Ronald Ray Reddekopp

We regretfully announce the passing of Ronald Ray Reddekopp, after bravely living with ALS for 3 years. He was just 66 years old.

A native Oregonian, Ron was born to Laverne J. Hensley and Warren C. Reddekopp on December 16, 1948 in Portland. He would be raised and live most of his life in the Portland area. Before he had turned 18, Ron joined the United States Army and did a tour of duty in Vietnam. It was during his time in the Army he would meet Audrey P. Martin, a native of Poquoson, Virginia, who was working as an Army secretary at Fort Eustis in Newport News, Virginia. Very much in love, Ron and Audrey would eventually leave Virginia, with Audrey’s white Volkswagen bug loaded down with their processions and Audrey’s son from her first marriage, Ron E. Manning.

They pointed their little bug west and drove cross-country, stopping along the way to be married on February 16, 1971. Ron would eventually bring his new family back to his home of Oregon. They soon purchased a home, in then just growing up community of Gresham. A son, Erick, was born to them in November of that same year and Audrey’s other child, a daughter, Sharon Manning would also join them bringing their family to five.

After working for the railroad, Ron eventually took a job with the United States Postal Service which he would work for over 40 years until his retirement. Ron was also known as a self-taught master craftsman. It started when he moved his new family into their first home, where he built much of the little families first furniture, insisting on using old school methods of wood-pegs to fasten it together as opposed to nails. In all three homes he would eventually own in his lifetime he would perform great overhauls and remodeling on them, leaving all who knew him impressed at his brilliance for the meticulous work he did without any formal training.

Ron also had a love of driving. After his retirement, he took a job with a motorhome sales company being one of their drivers moving the motorhomes between states. Later he would also work as a bus driver. He eventually turned his interests to barbecue. He built an outdoor kitchen onto the home he shared with his wife on Hayden Island. That outdoor kitchen became his workshop and for those lucky enough to be part of one of his many barbecue’s over the years, it would ruin you for other barbecue because he had mastered the craft so well. To know Ron was to both admire him, but to love him, once you got past his often sarcastic and off color humor. But it made you love him that much more when you did. He was always a dedicated husband and father, even though he had a rough childhood himself, he strived for the best for his family.

Ron is survived, loved and missed by his wife Audrey, sons Ron and Erick, daughter Sharon, son-in-law Tom, daughter-in-law Barbara, grandchildren Nicholas and Courtney, his dog Stretch and mother Laverne.

His service will be held on Thursday, January 22nd at 3pm:
Willamette National Cemetery
11800 Southeast Mount Scott Boulevard
Portland, OR 97086

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you donate to:
ALS Foundation
http://www.alsa.org/donate/