The world lost a great guy on September 30, 2026, when Ronald J. Roethel passed away at the age of 76 following an allergic reaction to a bee sting, and a fall which broke his neck. After surgery and seven days in the hospital he lost the courageous fight.
Ron was born March 29, 1950, to Gerhardt and Dorothy (nee Meggers) Roethel in Sheboygan. He was a long-time member of St. John’s UCC Church in Sheboygan.
Ron graduated from Sheboygan North High School and immediately enrolled in an apprenticeship program to be a truck mechanic working in a number of truck garages. He then worked for the Sheboygan County Highway Dept. for 31 years before retiring in 2009. After retiring, Ron enjoyed working part-time at Kennedy Ford in Sheboygan Falls.
Ron enjoyed classic cars, having completely restored a 1959 Ford Fairlane Retractable which he worked on for many years. When it was completed, he sold it and bought his first Harley Davidson motorcycle, and he enjoyed many years of riding with family and friends. He also enjoyed Modified Stock Car Racing and was part of the pit crew for Kenny Marquardt for many years. He was a regular at the Plymouth Dirt Track every Saturday night.
Ron married Karen Riviers in 1993 in Las Vegas and they lived in Black River until she died in 2002. In 2008 he met another Karen (Walsh), a fellow HD rider through the HOG Chapter, and they were married in 2010. It wasn’t until he married Karen #2 and retired that he started traveling both on long distance motorcycle trips, cruises, bus trips and even trips to Alaska in 2016 and Costa Rica in 2023. Ron was also a great handyman and could fix just about anything.
Ron was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife Karen, and a nephew Erich Roethel. He is survived by his loving wife Karen #2, and two stepdaughters, Kimberly (Larry) Dobberfuhl, and Kelly (Allen) Beck, and 6 grandchildren. He is also survived by a brother, Robert (Laurie) Roethel, niece Tanya (Todd) King, nephews, Quinten (Candace) Roethel, and Corey (Jennifer) Roethel, and 5 great nieces and nephews, as well as many long-term friends.
He was born, blinked, and it was over. No buildings named after him; no monuments erected in his honor. But he did have a chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all his family members.
I’m sure he would say, don’t cry because I’m gone, instead be happy that I was here. Today he is happy and in the arms of the Lord he loved.
A Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, October 10, 2026, at 12:00 Noon at Olson Funeral Home & Cremation Service, 1132 Superior Ave., Sheboygan. Burial will follow at Sheboygan Falls Cemetery. Relatives and friends may visit with the family on Saturday, October 10, 2026, from 10:00 AM until the time of service at the FUNERAL HOME.
Please visit our website to share your stories and leave your condolences for the family www.olsonfuneralhome.info.
The Olson Funeral Home & Cremation Service has been entrusted with Ron’s arrangements.
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