; daughter Michelle of Lake Villa, IL; granddaughters Ambrosia Kota (Niles) and Jessica both of Duluth, MN and grandsons Anthony and Jacob of Lake Villa, IL; Sister Lynda (Travis) of Villa Rica, GA; many brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law; cousins, nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, aunts, uncles and cousins.
He attended schools in Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach, Calofirnia. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1956 and was honorable discharged in 1964.
In 1959 he met Janice Hofland and they were married on June 25, 1960 at Marble Lutheran Church in rural Canby, Minnesota. They lived in California for two years returning to the Minnesota-South Dakota area where they farmed for about six years near Clear Lake, SD. In 1968 he attended Lake Area Vo-Tech in Watertown, SD where he earned his FFA licenses as an Aviation Airframe and Power Plant Mechanic. The family moved to Minneapolis, MN area where for 25 years he pursued his career in corporate aviation field, including a brief time in Little Rock Arkansas. A move to Hot Springs, SD in 1994 included a career change whereby he obtained a CDL license and worked for Nelson's Oil and Gas delivering propane until his retirement in 2004.
At this time, he and his wife, Janice, pursued their love of travel and camping. They became volunteers for Federal and State Parks in the panhandle area of Florida spending 14 winters being "snowbirds" until moving to Florida in 2014.
Ron was a Boy Scout and shared this outdoor activity with his sons becoming a Cub Scout Leader and Assistant Scoutmaster. He served in the Police Reserve of Savage, MN for ten years and was a volunteer firefighter for the Cascade Volunteer Fire Department in Hot Springs, SD for fifteen years. He loved to travel and did a lot of it. He visited England and Netherlands while employed as an aviation mechanic; he thoroughly enjoyed a "Tiger" cruise on the aircraft carrier, Saratoga, with his son Eric, traveling from Spain to Jacksonville, FL . A trip to Copenhagen, Denmark while daughter in law Ann was stationed at the American Embassy was a as well as many family travels to Canada and almost every state.
Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Janice; sons: Eric (Ann) of Burnsville, MN and Darin (Heidi) of Springfield, IL; daughter Michelle of Lake Villa, IL; granddaughters Ambrosia Kota (Niles) and Jessica both of Duluth, MN and grandsons Anthony and Jacob of Lake Villa, IL; Sister Lynda (Travis) of Villa Rica, GA; many brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law; cousins, nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, aunts, uncles and cousins.
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Not a day goes by that I don’t miss you daddy! You made the world such a beautiful place and my life better than I could ever imagined. I’ve got the best guardian angel watching over me now and as always I’ll make you proud. Your lil pumpkin