Ronald L Sammons

Ron Sammons received his final wish Saturday night, April 1, 2023. He is now in heaven, talking with his Mom, Dad, and two brothers, walking his dog Keisha. Ron’s life on this earth began more than 87 years ago, on August 23, 1935. Born Ronald Lee Sammons, he was the first child of Floyd and Jessie Mock Sammons. Living his entire life in Fort Collins, Colorado, Ron was born and died at Poudre Valley Hospital. Ron filled the shoes of big brother as the Sammons welcomed a baby girl, Barbara Sammons Dinges, of Newcastle, Wyoming. The family grew more when two boys were born, Jerry and Harold. Both brothers have preceded Ron in death. As a young boy, Ron wore out his shoes running around the Sammons homes at 222 Park Street and 205 S. Meldrum Street in Fort Collins. He delivered the Coloradoan newspaper door to door and climbed many stairs. Why so many stairs? Living every boy’s dream, Ron’s bedroom was on the third floor of his home on Meldrum. Tennis shoes were the best for riding his bike to Old Laporte Elementary, Franklin School, and Lincoln Junior High. Ron rode the streetcar/trolley to attend Fort Collins High School, graduating in 1954. After high school, Ron followed in his Dad’s footsteps by also working at Mountain Bell Telephone Company in Fort Collins. In 1958, Ron had to put on Army boots after being drafted during the Berlin Crisis of 1958. Sergeant Ron Sammons did not enjoy his years in the Signal Corps at Camp Funston, Fort Riley, Kansas. As a young 23 year old, he endured hot barracks and cold tents, handling communications for a self-propelled artillery battalion. Ron was trained and ready during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. He returned home after being Honorably Discharged from the U.S Army in 1963. Back at Mountain Bell, Ron put on hiking boots to work for several summers in Estes Park, climbing telephone poles, stringing lines, and installing phones in cabins. Sudden lightning storms would chase Ron off the poles, and back to a rental cabin, that unknown to him, his future wife was cleaning during summers in the 1960s. In Fort Collins, Ron’s Mountain Bell career began by replacing old wooden crank telephones with modern dial telephones. Ron filled the shoes of a telephone technician, installing phones around town, in a new tower of Poudre Valley Hospital, and later in his career at Larimer County, he upgraded telephone switching equipment from analog to modern Voice Over Internet Protocol. In 1971, after 35 years of bachelor life, Ron asked a woman in his career class at First Baptist church out for dinner, a woman he had met decades earlier. After only 6 weeks of dating, Ron proposed to Rebecca (Becky) Ann Johnson. Ron put on his best pair of shoes for their wedding, on October 16, 1971. Together, the newlyweds purchased land by selling Ron’s Ford Mustang. In 1972, they planned and built their house at Lemay and Dartmouth. The new red brick house soon had two children filling the home with footfalls of small shoes. A son, Nate was born May 22, 1975, and a daughter Sarah, born August 22, 1979. Sarah and husband Chris Davis thrilled Ron and Becky with a grandson, Fox Maxwell Lee Davis on February 7, 2021. Ron and Becky love their home at 1925 S. Lemay Avenue, where they have lived for over 50 years. They finished the basement for Ron’s book collection and Becky has lavishly landscaped flower and vegetable gardens. Ron’s work in the sound booth at church, his library cataloging needs, and interest in electronics persuaded him to buy every new computer model Apple made, which provided the tools for Nate to become a software engineer. Becky stopped teaching High School history to raise and educate their children, inspiring her daughter Sarah to become an educator. Ron had a passion for books, any book, a true bibliophile. He spent decades creating a vast library in his basement surrounding his desk and pool table. He had an interest in many topics, western novels, John Wayne movies, Old Testament history and Middle East archeology. This sparked a “vacation” to Israel in July 1969, during the Apollo 11 lunar landing, where Ron wore sandals to work at an archaeological dig at Gezer. Ron revisited Israel years later, this time with Becky. After acquiring over 2500 books and artifacts, Ron donated his entire biblical collection to the Denver Seminary. After retiring, Ron gathered more history books, on a different topic this time, the New Testament. His retirement included biblical research, acting in Passion plays, traveling the West from Albuquerque to Alaska, and weekly breakfasts shared with other retirees. While Becky gardened outside, Ron worked as household butler, in charge of dishes and laundry. Ron has had the love of his life Becky, to keep him moving as a daily event planner, driver, and care-giver. Ron cherished the love and devotion Becky poured on him, knowing and saying to her frequently how much he loved her. Becky has remained at her husband’s side through all of his ups and downs, loving Ron with all her heart and soul for over 51 years. Ron wore a variety of shoes in his life, as a son, telephone man, Army soldier, amateur archeologist, bibliophile, husband, father, and Grandpa. Ron filled each of those shoes with his big feet, and showed us all in his actions, his even bigger heart. Ron has left his earthly shoes behind. We see them discarded, no longer wanted or needed, stretched out from hard work, faded with time in the sun, stained with blood and tears, damaged by the suffering of everyday life. Ron is free from of all the painful shoes of life. He’s now enjoying life on a different plane, living a life surrounded with joy, forever. Please send any donations in Ron’s name to Putnam Elementary School, 1400 Maple Street, Fort Collins, Colorado, 80521, Eco Week fund.

Tributes

Ronald L Sammons

August 23, 1935 - April 1, 2023