Ronald Ballard Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Our husband, father, grandfather, brother, and uncle, Ronald (Ron) Neil Ballard passed away peacefully at his home in Manti, UT on August 25th 2015 at the age of 78. His son’s Todd and Troy, his amazing caregivers, were at his side. Ron was born on October 15, 1936 in Huntington Park, CA to Cecil Ernest and Bessie Alice (Richardson) Ballard. He is the oldest of 5 children. When he was very young his family moved to Pasadena, CA. After graduation from high school he earned an associate’s degree from Pasadena City College. He was planning on going to the University of Alaska at Fairbanks the following year, but his Bishop had other plans. He asked him to give full consideration to a mission call. He faithfully served an honorable mission in Argentina. After his mission, he joined the Army reserves. He was first stationed at Fort Ord, CA for 6 months, then at Fort Leonard Wood, MO. After being released from active duty he returned home to Pasadena. While dating, he had a rule to only date a girl once, but he broke that rule when he met Barbara Lena Niles on a blind date. Two months later they were engaged, and one month later on January 26, 1961 they were married in the Los Angeles Temple. They have four children. Ron attended Brigham Young University in Provo, UT. While attending school, Ron decided to try his hand at selling life insurance. He didn’t really like it, so he packed up his little family and moved back to Pasadena, CA. They lived in Pasadena for six years after which they purchased a home in Simi Valley, CA, and lived there until his retirement. Due to his background in Geology, Ron was hired as a soils engineer by the firm of Kovacs, Byer & Associates. He enjoyed the work and was a loyal trusted employee of the firm until his retirement. Ron and Barbara thought they might move back to Utah someday and he had always wanted to manage his own rental properties. So they decided to take an early retirement and move to Manti, UT, where they purchased, fixed up, and managed a number of properties. In addition to real estate Ron’s interests included archeology, history, photography, and studying minerals. He was an avid reader. He also acquired an interest in collecting old bottles which he dug up at various job sites. He loved scouting as a boy and he earned the rank of Eagle Scout when he was 15. Ron also took a lot of backpacking trips while serving many years as a Scoutmaster. Ron and Barbara loved fishing, hiking and the outdoors. They instilled a love of the outdoors in all their children. He was a faithful member of the LDS Church and held many callings. He was a scout leader for many years. He enjoyed helping many young men receive their own Eagle Scout awards and develop a love of scouting. He and Barbara were called to serve as temple workers and were happy serving in the Manti temple. He loved doing genealogy, and he and Barbara were also called to be family history consultants. Ron is survived by his wife, Barbara, his children: Brenda (Dennis) McDonald, Todd, Brian (Rain), and Troy. Grandchildren, Amber, Abigail, Tara, Caleb, Sierra, and Logan. Brothers, Gary and Kevin, and Sisters, Linda and Jan. He was preceded in death by his parents, Cecil and Bessie. He was a good husband, father, grandfather, and a kind, loving man who was always willing to help others. He will be missed by many. Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 5th, 2015 at 11:00 am in the Manti Stake Center, 555 East Union Street, Manti, Utah, with a viewing from 9:00 am to 10:30 am prior to the service. Interment will be in the Manti City Cemetery immediately following the service. The family would like to express their heart-felt gratitude to the staff at Community Living Center and the Gunnison Valley Hospital Home Care personnel for their loving care of our husband and father.

Ronald Ballard

October 15, 1936 - August 25, 2015

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