Ronald Frederick Tett, 75, of Ames passed away early Tuesday, August 25, in the comfort of his home. Visitation with the family will be from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Saturday at Stevens Memorial Chapel in Ames, followed by a private memorial service. A graveside service open to family and friends will be at 12:30 p.m. at Roland Cemetery in Story County, Iowa.
Ronnie was born May 11, 1945, at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames, Iowa. He grew up in McCallsburg, Iowa, the second of five children born to Harlan and Alice (Thompson) Tett. He spent his childhood pushing the boundaries of Burg on his bicycle, exploring and adventuring between his gigs delivering newspapers and mowing lawns. Many summers were filled enjoying the wooded grounds and plentiful fishing on the Thompson family farm in Leland, Iowa. At age 15 he began dating classmate Linda Anderson, and he never left her side. The couple married December 29, 1965, and lived in Ames while Ronnie worked and attended Iowa State University, graduating in 1967 with a degree in Industrial Administration. They later lived in Charles City and Story City, and returned to Ames in 1980. Ron enjoyed exercising his skills as a home builder, woodworker, mechanic, and engineer, but his proudest accomplishments were his daughters, Sara Ann, born in 1968, and Carrie Alice, 1979, and the grandchildren and great-grandchildren to follow. His favorite pastime was telling anyone who would listen about the kids, as well as his recollections of the people and events of his younger days.
Ronnie is survived by his wife, Linda; their daughters Sara (John) Lundvall of Ames and Carrie (Tom) Truesdell of Orange City, Iowa; grandchildren Dillan (Jack) Espeset of Crested Butte, Colorado, Christian and Julianne Lundvall of Ames, and Ava and Leif Schmitz and Aiden and Ava Truesdell of Orange City; great-grandson Kale Espeset of Crested Butte; siblings Hubert (Pam) Tett of Houston, Texas, Julie Kosinski of San Clemente, California, Rick (Abby) Tett of Plano, Texas, and David Tett of McCallsburg; many beloved aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews; and best friend Wayne Olson of Seattle, Washington. He was preceded in death by his parents.
Memorial gifts may be directed to JDRF for type 1 diabetes research.
The service will be live-streamed on the Stevens Memorial Chapel page on Facebook.
