Robert Carl "Ring" Ringstrand
Obituaries
Daily Sentinel page 3D - June 7, 2020
Robert Carl
Ringstrand
April 3, 1923 - May 27, 2020
Robert Carl Ringstrand
“Ring” was born April 3, 1923,
the only child of Carl Elmer
Ringstrand and Evelyn Eleanor
Peterson in Des Moines, Iowa.
His early interest in the
outdoors would continue all his
life. Ring learned to swim in the
Des Moines River and became a
proficient ice skater on the lagoon down the hill from his home.
He built his own boat from a mail order kit and spent part of his
summers on his aunt and uncle’s farm where he learned to ride a
horse. At East High School he was the drum major for the band, his
primary qualification being that the uniform fit. He became pretty
adept at throwing the baton, which impressed his young daughters
later.
Ring went to Iowa State to study electrical engineering, where
he was a member of the Cossacks, a trick horse riding group. He
enlisted in the Army after Pearl Harbor. Because he already had
a year of engineering under his belt, the Army sent him to the
University of Wyoming for another year. Whenever he could, he
got away to the Snowy Mountains to hike. He married Mary Jane
Hansman, also from Des Moines, in 1944.
Ring went to Europe on the first trans-Atlantic crossing of the SS
Queen Mary after VE Day. Posted to dreary Charleville-Mézières
on the French Belgian border, Ring was part of a Signal Corps
operation employing German POWs to recondition radio equipment
intended for use in the Pacific. Ring preferred Paris and used every
opportunity to commandeer a jeep to visit the Opera Comique and
see the sites. After his discharge, he and Mary returned to Ames so
he could finish his degree. His first job was with Wisconsin Bell in
Madison.
The births of three daughters followed, as well as several different
Bell System postings throughout the Midwest and in Cooperstown,
NY. Mary and Ring both loved moving to new places. Sunday drives
to discover the surrounding countryside were a constant feature of
family life. Ring, Mary, and their youngest daughter, Anne, moved
to Florida where Ring was active in the Florida Engineering Society
and worked for Southern Bell.
He retired in Florida and acquired a sailboat. He took several
sailing trips in the Bahamas with family and friends. After the
death of his wife, Ring and Anne moved to Grand Junction to be
near his daughter, Kristine. In Colorado, Ring did lots of hiking,
often with his son-in-law, Gregg Kampf. He had a camper and spent
a lot of time on Grand Mesa and in Arizona with his good friend,
Marilyn Pearson. He was a member of American Lutheran Church.
His faith was an important part of his life.
Ring died on May 27, aged 97, of heart failure. He is survived
by daughters, Kristine Kampf and Anne Ringstrand of Grand
Junction, and Karen Ringstrand of McLean, Virginia, as well as
five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He was devoted
to his family. We will miss him.
A memorial service will be held remotely on Wednesday, June
10, at 10:00 a.m. For details, visit the website robert-ringstrand.
forevermissed.com. Gifts in memory of Ring can be made to
American Lutheran Church, 631 26 1/2 Road, Grand Junction,
Colorado 81506 or HopeWest, 3090B N. 12
