Ronald “Ron” Freymuth, 88, passed away peacefully on 8/8/24 at his home in Huntsville, Alabama. He was diagnosed with systolic congestive heart failure and went on Hospice Care in October 2023.
Ron was born July 30, 1936 in Powell, Wyoming to parents Forrest and Lorine Freymuth. The family lived in Spokane, Washington until he was age 5 and then moved to Seattle, Washington where he grew up. He is survived by wife Norma Freymuth, stepdaughter Valerie Tripp, grandson Matthew Truex, grandson Derek Tripp and wife Nicole, and son-in-law Ray Truex. He is preceded in death by stepdaughter Sheila Truex who passed from cancer on August 3, 2024. In addition, he is survived by 4 of 5 younger siblings Wayne, Gary, Marilyn Lind, Ted, and their children and preceded in death by brother Allen.
Ron always had a positive attitude and was naturally upbeat. He was strong, wise, intelligent, and even-keeled. He was steady, composed, and unshakably centered in who he was. But most of all Ron is remembered for his ever-present sense of humor. He liked talking with people and always had a joke or interesting little tidbits of information to tell. He was a sympathetic listener and when asked gave sage advice. He accepted the way things were and didn’t focus on the past. He never let anything keep him down. With his dry humor he made the best of any situation with a lighthearted comment or joke – sometimes an eye rolling or bad dad joke, but always meant to uplift or liven things up. Whenever someone told him to have a nice day he would say “I won’t accept anything less.”
His words of wisdom to daughter Valerie were:
- Find the positive and look at the plus side
- Things are going to be okay
- Don’t get bent out of shape
- Try to enjoy life as long as you’ve got it
Ron was born with normal sight but then developed cataracts as a child. He had one of the first ever experimental cataract surgeries at around age 9. He was blind for 2 years while waiting for approval for the surgery and afterwords always had to wear very thick “coke bottle” glasses. His life really changed when he could wear contact lenses.
Ron worked in retail most of his life. After graduating from high school and a short stint unloading canned salmon from ships and then as a house painter, he didn’t have a job and answered an ad for a stock person at a Newberry store. The store was in Seattle in one of the first shopping centers in the country. From there his career as a store manager was launched. He was promoted and transferred to Los Angeles. His first store manager position was at the Hollywood Boulevard store in Hollywood, CA. He worked as a store manager for 31 years at many different stores in Southern California and won awards for his achievements such as Manager of the Year and #1 store in the district. He said he always enjoyed being a store manager because he liked being his own boss.
Ron and Norma were married 57 years. He met widow Norma at a Parents Without Partners dance (even though he couldn’t dance – another story) and they dated for only about 6 months. Sheila and Valerie were excited to call Ron “Dad” when they got married. Besides spending time with Norma, family, and friends he liked skiing, hiking, camping, shooting, traveling, and reading. He loved to go to Big Bear, CA to stay in their mobile home to enjoy the mountains and motorcycling.
In 1991 Ron and Norma opened their own business, Farr’s Stationers, in Corona, CA. It was an office products/copy center, Gold Crown Hallmark, and gift store franchise. The 12,000 square foot store was a destination and loved by the Corona community. Ron always hoped to run Farr’s until retirement but unfortunately because of increased competition and retail sales decline he was forced to close 15 years later. To keep busy Ron worked at a jewelry store in Orange County and motorcycle shop in Corona. Sometime after that Ron and Norma moved from Corona to the Riverside area. Then in 2016 they decided to move again and packed up all their belongings and hired a moving company. In January 2017, at the ages of 80 and 83 respectively Ron and Norma took off in their van pulling their trailer and drove to Huntsville, Alabama. They bought a home to be near daughter Sheila, her husband Ray, and son Matt and to take advantage of the lower cost of living.
Ron had a lifelong interest in aviation and aircraft. In 1944 when he saw two Navy planes practicing dogfighting overhead in Seattle he was hooked. Ron told the story that at 18 years old he was called for the draft physical and when asked to take off his glasses and read the chart on the wall he squinted and said, “what wall?” Although he could never be a military pilot or serve in the military because of his poor eyesight he was a private pilot for several years. Typical of Ron’s humor he joked “I wanted to have a flight school where I could charge $20 to take off and $100 to land.”
Ron had an expansive self-taught knowledge of World War I and World War II history and aviation that he learned through his own study and reading, but his passion was WWII aircraft. He collected aviation prints, memorabilia, models, and books and displayed them in vignettes in his Aviation Room and Library. Most of his prints are signed by the actual pilot or pilots depicted. He especially enjoyed giving tours of his collection to anyone who stopped by. He loved to attend air shows and go to air museums. He and Norma took quite a few trips to visit air museums around the U.S. and overseas.
Ron had woodworking and home renovation skills that he picked up from his dad by helping or watching. He was extremely artistic although he never had any formal training. All of Ron and Norma’s homes were lovely and they both enjoyed decorating and entertaining. He was a master of Christmas tree “trimming” and his trees were always amazing. He decorated all the trees at Farr’s Stationers and every year had a beautiful Christmas tree at home. The trees always had a theme – the 10-foot tree in angel/gold decor, one or two decorated with Hallmark ornaments and another one with airplane ornaments.
Ron was an extremely generous person especially to his family and favorite charities. He was a member of the Corona Rotary Club and served on the Corona-Norco Family YMCA board for more than 10 years.
Towards the end when Ron’s health steadily declined, he still never complained or felt sorry for himself. He was always willing to attempt a different protocol or take a new medication with the comment “it’s worth a try.” He faced his new daily reality like he always faced his life – with aplomb and cheerfulness.
Ron was such a wonderful man, husband, dad, and granddad. He will be missed so very much by his family, friends, and all who knew him.
Ron was raised Baptist but joined the Lutheran Church because of Norma. Ron’s memorial service will be held at 10:30 AM on August 27, 2024, at Messiah Lutheran Church in Madison, Alabama. His cremains will be interned at Cloverdale Cemetery in Boise, Idaho where he and Norma have a plot.
Messiah Lutheran Church
7740 Highway 72 West
Madison, Alabama 35758
(256) 721-0041
